California has made historic investments to expand career-connected learning—through initiatives like Jobs First, the Regional K–16 Collaboratives, Golden State Pathways, the K–12 Strong Workforce Program and the Learning-Aligned Employment Program (LAEP). All share a common goal: to ensure every learner—regardless of background—has access to seamless pathways connecting education and work.

Despite this aligned vision, these initiatives have been implemented in silos, each operating under distinct structures and timelines. The result is fragmented employer engagement, uneven access for students and limited infrastructure to scale high-quality, paid and equitable work-based learning (WBL) statewide.

Los Angeles County—with its vast and diverse ecosystem of 80 school districts, 21 community colleges, seven workforce boards and 10 million residents—illustrates both the promise and the complexity of this challenge. The region’s lessons can help inform statewide solutions.