CALIFORNIA COMPETES

CALIFORNIA COMPETES ADVANCES EQUITABLE POSTSECONDARY OPPORTUNITIES AND A JUST AND INCLUSIVE ECONOMY BY INFLUENCING SYSTEMS-LEVEL CHANGE FOR UNDERSERVED CALIFORNIANS. IN FY24, CALIFORNIA COMPETES MADE SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS BY PURSUING A RANGE OF STRATEGIES, FROM PROMOTING ACCESS AND SUCCESS FOR ADULT LEARNERS TO ALIGNING HIGHER EDUCATION WITH WORKFORCE NEEDS, ADVANCING A MORE AGILE AND INNOVATIVE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM, AND CONTRIBUTING TO COORDINATED POLICY DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION. IN OUR WORK TO ADVANCE COLLEGE ACCESS AND SUCCESS FOR ADULTS, WE CO-LED THE CALIFORNIA ALLIANCE FOR STUDENT PARENT SUCCESS, A STATEWIDE COALITION TO SUPPORT STUDENTS WITH DEPENDENT CHILDREN. THROUGH THIS COALITION, WE SPONSORED OUR FIRST BILL, THE GAINS FOR STUDENT PARENTS ACT (AB 2458) (AND SECURED ITS PASSAGE IN SEPTEMBER 2024) TO IMPROVE FINANCIAL AID ACCESS FOR STUDENT PARENTS AND DATA COLLECTION PRACTICES SO COLLEGES CAN BETTER IDENTIFY THE STUDENT PARENTS THEY SERVE. IN PARTNERSHIP WITH CALIFORNIAATTAIN!'S NETWORK OF HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS, WE ALSO CONDUCTED RESEARCH THAT FOCUSED ON IDENTIFYING AND REMOVING BARRIERS TO RE-ENROLLMENT FOR CALIFORNIANS WITH SOME COLLEGE BUT NO CREDENTIAL, ENSURING THEY CAN ACCESS EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES AND ECONOMIC MOBILITY. TO STRENGTHEN WORKFORCE ALIGNMENT, WE FACILITATED STRATEGIC COLLABORATION AMONG COMMUNITY COLLEGES IN LOS ANGELES COUNTY AND LOCAL COUNTY GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS, FOSTERING A CROSS-SECTOR CULTURE TO BOOST CAREER READINESS. OUR EFFORTS IN PROMOTING A MORE AGILE AND INNOVATIVE HIGHER EDUCATION FOR THE STATE ADVANCED THROUGH OUR CALIFORNIA HIGHER EDUCATION POLICY INSTITUTE FOR LEGISLATIVE STAFF AND A SERIES OF EVENTS DURING THE WORLD'S LARGEST EDUCATION TECHNOLOGY CONFERENCE. THROUGH THESE ACTIVITIES, WE PROVIDED RESEARCH-BASED INSIGHTS AND CREATED SPACES FOR POLICYMAKERS, LEADERS, AND THEIR STAFF TO THINK CRITICALLY ON THE KEY ISSUES FACING THE STATE'S HIGHER EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE SYSTEMS AND SHARE IDEAS FOR REFORM. THROUGH EVENTS LIKE THIS, WE AIM TO CONTRIBUTE TO INFORMED DECISION-MAKING TOWARDS RESHAPING SYSTEMS TO BETTER SERVE CALIFORNIANS. IN THE REALM OF COORDINATED POLICY SETTING AND IMPLEMENTATION, WE ADVISED THE GOVERNOR'S OFFICE ON STRENGTHENING STRUCTURES TO PROMOTE COHESIVE AND EFFECTIVE POLICY IMPLEMENTATION. ADDITIONALLY, WE PLAYED A PIVOTAL ROLE AS LEAD ADVOCATE FOR AND ADVISOR TO THE CALIFORNIA CRADLE-TO-CAREER DATA SYSTEM (C2C). WITH CALIFORNIA COMPETES CEO ACTIVELY SERVING ON THE C2C GOVERNING BOARD AS A LEGISLATIVE APPOINTEE, WE'VE PROVIDED THOUGHT LEADERSHIP TO SHAPE DISCUSSIONS FOR PRODUCTIVE MEETINGS AND ADVANCED C2C'S DEVELOPMENT. WE ALSO IMPROVED HOLISTIC STUDENT SUPPORT THROUGH THE REFINEMENT OF STUDENT HOUSING POLICIES AND THE LAUNCH OF THE PUBLIC BENEFIT FINDER FOR CALIFORNIA STUDENTS, OUR NEW USER-FRIENDLY TOOL WHICH HELPS STUDENTS AND THEIR SUPPORTERS FIND THE RESOURCES TO WHICH THEY'RE ENTITLED.