In its role as the Los Angeles Region K-16 Collaborative convener, UNITE-LA led a two-day site visit in February for the Office of Public School Construction (OPSC), the state agency overseeing the K-16 Collaborative Grant Program. OPSC and the Foundation for California Community Colleges met with members of the L.A. Region K-16 Collaborative, including leadership from K-12 districts, community colleges, CSUs, UCs and employers. In total, 26 members of the collaborative’s regional and subregional structure participated in the site visit.

During the site visit, participants discussed regional and subregional strategies for addressing partnership development in the county. These conversations honed in on the K-16 Collaborative process for forming shared goals, metrics and plans for the remainder of the grant period and beyond. Participants were pleased to share details about early implementation of strategies approved by the Regional Stewardship Group, which will lead to more students from diverse backgrounds entering into high-quality careers in health care, computer science and engineering.

Among other positive feedback, OPSC commended UNITE-LA's commitment to driving systems change initiatives from a collective impact standpoint, a defining feature of the L.A. region's approach, which sets us apart from other collaboratives in the state.

For more information, please reach out to Adam Gottlieb, Director of Postsecondary Strategy and Policy, at [email protected].