UNITE-LA's Senior Vice President of Policy & Public Affairs, Sonia Campos-Rivera, was honored to facilitate the Education & Workforce Session at the CA FWD Economic Summit in Bakersfield a few weeks ago. As chairs of the California Stewardship Network (CSN) Cradle-to-Career Workgroup and co-chairs of the Workforce Work Group, UNITE-LA played a key role in working with stakeholders from across the state to identify critical cradle-to-career priorities in California to build an inclusive economy for all. The two-day summit is designed to create a shared economic agenda known as the Roadmap to Shared Prosperity, setting the stage for collective action in 2023. The Education and Workforce work group focuses on moving the needle on student and labor market outcomes.

The session included remarks by Eloy Ortiz Oakley, President & CEO of College Futures Foundation, and work group leads Dr. Su Jin Jez, California Competes; Jermaine Hampton, LAEDC; Jessica Ku Kim, County of Los Angeles; and Michael Wiafe, Inland Empire Community Foundation. 

Be sure to check out these relevant sound bites from UNITE-LA Senior Vice President Sonia Campos-Rivera when she spoke to CA FWD's media team in Bakersfield:

• The Time is Now to Focus on Equitable Education & Workforce Reform
• The Importance of a Cradle-to-Career Approach
• The Path Forward

Video courtesy of CA FWD / Videography by Angel Cardenas.