Pam Sornson, JD, Author at EWD Pulse

Meet Richard Verches: Part II

Pam Sornson, JD on July 7, 2020

With only two years on the job, Richard Verches is bringing his stellar legal, humanitarian, and business acumen to his work as the Executive Director of the Center for a Competitive Workforce (CCW), a program of the LA Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC). What’s been especially notable is how well that background supports his pivot to incorporate COVID-19 fall-out and concerns into his long-range strategy for the region.

New Focus; New Strategies

When starting his work in the Executive role at the CCW, Verches was presented with three immediate challenges:

1. 1. Streamlining the work of its previous ‘leader’ – not a person but a consortium of education and business executives – into a more unified strategic plan. He could then build on their good work while introducing his own unique perspective to the effort.
  2. Structuring his conversations with educators and industries. Traditionally, community colleges weren’t designed to produce the workforce envisioned by the Center, so their existing infrastructure didn’t embrace neighboring businesses’ labor demands. At the same time, local companies weren’t in the habit of looking to their local colleges for hiring purposes. Without their input, the schools wouldn’t know what programs to offer.
  3. Bringing together the disparate resources of the 19 schools, the many industries, and the numerous governmental agencies that span the Los Angeles region. With a population of 20 million, Verches is acutely aware of the many, many perspectives that his Center will have to consider.

Verches was also aware of an innate bias toward four-year schools as the means to a successful career. That bias inhibited many potential students from even considering attending any higher education school.

Steps Forward …

His first step was to develop a series of ‘playbooks,’ one per industry, that collected data relevant to both the schools and the businesses. Verches had noted that schools with similar types of programs were graduating students with vastly different skill sets; there was no consistency of outcomes even when the subject matters were the same. He designed the playbooks to reduce those inconsistencies and get everyone – schools and businesses – on the same educational page.

The playbooks themselves provide insights into how LA County’s economy functions by identifying all existing industries and then highlighting those with the highest likelihood of growth. It is these high-growth jobs that Verches is targeting as those that the colleges can embrace:

High growth occupations promise future economic gains and stability.

Most require ‘middle skills,’ beyond entry-level, but not requiring an advanced degree. Most community college students can excel in these occupations.

With employer inputs, the schools can tailor their programs to teach exactly what is needed, for a reasonable cost and in a reasonable time frame.

Verches also works with schools to develop the social and other supports needed by many community college students to overcome cultural and economic barriers to their higher education goals.

… Leading to Solutions

The playbooks respond to the first two of Verches’ challenges: they create a single ‘version of truth’ that all education and workforce development partners can use. They also facilitate ongoing conversations about the partnership of economic development and education with the business community.

To resolve the third challenge, how to communicate across a vast geographical region and a highly differentiated population, CCW had committed to using the latest technology and tools even before the sudden disruption of the Covid-19 pandemic. All meetings have been transitioned to virtual meetings with record levels of attendance by both faculty and employers.

He almost immediately noted that these increased communications were building more collaboration between industry cohorts and school programs. While businesses and schools have historically acted in ‘friendly’ competition with other companies and colleges, the Strong Workforce Program included a mandate for a more ‘collaborative model’ of regional coordination and alignment, that is in the interest of both business and schools.

Notably, the enhanced communications strategy also eliminated many of the connection barriers experienced by so many as the pandemic forced people to stay home. While many entities struggled to get virtual communications channels online and open, the CCW and its community partners already had trusted relationships and infrastructure in place to seamlessly transition. Consequently, as the crisis continues to grip the LA basin, in the CCW, there is a recognized regional process and platform to address COVID-specific issues. The solutions they achieve support their shared vision and approach to identifying where LA’s economy is most impacted, addressing those unique the challenges, and contemplating longer-range solutions to the inevitable employment and industry collapses that COVID is causing.

In Verches’ opinion, the fact that the economy-building conversation was already ongoing as the pandemic struck allowed industry and education leaders to be much more intentional and mindful about their shared and individual roles related to long-term solutions than they would have been before this very unique moment in time.

The COVID-19 challenge also underscores the significance of California’s vision of connecting its colleges directly to its economic future. Because of this project, those systems are already in flux, evolving to meet these new, economy-based demands. Pivoting to address the additional problems caused by COVID will better position the State to respond to immediate stresses caused by the disease (unemployment, healthcare, etc.) while also developing the infrastructure needed to manage future pandemics and disasters.

And on top of that, perhaps most closely aligned with his humanitarian spirit, Verches sees the work of the Center as an opportunity to achieve the fundamental goal of democracy: providing a safe and inclusive environment where any person can access opportunities and resources to attain an economically viable, affordable education and obtain a financially stable, self-sustaining and fulfilling job. Throughout his career, Richard Verches has focused on developing this ideal; his work with the Center for a Competitive Workforce provides him with a unique opportunity to shepherd it to its fruition.

Balancing Factors for Reopening Colleges

Pam Sornson, JD on June 12, 2020

A lot is riding on colleges reopening this Fall, from continuing student success to – in at least one opinion – the future of the higher education sector itself. However, the decision to reopen, and in what format, will be based on the balancing of several distinguishing factors, many of which are out of the control of decision-makers. As is everything else COVID-related, many of them are also taking a ‘wait and see’ position.

What Happens if College Campuses Don’t Open in Fall 2020?

At this moment (early June), reopening college campuses any time soon seems like a bad idea (see below). However, NOT opening them also poses critical concerns to all college and university constituents, not the least of which are the economic factors.

Schools rely on tuition and other revenues to cover their salaries, maintenance, etc. and would have to make severe cuts to those budgets if revenues fell. Several colleges have already noted the potential losses they would suffer if the 20-21 school year doesn’t launch as usual in late summer:

The University of Michigan system faces potential losses of $400M to $1B by the end of 2020 if its campuses don’t open.

Georgia’s university system is facing losses up to $350M through summer 2020 and will lose considerably more if its 300,000 students aren’t able to attend its 17 schools and colleges in the next school year.

The City University of New York is anticipating cuts of up to $95M from its education system and has already set in motion a 25% reduction in available courses for the Fall.

Schools aren’t the only entities facing losses. The higher-education sector employs three million workers across the country and contributes more than $600M into the nation’s annual GDP. Pasadena City College alone accounts for $4B of the region’s economy each year. The towns and cities that host universities and colleges rely on those revenues as well, to provide foundational community infrastructure systems.

And the losses to students are also notable. For the June 2020 graduating class, depression and sadness mark the moment instead of the joyous celebrations they’d looked forward to years. A full 80% of graduating student respondents to a national survey reported a decline in their mental health status as the pandemic crashed their senior year and threatened their future job prospects. Juniors, sophomores, and freshmen are also suffering while adhering to ‘stay at home’ mandates. The isolation, loss of independence, and financial concerns generate fears and grief as the pandemic colors their college years. Students at smaller schools that don’t have the resources to maintain some semblance of school are also at risk of losing out altogether on their college opportunity.

Each of these factors weighs heavily on higher-ed decision-makers, who are appropriately reluctant to force worst-case scenarios on their students, schools, and communities.

What Might Happen if Colleges DO Open in Fall 2020?

By law, colleges and universities are required to make their campuses safe for use by anyone who enters their grounds. That mandate is extremely difficult to follow, however, when the threat is invisible, and its carriers don’t know they are putting others at risk.

In a worst-case scenario, a school would open as usual and commence its conventional operations. Shortly after that, symptoms would pop up and, on the densely populated college campus, the virus would spread quickly. Any number of students, staff, and faculty will get sick, and a few might die. Some sufferers might also carry the sickness back to their homes and communities and inadvertently spread the infection there, too.

The situation would compel campus leadership to determine how to address the rising challenge. Would it mean they should establish a ‘tolerable level of infection?’ A specified number of sick people? A certain number of deaths? In some cases, a surging virus outbreak on campus would almost certainly compel yet another closure and another disruption of the school year.

The situation would also almost certainly result in legal liability for damages suffered on campus and even potentially wrongful death lawsuits for exposing decedents to the virus on school grounds.

Open or Closed? Factors to Consider

Experts agree that caution is required when determining how and when to reopen America’s closed college campuses, and there will be no single template that can guide them all. Each school exists in its unique community, and decisions to open or remain closed will take into account the threat that the virus poses in those vicinities.

Science should take the leading role in decision-making, too, as global research reveals the mechanics that explain the varying levels of spread and illness in different countries. And, while it appears that politics are also playing a part in the decision-making process (schools in more conservative communities are announcing openings while those in more liberal neighborhoods plan to remain closed), those dynamics may not be the appropriate foundation for making what may be, for some, a life-or-death election.

Regardless of the final determination, the science does demonstrate that every school should contemplate that COVID-19 isn’t just a problem in Fall 2020, but will pose a continuing threat for perhaps years to come. Ergo, their choices should include contingencies for outbreaks not if but when they occur, and those plans should include strategies that address three fundamental infection elements:

Sanitizing, disinfecting, and social distancing practices that incorporate all aspects of the campus, including administrative offices, classrooms, lecture and study halls, libraries, and (especially) dorms and dining rooms, if those are also going to be opened.

Testing strategies that occur both as a new ‘business as usual’ standard and that escalate when an outbreak is suspected.

Tracking activities to connect with, inform, and isolate potentially exposed people.

Other strategies that address the ‘teaching’ aspect of college are worthy of consideration, as they offer the opportunity to retain (as much as possible) revenues while keeping students safe and learning:

Delay the start of the school year till Winter or even Spring term, to let the science catch up with the crisis.

Restrict campus attendance to limited groups, such as just first years or graduates (depending on the school). Offer other group’s online options.

Restrict program availability to those programs that represent core subjects or that can be adapted to accommodate digital learning opportunities.

Shift to block schedules that provide one course at a time over a limited time – three hours, three days a week for four weeks, as an example. This strategy also offers flexibility in the event the virus causes another shut-down or recedes as a threat.

Some schools are considering ‘HiFlex’ models that have teachers leading classes with both live and online learners simultaneously. Students rotate into and out of the physical classroom.

Other schools are considering a ‘Modified Tutorial’ option with a professor offering the online lecture and Tutors or TAs meeting is small groups with students.

And, of course, there’s always the fully remote option, which satisfies economic demands and keeps students learning, but loses the camaraderie and social connections that are so vital to a fully engaged college experience.

No matter which decisions are made, the Fall 2020 school year will be different from any that has gone before, forever changing the future expectations and customs of students, schools, and communities. It remains to be seen how each school manages the challenges it faces and how students adapt to what is almost certainly a new school normal.

COVID and College: A Dilemma for Students

Pam Sornson, JD on June 9, 2020

The coronavirus is disrupting virtually every aspect of society, including when and where students elect to attend college. Newly graduated high school seniors are facing numerous challenges posed by the threat of the virus, which has already caused over 400,000 deaths around the world. Furloughed and newly unemployed workers who are considering the benefits of improving their education also face the health and economic challenges posed and caused by COVID-19. In both cases, the looming fall 2020 school term will be unique and different for everyone concerned – the students, the schools, and the communities in which those schools are located.

Three Populations: A Common Set of Concerns

Every constituent in the college sector faces the same challenges as they ponder the future of their educational institution.

Health Concerns

The difficulties presented by the virus are what’s making it so difficult to predict its course or determine a standardized, effective response.

It’s passed through contact with infected but asymptomatic people, so it’s impossible to know if or when you are exposed. Up to 80% of infected people don’t realize they’ve picked up the virus until days after exposure.

Its symptoms vary widely, with some people having only mild symptoms while others become severely ill or die. It also lingers longer in some people than it does in others, hampering recovery.

The range of symptoms is also concerning. Although cough was first thought to be present in all cases, studies suggest now that cough is only present in 70% of cases. Skin issues, decreased appetite, and conjunctivitis are also thought to be symptoms but are found in just a small percentage of cases.

The variety of symptoms and seeming fluidity of the virus’s presentation in its victims are what’s making containing and controlling it so tricky. They also make it almost impossible to ensure student safety when they return to college dorm rooms and communal living accommodations.

Economic Concerns

As if a potentially lethal virus lurking in every passerby isn’t bad enough, the losses of jobs and income are also plaguing the country. In April alone, America recorded over 20 million job losses, which pushed the national unemployment rate to almost 15%. While May showed a surge of 2.5 million rehires, studies show that over 100,000 businesses have closed forever because of the pandemic, taking millions of jobs and billions in lost revenues with them.

Lost wages also mean lost opportunities to invest in college studies for workers and their children. The pandemic will impact their financial decisions moving forward, including higher education options, as these unemployed workers struggle to make ends meet.

Approaching the Fall ’20 Semester

Students and schools are now facing barriers they’ve never considered, and questions for which they have almost no answers.

Newly Graduated High School Seniors

As a life experience, the virus has already changed the trajectory of future education for this entire cohort group. Their final days as seniors weren’t spent at graduation parties or ceremonies, nor were they able to take the formerly traditional ‘college tours’ to observe potential schools in action. Instead, they’ve been finishing classwork at home and online, and only a few lucky ones have been able to participate in ‘virtual graduation’ videos to mark this typical life milestone.

Looking ahead, student’s choices appear similarly limited. Current community health restrictions are keeping college campuses closed, and, as of this date, there is no indication of when governments will lift those restrictions. If the status quo remains into the Fall, ‘college’ may be an extension of the online learning protocols they’ve just completed in high school; many are indicating that ‘online college’ isn’t what they envisioned for their first forays into adulthood and higher education.

Further, even if restrictions are lifted, the question of whether the physical campus is safe also poses a barrier, not just for the students, but certainly for their parents. There are still many unanswered questions about how to protect from and prevent transmission of the COVID-19 virus. Many families are unwilling to commit their financial resources or their child’s life to a particular school until those concerns are alleviated.

Newly Unemployed Adult Workers

Millions of workers have been furloughed or let go as businesses closed their doors following ‘stay at home’ mandates. Many of those companies won’t survive this pandemic, which will leave their former employees unemployed in what will be an intensely competitive job market. Researchers have looked at what this population has done in past recessions to understand what they might do in the face of the current economic chaos.

The Great Recession of 2007-2009 signaled a flood of new community college students aged 25 and older who had lost their jobs and were looking to ‘up-skill’ while searching for new work. The surge mirrored similar surges in previous recessions, too, so it appears that economic slow-downs also support higher college enrollments. Currently, the number of unemployed workers is already much higher than it was back then, suggesting that higher numbers of these people will elect a return to college, too.

Both Two- and Four-Year Schools

Both two- and four-year colleges are already experiencing impacts caused by COVID:

Current students are frustrated at losing part or all of their 2020 Spring semester and are seeking reimbursements of their tuition.

Schools have canceled their spring sports tournaments and are losing the revenues those events generated.

Many are refunding prepaid room and board payments, as students were forced to head home in early March.

Things don’t look brighter moving forward either:

Many are seeing significant declines in acceptances from new students, as learners wait to know what, exactly, their college experience might be in the Fall.

International student enrollments are also down due to global restrictions on travel. These students typically pay full tuition, too, so those revenues are also off the table.

Ongoing economic challenges are causing some students to elect a gap year or put off attending college indefinitely until the pandemic recedes and some form of normalcy returns.

Seeking a Silver Lining in the COVID-19 Cloud

The impact that the virus has had on the country and the world is unprecedented, and every aspect of society, including the higher education sector, is struggling to both make sense of what’s happened and make plans to move forward. Planning for the future will require both creativity and flexibility as circumstances ebb and flow over the summer.

Expect the Worst

Most experts suggest that Fall ’20 enrollments in all schools will be down, perhaps by as much as 20%. The numbers include both new and returning students, as both groups assess how to manage their education despite the pandemic. Many of these students will elect to take a gap year rather than risk resources on an uncertain future. Others may delay starting their new school year until winter or spring. Schools will need to determine how they’ll manage their funding, considering these cuts in their annual revenues.

The federal and state governments may help, however. During the ’07-’09 Recession, Congress approved the Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training Act (TAACCCT), which released $1.6B into community colleges across the country as resources to assist with their burgeoning student base. The schools used the funds to improve services and programs to meet student’s needs. In April 2020, Congress approved a $14B package for higher education ($6B for student emergency cash grants), which amounts to just one percent (1%) of university expenses. College presidents across the country assert that at least $46.6B is more likely to offset long-term damage, so there may be more support coming from that source.

Envision the Best

On the much brighter side, community colleges should see higher than usual enrollments as students elect their less expensive option over the more expensive four-year schools. Younger and beginning students appreciate the reduced cost of a two-year community college over a four-year school, and many can also live at home while attending. This factor reduces their expenses while also relieving them of the health and safety concerns about those on-campus living quarters. Older, now unemployed students are looking for new skills, and today’s community colleges are structured specifically to meet those needs.

The schools can also consider how they can modify their offerings to help students return to campus safely and with confidence, so they can enjoy the close human engagement that underscores the full college experience.

Some schools are already considering a late start – perhaps October or November – to give science more time to develop treatments and vaccines.

Others are considering opening the campus only to first-year students, providing them with an intense entry into their college life, and setting them up with a solid foundation for their future.

Still others are contemplating limiting the number of on-campus programs to reduce the density of students on campus. They would offer their other courses online.

Each school will have to determine how best to move forward, given their unique set of circumstances and the needs of their anticipated student bodies.

As the Fall 2020 college term nears, the COVID-19 pandemic demands that colleges and universities flex their resources to address their constituencies’ sensitivities while utilizing those reduced resources as optimally as possible. By doing so, they can provide the style and format of education that promises their students’ stable and rewarding employment as the pandemic subsides and the economy begins to recover.

Pasadena City College Foundation: Building a Brighter Future

Pam Sornson, JD on June 2, 2020

If you’ve ever walked any of the Pasadena City College (PCC) campuses, you’ve already experienced the great work done by its philanthropic partner, the PCC Foundation. While it provides financial and other support for the school’s students, staff, and faculty, the Foundation also raises capital for building and campus development projects. Considering the success enjoyed by both PCC and its educational and regional communities, the Foundation’s efforts are providing a remarkable return on their investments.

A Broad Mission

Fundamentally, the Foundation’s mission is to find community and financial support to enhance the education systems at PCC. That broad statement allows its 36-member Board of Directors to focus on a variety of projects, each of which offers a distinctly different type of educational advantage. Together, the projects infuse the school with millions of dollars of educational value each year.

A Variety of Supports

The PCC Foundation raises, manages, and disburses funding for a variety of education-related causes:

Student Supports

The PCC Foundation prioritizes the well-being of PCC students in both its financial and development planning.

A Dedicated COVID Response

While funding scholarships to cover the costs of tuition, books, and college incidentals, today, the Foundation is also assisting students impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Responding to donor outreach, Foundation staff members are coordinating the distribution of financial resources to students whose lives have been upended by the school’s closure and the state’s ‘safer at home’ mandate. Students needing funds to cover unexpected costs for housing, child-care, or medical expenses should apply. There are also funds for those needing technology to access online resources to maintain their educational progress. Continuing donations for this purpose are always welcome.

Scholarships

Even without the pandemic, the Foundation dedicates much of its effort to assisting PCC students through its scholarship programs. Those provide funding to all students who lack the resources they need to gain access to the education they crave.

Scholarships based on both merit and use requirements are offered, and applications are developed and submitted through the academicworks.com link. Students who are active outside school can include those efforts on their application, too, regardless of whether they are hobbies, work, or even family care responsibilities. Two scholarship cycles per year keep applications options open, so learners can apply when it works best for them.

To ensure no one misses out, there’s even a ‘Scholarship Workshop Video‘ that walks learners through the steps of applying and qualifying for a PCC Foundation Scholarship. The video contains valuable and timely information about dates, deadlines, policies, and procedures, and includes tips to develop a comprehensive and successful scholarship application.

For the 2018-2019 school year, the Foundation provided scholarships totaling over $1,155,000.

Personnel Supports

The people who work at PCC are also favored with recognition and accolades every year. In addition to the scholarships and the general fund, the Foundation also sponsors the Risser Awards to recognize the outstanding efforts of exceptional PCC individuals.

The Risser Award – Outstanding Teacher

Every year, the Foundation also recognizes that one remarkable teacher who, for that school year, epitomizes the best qualities of college-level education. Nominated by students, these exemplary educators offer consistently high-quality teaching and fair and informed evaluations and grades. As inspirations to their students, these teachers represent the best of the school and act as leaders for the rest of the faculty and staff.

The Risser Award – Outstanding Support to Education

Every college is more than just its students and faculty. Supporting them all is a dedicated staff focused on providing the infrastructure and services needed to ensure a high-quality education for every learner. The Risser Award for Outstanding Support to Education recognizes the PCC staff person who has risen above the clamor of a busy college setting to provide unparalleled service with a happy attitude and the highest demonstration of character. These Award winners offer consistent and reliable job performance year after year, helping both students and teachers achieve their annual and educational goals.

Special Projects

The Annual Fund provides funding for more substantial, specialized, or capital projects.

The PCC Piano Program

PCC’s E Applied Music program, just one offering in the school’s Music Department, offers instruction and classes for specific instruments or singing to enhance the student’s performance and technical skills. The Foundation enhances this program by facilitating the F PCC Piano Project, which collects and distributes donor contributions to dedication pianists. The funds help pay tuition, provide scholarships, and sponsor masterclasses and ‘Artists in Residence.’ Additionally, the funding helps to maintain the 56 pianos that live permanently on the PCC campus.

Capital Projects

As noted, PCC’s campus has been blessed by the generosity of the Foundation donors, whose contributions are responsible for much of the beauty and design of the school’s physical facilities.

The Robert G. Freeman Center for Career and Completion is just completing its first year in operations and is proving to be a magnet for both career-minded students and local and regional businesses looking for talent.

The Center for the Arts on the Pasadena campus is the home of both the Music Department and its Piano Program.

The Boone Sculpture Garden at the heart of the campus is home to three works by internationally renowned sculptors. They sit peacefully alongside the Galloway Plaza.

Also attached to the Sculpture Garden is the Jameson Foundation Amphitheater, which offers a pleasant and peaceful gathering spot for students and staff.

Most PCC citizens have enjoyed at least one sports spectacular in the Robinson Stadium, dedicated during the Fall 1999 semester. The facility supports PCC’s athletes while providing its community with fun and healthy spectator events.

Many of the capital campaigns are named after notable PCC alumni or their family members.

Funding the Foundation

The PCC Foundation solicits financial gifts in three forms:

Straight-up donations, that usually go to the Annual Fund if not otherwise designated;

Endowments of specific College assets, such as department chair positions;

and Planned Giving.

The accumulated funds are invested every year by an outside financial partner, and the annual interest is used to fund specific projects.

Therefore, the school’s donors are critical to the success of both the Foundation and Pasadena City College. The Board of Directors’ recently released strategic plan is undoubtedly just one reason donors continue to donate their hard-earned resources to the school. It outlines their four priorities for PCC investments, and why those are important to the school and its community:

1 Increase student scholarships through enhanced contributions to the College’s Promise Program.

2 Improve Career and Technical Education capacities by providing upgraded technologies and systems and the educators and experiences required to master them.

3 Expand the Arts department by reaching deeper into the resources available in its neighboring Los Angeles entertainment industry.

4 Enhance Athletics by maintaining world-class facilities to develop and produce world-class champions like alumni Jackie Robinson and Coach Jerry Tarkanian.

Pasadena City College offers its students an amazing education at an equally amazing price. Helping them achieve those goals is the PCC Foundation, a dedicated group of 36 individuals who give their time, expertise, and money to the further development of one of Pasadena’s shining resources. Don’t you want to donate to the Foundation now, too?

Evaluating the Economic Impact of Pasadena City College

Pam Sornson, JD on June 2, 2020

There is a myriad of reasons to attend Pasadena City College (PCC), including gaining employable skills, learning a trade, or preparing for further higher education. What many people don’t consider, however, is the value that PCC offers to its community, both as a business that produces a valuable product, as well as a generator of regional revenue. A new study by economic modeling firm, Emsi, clarifies those values as they flow from the single PCC class of 2018-2019, reflecting a $600M annual spend building on an overall $4B return on investment. Those numbers are impressive in and of themselves, but they really stand out when you extrapolate their meaning across years of educational successes by PCC graduates.

Two Views: Multiple Values

The study looks at the college through two lenses:

as a direct economic generating entity, and

as a long-term public and private investment vehicle.

As a direct economic generation entity, the school is responsible for putting millions of dollars into Pasadena’s economy every year. As a long-term investment vehicle, the school returns billions of dollars of added value to its stakeholders by producing a well-trained workforce, developing innovative new enterprises, and maintaining area and regional industries.

Fundamentally, the Emsi research underscores what PCC’s community already knows: the college plays an integral part in the economic health and well-being of Pasadena and its surrounding region.

Economic Inputs – Class of 2018-2019

As a whole, the school and its constituents generate millions of dollars annually for the local community:

PCC offers a high-quality education for its students at a fraction of the cost of neighboring four-year universities. In-state residents will spend less than $4,000 annually for tuition, books, fees, and supplies, while the expense for out-of-state residents totals less than $10,000. Those values attract local and far-away learners; 65% of the 2018-2019 class came from out of the region.

Each student also represents additional spending in the form of lodging, food, and transportation. With a student population of over 26,000, annual student spending alone contributes over $16,000,000 to the local economy.

The college leverages those student funds to pay its faculty and staff, maintain operations, and support the surrounding businesses that provide its supplies and provisions. The cumulative annual spending by both school staff and its daily operations contributes another $177 million to the local economy.

Together, student and administrative spending by PCC each school year add approximately $200 million to the local economy.

Investment Returns

So, what values does the college generate for its community after its students graduate? According to the report, they are many and they are significant.

For students:

PCC students invest significant values into their education, including not just their tuition and living costs, but also in the forbearance of wages they would earn if they were working instead of attending school. Many also take out student loans to cover their college costs. The class of 2018-2019 invested over $58 million in out-of-pocket expenses and another $167 million in foregone wages and time.

Their investment will pay them back well, however. PCC 2018-2019 graduates with associates degrees will earn approximately $10,500 more per year throughout their career than their high-school graduate peers ($45,000 versus $34,000) and almost double that of non-high school graduates ($26,000).

The return on investment for each student ratio’s out at 4.2; they eventually reap $4.20 in higher earnings for every dollar they spend.

For Taxpayers:

In general, State investment in California’s community colleges is substantial. For example, PCC will use a $42 million appropriation to construct the new Armen Sarafian Building, part of the State’s $215 billion investment in its community schools.

Those investments are expected to rise, too, as California invests in the infrastructures its industries will need in the coming decade. California estimates an 11% growth rate for workers with associates and postsecondary nondegree-level skills by 2026 (as compared to only 7% for all occupations). Further, by 2025, California’s Public Policy Institute predicts a shortage of one million workers in these fields, a fact which demonstrates the growing value of the community college as an economic engine.

The City of Pasadena is thirsty for those workers, too. Its 13 commercial areas are home to globally recognized businesses and industries encompassing every style of occupation from technology to environmental resources to healthcare and healthcare education. These commercial ventures are already invested in the area’s perfect weather and collegial attitude; they are also more than interested in investing in a well-trained workforce, too.

The value of those investments is repaid in a myriad of ways by PCC, its students, and its alumni.

Throughout their careers, PCC graduates return two dollars for each individual public dollar that supported their education.

Additionally, these investments and the improved lifestyles of their recipients represent millions of dollars of costs avoided:

Employed workers make fewer demands on public healthcare services;

Well-educated citizens have fewer interactions with law enforcement, and

Reliable and well-paying employment reduces the demands on income assistance programs.

The net value to taxpayers of the benefits of supporting PCC also ratio’s out to two-to-one, so the State generates twice as much long-term value than it spends on its original investment.

For Society in general:

The Pasadena region benefits in two significant ways because of the presence and significance of its City College:

Added values increase each year as PCC graduate generates higher wages for themselves and contribute higher purchasing and tax values to their neighborhoods. Reduced social costs enhance those added values.

Economically independent citizens enjoy better health outcomes, reducing healthcare costs;

Reduced crime rates reduce demands on public policing services, and

Reduced reliance on public assistance programs such as welfare and unemployment claims lessens the demands on those programs.

The Emsi report indicates that the cumulative revenue benefits and social savings generated by PCC throughout the work lives of its 2018-2019 graduating class totals $4.4 billion, which represents a cumulative return of investment of $9.80 for every single dollar invested.

For the Future:

Not insignificant is the effort of PCC’s alumni population. Since 1924, the college has served tens of thousands of students from dozens of countries. For each student, PCC provided the education, experience, and credentials needed to pursue their career of choice. More recently, as one of the State’s top schools for transfers to four-year universities, PCC has also offered the foundational education needed for those learners to excel at those schools and beyond. The Emsi report reveals that, just in the 2018-2019 school year, PCC alumni contributed an additional $407 million to the regional economy.

When combined, the alumni economic contributions and the annual PCC financial contribution total over $600 million in commercial, public, and social values for the school year 2018-2019. When extrapolated over decades, the dollars generated and saved by PCC and its graduates demonstrate the long-term, sustained, and sustainable values that Pasadena City College offers its students, graduates, community, and region.

The Robert G. Freeman Center for Career and Completion – The Year in Review: Director Jason Barquero

Pam Sornson, JD on May 19, 2020

The Robert G. Freeman Center for Career and Completion (RGFC) launched in May of 2019 in a new building designed specifically to house career-focused programs under the leadership of Pasadena City College’s Economic and Workforce Development division (PCC EWD). The vision of the RGFC is to provide wrap-around services to PCC’s students as they select and pursue their job and career options. The college has already invested significant time and resources into building up the resources of the Center, and its new Director, Jason Barquero, is excited to build out new services and opportunities on that now year-old infrastructure.

Although relatively new to his role as director of the Center, Barquero is not in the least bit new to his role as a leader in career development for college students. Having studied at several Southern California higher ed schools, he’d personally experienced a variety of school-based ‘career development’ strategies. In his career as a college administrator, he’s contributed to the development of several more in his role as Executive Director of the Career Center at the Otis College of Art & Design. He was tapped to lead the RGFC because he brought with him such a deep understanding of both the needs of its student clientele and of the resources needed to slingshot their occupational futures. The timing couldn’t have been more advantageous: The Center was approaching its first anniversary and needed someone in charge who would be able to harness all the educational and occupational values that it represents.

RGFC – One Year In

When he arrived in April 2020 (more about that later), Barquero found the RGFC primed to move forward in developing job and career-focused resources for PCC students and the businesses that would hire them:

The school’s programs were already designed to support career-focused learning. PCC organizes its programming into six ‘Career Communities,’ each centered on a specific industry. Building connections within those industries would only enhance the school’s existing educational strategy.

Many of the faculty were already incorporating ‘work-based learning’ (WBL) into their curricula, in the form of field trips, workshops, and other un-classroom activities.

Partnerships had been established with many area businesses, and those were robust in developing deeper and broader opportunities for growth.

And there were already significant counseling and advising teams in place. Resources were available so students could explore career preferences, create resumes, and practice interviews while still in college.

Barquero liked that the educational strategy of the College and its Career Center were so far along in just one year.

He also liked the PCC culture and how it, too, embraced and applauded the ‘education for career’s sake’ mentality. The school’s Board of Trustees and its partner, the philanthropic Pasadena City College Foundation, had already invested in both academic resources (a comprehensive, enlightened faculty) and a physical facility (the Center itself). These investments were, in themselves, a testament to their commitment to PCC students and the communities from which they come. With that level of support in place, Barquero recognized that many of the traditional barriers to high-quality, career-focused learning simply did not exist on the Pasadena City College campus. He was ready to roll from day one.

The Coronavirus as a Motivator

As noted above, Barquero joined the school just as the state implemented its COVID-19 ‘safer at home’ mandate. While he had expected to come to school each day and work within the bustling halls of the Freeman Center, now he was working from home (WFH), with staff and colleagues who were new to him, and a student body he has yet to meet. Was he deterred in his enthusiasm for his new job? No. It turns out that just the opposite is true.

Much of Barquero’s work before PCC was in developing technology resources, so he was already familiar with video conferencing, virtual field trips, and other digitally enhanced learning experiences. Whatever resources PCC now has in the way of technology to assist with learning, Barquero is already comfortable with, and he has previously worked through the bugs and challenges that those might present to a less experienced tech-based educator. At the same time, the Center also has on staff a dedicated Work-Based Learning (WBL) Manager, Jacqueline Javier (more on her in a separate article), so at least one role on his foundational team was already filled. From his perspective, the first year of the RGFC had been very well spent.

Maximizing Present Opportunities

Further, rather than being daunted by the WFH requirement, Barquero has determined that he will spend this time inventorying and rallying all the resources available now at PCC. He will also be strategizing a future for the school that will provide a stable and comprehensive learning environment regardless of this or other pandemics (or any other disaster that might come along).

And he has an enlightened perspective about how that future might look:

In just his short time with PCC, Barquero continued with the on-going transition of all of the Center’s workshops to a digital format, so none of those resources are either wasted or sitting idle. After a brief lull, while students found their way back to their now virtual school, they began signing up in droves, with attendances in these virtual classrooms quickly filling up. The process reveals more than just an uptick in student numbers; it also generates student engagement data that will inform PCC’s metrics counters.

These virtual learning situations don’t close the classroom, either; they extend it into the world where learners want to work. The students are learning not just their school lessons (faculty members are on board, as well, and present their course work through the same digital portals), but also the technical skills that will enhance their value to future employers.

Barriers are falling, too, as the technology levels the societal playing field that has, for so long, impeded the progress of community college attendees. Students who may have missed field trips or other course-related opportunities because of transportation or family demands can now attend virtually from home, along with all of their classmates. These experiences are especially helpful for first-generation college attendees, who may be seeing, for the first time, a world that was worlds away for their parents.

Looking Ahead to the Next Year and Beyond

Barquero is equally excited about how technology and forward-thinking will engage the business community and PCC’s alumni community, both of which he sees as much more significant players in the school’s future. He plans to expand his outreach into these communities using the same technologies he now employs with his student clients.

In some ways, the COVID-19 pandemic is helping Barquero by giving him the time he needs to formulate these ideas and plans, as well as the strategies he’ll pursue to implement them. He’s grateful for that opportunity, as well as for the fact that Pasadena City College was so foresighted when it designed and launched its Career Center just a year ago.

According to Jason Barquero, one year after its launch, the Robert G. Freeman Center for Career and Completion is not only well-founded, but its also well poised to provide its students with a bustling and prosperous future for years to come.

The Robert G. Freeman Center for Career and Completion – The Year in Review: WBL Manager Jacqueline Javier

Pam Sornson, JD on May 19, 2020

The Robert G. Freeman Center for Career and Completion (RGFC) at Pasadena City College (PCC) is notching its first anniversary this month. Designed to provide comprehensive career guidance to every member of PCC’s student body, the Center helps its clients with everything ‘job’ and ‘career’ related, from self-discovery and career exploration to resume development and workplace readiness. Its first year was a whirlwind of activity, as it gathered and marshaled resources, reached out to community members, and developed partnerships across its campus and the Pasadena and regional business communities. By building a comprehensive library of available on-site and local resources, the Center can better assist its clients in making the connections they need to further their career aspirations.

Bridging Academia and Industry

Not the least significant of the work done by the Center’s inaugural staff was the outreach to faculty and staff by the school’s Manager of “Work-Based Learning” (WBL), Jacqueline Javier, who joined the Center in July 2019. Jacqueline brings to the Center her long experience with WBL initiatives and strategies, derived from both her personal education and professional career. WBL offers a myriad of benefits to every student by enabling them to apply classroom learning to the world of work, reinforcing their career choices, and enhancing their employability skills. Employers also gain from providing a WBL opportunity by accessing a strong talent pipeline of well-trained students who bring innovation and efficiency to the workplace.

Early on in her career, Jacqueline recognized that many students at the high school and postsecondary level lacked access to work-based learning experiences. In her then position, it was her job to create those opportunities, and when she did, she was rewarded by the students’ almost immediate sense of belonging and motivation. Jacqueline was perhaps most touched by young learners from special populations and those who were the ‘first generation’ in their family to even consider attending college. These insights strengthened her resolve to make WBL the focus of her career, and when the WBL Manager job came available at PCC, she jumped at the opportunity.

New Center; New Year; New Opportunities

It was fortunate for PCC that she did, as Jacqueline almost immediately began connecting some dots around campus. She was already impressed by PCC’s foresight to house its career services offices in the Economic and Workforce Development (EWD) department. This organizational structure provided a unique perspective on how PCC addressed the WBL opportunity, enabling the Freeman Center to be the single location where students, faculty, and employers can seek support.

Her first strategy through the 2019 Summer was to engage with the school’s Institutional Effectiveness Team, to glean insights from them and maximize the value of assets they had already developed. Then she embarked on a mission to inventory every element of WBL then existing at the school. While she found that many faculty members were already integrating some form of WBL in their classroom, many of them were not classifying those activities as WBL. This became an opportunity for her to raise awareness on WBL and its different components. Jacqueline collaborated with EWD leadership to establish a WBL definition for the college to ensure all WBL opportunities are captured and recorded as the assets that they are. Through strong collaboration with the Institutional Effectiveness Team, Instructional Deans, Faculty, and Program Coordinators at the college, Javier is centralizing WBL data and simultaneously providing a source of support for those coordinating WBL activities.

The metrics captured to date revealed that Pasadena City College was already doing a lot to support its student’s career plans, including incorporating into lesson planning the values received through internships, job shadowing, and mentoring opportunities.

Growing in Competence and Comprehension

Over the course of Year One, Jacqueline found herself acting as a liaison for a number of PCC stakeholders:

She collaborated with faculty members to find internship opportunities for their students, including helping to define the parameters of the role and the preferred business resources needed to achieve the education. Once established, the students can return to the work-based learning team at the RGFC to better understand how their internship experiences can translate to course credits.

She also collaborated with businesses to identify organizational needs, create new internship positions, and recruit students with the skill bases needed to fill their employment needs.

Along with her Career Services colleagues, she also liaises with other PCC resources to ensure they meet every student’s needs so that each person can continue their educational journey. Housing, transportation, and tutoring supports are addressed, along with academic and employment services. (Jacqueline notes, in particular, the generosity of the PCC Foundation, which has offered a variety of supports to PCC students in need.)

Jacqueline’s work across the campus and in the community enhances the values offered by the college’s six Career Communities. She works to develop unique internships that will meet the needs of students representing the different Career Communities while working with other individuals on-campus to ensure student barriers are removed. The effort results in a mosaic of resources – counseling, coursework, faculty and industry inputs and (most importantly) student skills – tailored to meet the needs of each individual learner.

Flush with Past Success

Looking back on her accomplishments, Jacqueline notes now that matching the student to the appropriate WBL opportunity is critical to their success. She and her team meet each student where they are on their life and educational paths, then help to guide them to the future of their choosing. The wrap-around career services provided by the Freeman Center help close an equity gap because every student qualifies for help regardless of their situation, and every student gains the resources they need to be successful.

And looking for Future Success

Looking forward, Jacqueline is using the COVID-19 situation to hone the technologies needed to facilitate and expand more virtual WBL options for students, faculty and employers. On-site internships are not available right now, nor are face-to-face counseling sessions or other person-to-person engagements. However, virtual meetings, interviews, and trainings are in the works as are experiential learning opportunities from far-away places. These options may not have been considered without the COVID interference with normal operating processes. Jacqueline sees her emerging digital foundation as an adjunct that supports and extends the Center’s physical plant, offering a broader base of resources to a more extensive and diverse student population.

And she is both learning herself and teaching others that developing an educated and well-skilled worker is both a skill and an art. Jacqueline Javier is thrilled that PCC and its Robert G. Freeman Center for Career and Completion gives her such a broad canvass through which to do that work.

PCC SBDC Success Stories – GoTribe: Tackling Fitness Issues

Pam Sornson, JD on May 11, 2020

GoTribe is a fitness and wellness company specializing in fitness classes, nutritional coaching, and stress management. Founder Chris Hodges developed a program to combat client attrition and increase success rates and is currently expanding his business by offering his programs via
a virtual trainer.

Challenges

Having been employed as a personal trainer for 10 years, Chris decided
to launch his own training studio, but he needed capital to lease a space and hire employees. He also wished to make his training services more accessible by developing a virtual training app. To build a technology-based program that is scalable and cost-effective, Chris needed a business plan and additional capital to invest in the technology. What was he missing?

Lack of Capital to Start & Grow
Help Developing Business Plan
Hiring Employees

Solutions

Chris first met with Larry Johnson, a senior Business Advisor at the Pasadena City College SBDC. Larry introduced him to Celtic Bank, where he was able to obtain a $100,000 loan to start the business. Chris then met with Don Loewel, also a senior Business Advisor at the Pasadena City College SBDC. Don helped him develop a business plan and marketing strategy.

With a well-defined plan, Chris received $150,000 through Quake Capital. GoTribe then developed an app-based training program that provides customization and accountability, addressing the two key factors in fitness attrition. The app will be sold for about $10. Where did he start?

Access to Investment Capital of $250,000
Developed a Business Plan & Marketing Strategy
Hired CTO & CMO for Growth

Results

From the time Chris walked through the door of the SBDC to today, GoTribe
has received $250,000 in investment capital, hired 26 employees, tripled his sales and added a new location. Additionally, the company developed a virtual training app that can be expanded globally. How far has he come?

Tripled Sales & Added a New Location
Created 26 New Jobs
Developed App-based Virtual Trainer

Looking back, Chris attributes his success to the mentorship, introductions, and guidance received through the SBDC. Looking forward, he’ll access those same resources again.

PCC SBDC Success Stories – Growth Strategy for BC Design Haus

Pam Sornson, JD on May 10, 2020

BC Design Haus is a boutique design and branding agency founded by Bernadette Capulong, who formerly worked for high profile companies such as P&G, Nestle, and Mattel.

Challenges

With a strong foundation of work experiences, Bernadette launched her firm in 2014. Through past relationships, she was able to secure her first clients but was seeking to grow her company to its next level. Bernadette wanted to develop a sales strategy, add staff, and better manage client expectations. Her fundamental questions?

How to Grow the Company
Finding & Hiring Qualified Staff
Developing New Business

Solutions

Don Loewel, a Business Advisor at the SBDC hosted by Pasadena City College, met with Bernadette. He provided her with a growth strategy, including a new business development process. He helped implement the use of the industry-known CRM, SalesForce. He then helped to develop a hiring plan that included recruitment, interviewing, and onboarding management. How did he help?

Implemented a Business Development Plan
Executed a Recruitment & Hiring Process
New Business Development Strategy

Results

With SBDC’s help, the company has since grown consistently and significantly. Additionally, the company has acquired a larger office space, hired 7 employees, and 7 independent contractors. With the added growth, Bernadette has been able to offer employees an attractive benefits program. What success has she experienced?

Sales Increased by over 500%
Hired 7 Full-Time Employees & 7 Independent Contractors
Tripled the Size of Office Space

Bernadette attributes her success to the advice she received at the SBDC: “The SBDC is a hidden gem in the business community. Having a mentor to talk through issues is invaluable.”

PCC SBDC Success Stories – Corte’ Studio: Beyond the Fringe

Pam Sornson, JD on May 9, 2020

Jennifer Kalil owns Corté Studio in Pasadena, which specializes in cutting kids’ hair.

Challenges

Jennifer knew she had a solid business idea but wasn’t sure how to go from concept to creation. She knew she needed a plan, a marketing strategy, a financial system, and guidance to secure a suitable location. She first went to her credit union for advice, who referred her to the Small Business Development Center. Her initial challenges?

No Prior Business Experience
Lease Negotiation
Financial & Accounting Set-Up
Limited Marketing Budget

Solutions

Jennifer initially met with Don Loewel, a Business Advisor at the SBDC hosted by Pasadena City College. Don helped her develop a business plan, which included startup expenses, projected sales, and on-going cost. Don also advised Jennifer on which questions to ask when securing the lease.

To establish the financial and accounting system, SBDC Business Advisor Astrid Galvez helped Jennifer set up a DBA, obtain a tax ID, set up Quickbooks, and hire a bookkeeper. She also helped her to open a business banking account and choose a Point of Sale system.

SBDC Business Advisor Lindsey Heisser assisted Jennifer with a marketing plan and helped her build a strong social media presence that organically drew in new customers. What were her next steps?

Created a Business & Marketing Plan
Guidance During Lease Negotiation
Implemented Accounting Processes Point of Sale System
Created a Social Media Marketing Strategy

Results

Corté Studio’s customer base has grown steadily month after month. Since launching the business in 2016, Jennifer has moved into a larger salon space, hired an assistant, and plans to hire additional stylists. How has her business grown?

Steady Growth Each Month
Hired 1 Full-time Assistant with Plans to Hire 2-3 Additional Stylists
Moved to Expand Capacity

As her clientele expands and she looks to the future, Jennifer continues to seek business advice from the SBDC at Pasadena City College.

PCC SBDC – Your Local CARES Connection

Pam Sornson, JD on May 8, 2020

Its name suggests only a small part of the great work done by the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at Pasadena City College (PCC). Yes, it does provide counseling, support, information, and guidance to any business looking to launch, grow, or expand. These days, however, it’s also a central support center for company owners looking for help in accessing federal CARES Act resources. Plus, it offers students an entrepreneurial-oriented training facility so they can learn the nuts and bolts of building a business in addition to their classwork studies. The full scope of the SBDC keeps director Don Loewel and his staff and business advisors busier than they’ve ever been.

CARES First

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) is the federal government’s economic response to the COVID-19 crisis, which has shut down thousands of businesses across the state. It offers financial relief for displaced workers, small businesses, and state and local governments struggling with business closures, falling revenues, and mounting debts. At the SBDC, Loewel’s 12 business advisors are hard at work, providing research and support to hundreds of local companies seeking loans and other types of assistance while they wait out the virus shutdown. The advisors also offer guidance to company leaders on managing the transition to a post-covid workplace, including those with newly established remote workers, and remote customers.

And its services are no-cost to the organizations that need them. The Center is supported by a variety of grants, as well as by its host, Pasadena City College. Its open-door policy is proving especially advantageous to the San Gabriel Valley business community here in 2020. Because of the virus, the number of companies served by the PCC SBDC this year is expected to grow to over 1,000, as the pandemic sweeps in waves through the economy. PCC’s SBDC helps its business clients maintain their core values while also helping them plan for a decidedly different future.

While the SBDC is already a busy office – it typically serves 600 to 700 unique business clients per year – it is open to any small business owner or entrepreneur who wants information about developing and building a business. As one of 35 SBDC’s spread across California, the Pasadena Center shares resources with its colleagues and partners in the Los Angeles Regional SBDC Network, which also offers access to a deep and extensive collection of information and tools. Research reveals that SBDC’s deliver measurable economic impact to their communities based on their clients’ job creation capacities and volume of revenue generation.

Expertise Built on Experience

Loewel himself brings significant experience into the SBDC leadership role, after enjoying a 25-year career in marketing, management, and sales in the Medical Device and telemedicine software industries. His commercial strategy and business development acumen have assisted many Southern California small and mid-market firms in building sustainable and long-term growth. He first spent three years as a consultant and advisor for the PCC SBDC before taking the director job in 2018.

His team of expert advisors also provide a wealth of information and insights gleaned from long and successful business careers. With a consistent eye on innovation, these professionals instruct their clients on business planning, marketing strategies, financial analysis, and raising capital, just to name a few. They also help budding entrepreneurs apply Lean Launchpad principles, to build strong foundations for their startups. Loewel and his team have mentored startup teams at PCC, CalState LA, Caltech, and USC. And while based primarily in the regions’ major industries (technology, healthcare, bioscience, retail, and manufacturing), SBDC expertise and workshops also cover foundational business standards, such as corporate organization, accounting, and human resources. Depending on the product or service, clients can explore the many facets of the hospitality industry, the challenges presented by local, regional, and global logistics, or how to design a successful website.

Engaging the PCC Campus

In fall, 2019, the PCC SBDC pioneered a new concept on campus, the PCC Maker Festival. Inviting faculty and students from the school’s many clubs, including the MESA organization (Math, Engineering, Sciences, and Arts), Loewel and his team hosted local industry organizations to display their technology to Festival attendees. The all-day event gathered 200 visitors, including students, businesses, and the public in general, who toured 18 exhibitor booths, learning about each other and future possibilities of working together. The JPL Rover project was an especially popular display, and based on the turnout and feedback, Loewel is planning to host PCC Maker Festival as an annual event.

Leading Life-Long Learners

In addition to one-on-one advising and consultations, the SBDC delivers many of its resources through its workshops, which are open to all:

BizEd

These series of seminars and workshops offer insights into the latest industry evolutions and trends. Recent gatherings have focused on how technology is influencing the art of doing business, and their topics included seminars on digital marketing and the fundamentals of e-Commerce. Tailored to meet the commercial demands of the day, the SBDC designs each session to deliver the essential best practices and strategies needed to compete in today’s challenging economic climate. Undoubtedly, someone at the SBDC is designing new workshops and seminars that address the business concerns emerging from and caused by the current pandemic.

Venture Launch

Perhaps the ‘star’ of the PCC SBDC program is its “Venture Launch” program. This six-week program teaches “Lean Startup” principles to multiple teams of innovators and entrepreneurs. Its goal is to provide the hands-on learning needed to test the commercial viability and business model of a new product or business idea. Each week, teams conduct their own field tests on their selected business model, then report their findings and conclusions to the class. Free to PCC students and alumni, the course guides the teams through all phases of initiating corporate development, including analysis of its value propositions, distribution channels, customer acquisition, revenue models, and more.

Venture Launch is led by Loewel and Albert Napoli (a lecturer at the USC Grief School of Entrepreneurship), using the “Lean Methodology” principles developed, in part, by entrepreneurship icon Steve Blank. In addition to PCC students, Venture Launch has included teams from the local tech community as well as USC, Caltech, and CalState LA. The PCC SBDC offers 2 cohorts of Venture Launch each year, with the spring program currently underway via Zoom. For information on the Fall cohort of Venture Launch, please go to www.pccventurelaunch.com, or email us at pccventurelaunch@pasadena.edu.

By all accounts, PCC’s Small Business Development Center is anything but small – just ask the local business owners who found the help they needed at this very challenging time. Small business owners, students, and regional industries all benefit from the vision and insights offered by the PCC SBDC team, right when the San Gabriel Valley community needs them the most.

Meet The Demands Of The Fourth Industrial Revolution

Pam Sornson, JD on April 21, 2020

Welcome to the Fourth Industrial Revolution, as coined by Klaus Schwab, the World Economic Forum’s founder and executive chairman. While the first three industrial revolutions produced fundamental and drastic changes in how we work and live, the current revolution moves beyond many people’s imaginations. Workplace skills and abilities are transforming before our eyes to meet the new demands arising from autonomous cars, gene editing, smart homes, and intelligent robots.

According to a 2019 report by The Brookings Institution, routine physical and cognitive skills will be the most vulnerable subject to the Fourth Industrial Revolution’s technological change. These skills include those found in office administration, transportation, production, and food preparation. These jobs are deemed “high risk,” with projections that at least 70% of these tasks can be automated. Other positions that aren’t considered high risk but will be significantly impacted by technological automation include sales, facilities support, personal care, construction, health support, and agriculture.

The Impact To Come

Automation refers to machines performing tasks typically performed by humans, but with higher speed and greater accuracy and precision. The implementation of automation doesn’t mean that robots will be taking our jobs, as some of the earlier artificial intelligence and deep learning concerns chanted. Automation, instead, works alongside humans, allowing workers to focus on higher-level tasks.

This reality is that many jobs will become obsolete. Automation will impact different geographic areas in different ways. For example, according to Brookings, 47.1% of employment placements in Akron, Ohio, are at risk due to automation, threatening as many as 341,930 existing jobs. In the New York City metro area, 42.2% of posts are vulnerable, impacting over 9.5 million jobs. The global workforce will need to ready itself for what’s often called “the future of work.”

To compete in the 21st century, employers will need employees who possess in-demand hard skills such as cloud computing, artificial intelligence, business analytics, and people management skills. Additionally, employees will need in-demand soft skills such as creativity, collaboration, and adaptation.

The Revolution’s Demographic Impact

Like skill set and geographic impact, the Fourth Industrial Revolution will impact demographic groups differently. The Brookings report asserts that men, youth, less-educated workers, and underrepresented groups would be significantly affected by growing automation. For example, 49% of young workers between the ages of 16 and 24 will be most adversely impacted, along with Hispanic, Native American, and African American workers.

Three Ways to Prepare for the Future of Work

Organizations including The Brookings Institution, the Society of Human Resources Society, and The Aspen Institute have expressed that the government and employers should play a demonstrative role in training and developing workers, readying them for the future of work. Workforce readiness moves beyond merely training for new jobs, such as business analytics or computer programming positions. It also includes training and developing employees who will be impacted by the growing implementation of technology in the workplace. This group encompasses nontraditional or underrepresented workers, such as veterans, disabled workers, and those in the gig economy.

Upskill your employees.

The challenge for employers who must address the current and projected skills gap is to find quality candidates for available jobs. Skill development today goes beyond traditional educational degrees or certifications and now encompasses lifelong learning as a primary driver for employee success. Employers should assess job readiness in areas including skills, knowledge, and behavior. By understanding the initial status of their job candidates and employees, employers can determine the skills they need to teach, refine, or develop. Governmental entities and employers should promote training and educational development practices and programs that allow employees to learn new skills and move forward in their careers.

Promote a learning mindset culture.

In addition to upskilling current workers, employers should promote a ‘learning mindset’ culture by investing in reskilled workers, providing accelerated or in-flow learning, and implementing accessible training delivered to employees through smartphones, laptops, podcasts, or social media. By expanding options for training and education, employers can reach employees where they are, whether they’re an almost-retired baby boomer or a Gen Zer in their first job. By promoting a ‘learning mindset’ culture, employers and employees alike can develop currently needed work skills and prepare the organization for the work skills required for the future.

Ease the adjustment.

Finally, employers should implement strategies and programs for easing workers into the future of work, especially those who will be displaced or adversely affected by automation. For example, as suggested by the Aspen Institute, employers can help build a skilled workforce by empowering employees to invest in their training and development through portable access and new training opportunities, such as online training or at a community college. Not every worker will have access to employer-provided or paid professional development. Access to skills development will be critical to workforce readiness.

Further, employers can expand career counseling and reemployment services for employees transitioning to new positions or companies. During these transitions, employees need to understand what skills are necessary for their new jobs and how to acquire them. Skills evaluations in career counseling programs will allow employees to identify their current skill sets and any deficiencies that hamper their career growth.

Through skills tests, training, professional development, and strategic creativity, employers and employees can prepare today for the workforce of tomorrow.