UNITE-LA convened more than 60 K-12 districts, higher education, workforce and employer partners in January for a Lunch & Learn spotlighting the L.A. Region K-16 Collaborative's newly released health care workforce report, marking the largest community of practice session to date. The event highlighted key labor market insights and featured a panel of higher education and health care leaders who shared real-world perspectives on workforce demand, clinical placement challenges and the need for stronger alignment across education and training pathways.

As California continues building toward a fully integrated education-to-career system, UNITE-LA joined partners from the Los Angeles Regional Consortium (LARC) and the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC) at the Statewide K–16 Collaborative Peer Convening in San Diego on Jan. 29 and 30. The gathering brought together representatives from all 13 regional collaboratives to align on sustainability, funding strategies and measurable outcomes for California’s education-to-career system.

LA DEAL advanced a coordinated policy and partnership strategy in the first quarter of 2026 to expand broadband access and strengthen digital equity across Los Angeles County. This work included engagement in state regulatory proceedings, federal funding discussions and direct collaboration with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to improve key broadband programs, ensuring underserved communities have access to reliable, high-speed internet.

As part of the Horizons 32K strategic plan to improve outcomes for opportunity youth across Los Angeles County, UNITE‑LA is advancing efforts to strengthen the transition from high school into college, training and employment for students in Los Angeles' alternative education system. In February, alongside the Britebound Center for Career Navigation at Jobs for the Future (JFF) and LAUSD, UNITE‑LA convened K–12, community college and workforce leaders to improve career navigation for students completing high school in non-traditional settings. LAUSD's Options division serves more than 9,000 students across 60 sites, including continuation high schools, virtual academies and community day schools for expelled students.

UNITE-LA is advancing a coordinated state policy agenda and urging partners, employers and policymakers to support critical state legislation—AB 805 and SB 1132—to strengthen California's workforce system and expand economic mobility for opportunity youth. This work builds on momentum from the 2026 Youth Apprenticeship Summit in Sacramento, where leaders across education, workforce and policy aligned around implementation, marking a critical shift from planning to action. As the state moves to operationalize recommendations from the California Youth Apprenticeship Committee, UNITE-LA is helping ensure that policy, practice and lived experience are aligned to expand equitable, high-quality career pathways.

"I know who I am, I know where I'm going, and I know who can help me get there." That is the goal driving UNITE-LA’s latest effort to ensure more young people in Los Angeles County graduate high school with real momentum toward college, career and economic mobility. Through the California Purposeful Pathways Project, funded by the Gates Foundation, UNITE-LA and the California Community Foundation will support demonstration models in the Long Beach and South Bay subregions of the L.A. Region K–16 Collaborative—showing how high schools and community colleges can better integrate advising, dual enrollment and career-connected learning into coherent, equitable pathways for students.

UNITE-LA officially launched the California Accessing Economic Mobility (CAEM) Fellowship on March 11. The initiative builds on UNITE-LA’s recent research on the unique needs and assets of affinity business organizations, including a statewide survey of nearly 90 chambers of commerce and business associations.

UNITE-LA is leading a new effort to ensure more young people in Los Angeles County graduate high school with clear pathways to college, careers and economic mobility.

Through the California Purposeful Pathways Project, funded by the Gates Foundation, UNITE-LA and the California Community Foundation will support proof points in the Long Beach and South Bay subregions of the L.A. Region K-16 Collaborative. The effort will demonstrate how high schools and community colleges can better align advising, dual enrollment and career-connected learning into more coherent and equitable pathways for students.

On March 13, partners from across Los Angeles County came together for the Horizons 32K Stewardship Board quarterly meeting to deepen alignment around our shared mission to reduce youth disconnection. Representatives from education, workforce, philanthropy, community‑based organizations and county agencies were in the room, alongside members of the Youth Advisory Council. The group received updates across key workstreams, including efforts to strengthen high school transitions, expand earn‑and‑learn opportunities, advance systems change through the Opportunity Youth Demonstration Project and improve mentorship and regional coordination. The conversations reinforced our collective commitment to ensuring young people—especially those furthest from opportunity—can access clear, supported pathways into education, training and employment.

UNITE-LA kicked off the 11th cohort of Step into Tech last month, welcoming 31 aspiring tech professionals selected from more than 200 applicants. As they begin building in-demand skills, exploring career pathways and connecting with industry mentors, they are joining a program designed not just to train but to launch careers.

That impact is already taking shape through alumni like Estefania Perez. After graduating in summer 2024, she returned as an Emerging Leader for the spring 2025 cohort while starting a $25 per hour internship as a Network Analytics Intern at Caterpillar Inc. By fall 2025, she secured a full-time role as an IT Analyst and has since returned again as a volunteer mentor.