The Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) has received a $15 million California Career Pathways grant to help prepare more Angelenos for jobs in high demand, high growth sectors.

The funding, which was announced by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, was secured in part by the Los Angeles Economic and Workforce Development Dept., expanding existing partnerships with the Los Angeles Workforce Investment Board, the Economic and Workforce Development Dept., the Los Angeles Unified School District and the LACCD to strengthen the city’s “cradle to career pipeline”, improving education and employment outcomes.

“Our city’s future depends on the success of our students,” Garcetti said. “To continue growing our economy in Los Angeles, we need a skilled, educated workforce ready to thrive in the jobs of tomorrow, and this grant helps put us on that path. With this investment in working Angelenos, our redesigned workforce training system, and the passing of our new minimum wage law, we are now leaps ahead in creating an economy in which all Angelenos can thrive.”

Funding from the grant will go toward career readiness programming at the city’s YouthSource Centers, a network of 16 organizations offering education and job training assistance, paid work experience, work readiness career exploration and college preparation for youth ages 14-24.

The grant is a portion of $244 million awarded by State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson to 40 programs that blend academic and career technical education, connect employers with schools and train students for jobs in high-growth fields, including information technology, advanced manufacturing, health care and software development.

In addition to $15 million in direct funding, the grant includes more than $1.7 million of in-kind and matched resources that will help further expand Career Pathways Trust funding and enable the partnership to serve more than 6,000 participants. The partnership will work with more than 95 employers to offer 1,800 internship opportunities.

“This project has helped elevate the district’s visibility as a major uniting mechanism for higher education, workforce development and local government,” LACCD Board of Trustees president Scott Svonkin said. “The project is very timely because it includes resources that will make systemic enhancements such as work-based learning and dual/concurrent enrollment.”