TITLE
Recommendation to authorize City Manager, or designee, to execute an agreement, and any necessary amendments, with Long Beach Community College District, to provide work experience for students at City sites as needed, for a period not to exceed five years. (Citywide)
DISCUSSION
An important goal of the City’s 10-Year Blueprint for Economic Development (Blueprint) Jobs and Workforce Development Focus Area, is to ensure the preparedness of the workforce and the competitiveness of businesses through the alignment of economic development, training, education, and community partner efforts. To advance this goal, and to benefit both students and employers, the City is partnering with the Long Beach Community College District (District) to develop a work experience education program that will place District students at work sites that: (a) address talent and skills gaps for the City; (b) align with student career pathways; and (c) prepare students to immediately enter the local workforce after graduation.
As the economy evolves and talent gaps emerge, large and dynamic employers like the City must focus on engaging educational institutions as a partner to recruit, train, and prepare talent. Work experience provides one of the most effective opportunities for employers like the City to work with educational institutions directly to close skill and talent gaps. This type of program also addresses important goals of the Mayor’s Internship Challenge and the Economic Inclusion Focus Area of the Blueprint because skill gaps are often more disparate in communities with higher poverty rates and communities of color. Work experience education can help to close these gaps by providing student exposure to job opportunities, access to job sites, engagement with employers, and validation of career goals.
City Council approval is requested to authorize the City Manager, or designee, to enter into an agreement with the District that will allow the District to place stud...
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