Colleges Assess for Job Training Capacities

Just one impact of the 2025 LA Fires is their influence on 2026 educational priorities. In addition to the regional renovations going on in preparation for the 2028 Olympics, the LA basin is now also ramping up its construction and related industries to rebuild the burned neighborhoods. As was revealed by recent research completed by the Centers for Excellence (COE), those resource upgrades are coming just in time – there are literally thousands of jobs now available (or coming online soon) that need filling, if the area is going to meet its goal of infrastructure repair by 2028 and full residential recovery by 2035.

California Community Colleges Focus on Recovery Occupations

Throughout 2025, even while the fires were burning, the California Community College Chancellor’s Office (CCCCO) was assessing how it could leverage its existing LA-region training resources to respond more directly to the emerging demand for construction tradespeople. Seeking clarifying data, the Office turned to the COE for an in-depth analysis of its LA-based programs, courses, and trainings. Further, after the fires were extinguished, the CCCCO requested data on the anticipated labor demand for recovery efforts.

The COE responded with a detailed set of documents that provides insights and guidance for all entities engaged in the recovery effort. The resulting LA Fire Recovery dashboard consists of six sections, each related to an integral element of the recovery process:

1. Navigation
2. Labor Demand and Supply
3. Educational Program Capacity
4. LA-based CCC Programs Analysis
5. LA-based CCC Programs Listings, and
6. Overview, Methodology, and Data Sources.

The information gathered offers anyone interested or invested in the recovery process a detailed and comprehensive view of just how immense the recovery project will be, and of the thousands of jobs and careers it has the capacity to launch.

The February 3rd edition of the Pulse introduced the LA Recovery strategy and the funding being distributed to LA-region colleges to support it. The February 17 edition introduced readers to the Labor and Demand section; that analysis revealed a massive gap – 104,996 workers! – between the expected demand for an appropriately trained workforce (109,183) and the expected supply coming available within the year (4,187). Clearly, there is much educating to be done.

Fire Recovery Educational Program Capacity – All Available Training Resources  

The research tracks the number of learners enrolled in various fire- and construction-related courses in the three primary sources of occupational training in the LA area:

• the 19 local community colleges (using metrics from the ‘23-’24 academic year),
• the Eligible Training Provider List (ETPL – four program years starting 2019, ending 2024), and
• other facilities offering Adult Education training.

Within those timeframes, the numbers are less than imposing:

• Of the 80,070 community college students attending 34 construction-related courses at the 58 colleges within 100 miles of the fires, only 2,507 earned an academic or CTE (Career Technical Education) award within the time frame, while 2,854 earned a NC (non-credit) ‘workforce milestone’ (typically a credential of some kind), and almost 20,000 (19,747) earned more than nine Career Education Units. The math indicates that only 31.35% of all relevant students advanced in their occupational education journey over that period.
• The Adult Education data shows that 16,133 students were enrolled in 432 courses during the listed timeframe, but does not report the outcomes of those training activities.
• The ETPL data reveals that 3,963 individuals received training, and of those, 2,653 ‘exited’ their program. There is no clarification for the word ‘exit.’

The good news: these programs are in place and actively training new workforce members in the skills they’ll need to find work within these chosen industries. Now, the school’s impetus is to scale them to attract and serve more learners.

Fire Recovery Community College Programs – Specifically

The data presented on community college fire-related training efforts are comprehensive and provide an excellent view into the depth, breadth, and scope of the training opportunities offered by these 58 schools. The COE has parsed the information into three main categories per school and across the region:

• There are a total of 34 fire-related Programs (organized by Taxonomy of Programs code (TOP), from Architectural Drafting to Telecommunications Technology. Graduates from each course will have the training and skills needed to find and maintain jobs and careers in their chosen field.
• The report identifies 39 Standard Occupation Classifications (SOCs) that define the ultimate accreditation received through each training program. These are the familiar occupations that spring to mind when considering a construction-related job: roofers, painters, drywall experts, etc.
• The site also identifies the specific ‘Award’ or Credential offered by the program. Many training programs issue certifications and/or ‘noncredit’ awards: their durations are shorter, they train on specific skill sets, and they do not generate transferable academic credit. Graduates can earn their award quickly and get into a job, sometimes within weeks. Additionally, in many industries, certifications are becoming ‘stackable,’ with each advanced course adding more skills to the baseline, and typically commanding a higher pay rate as a result.

This element of the CCCCO website is particularly helpful for those seeking the best-paying jobs with training opportunities close to home. Again, the numbers reveal plenty of opportunities to enter several occupational fields, based on one’s aptitudes and preferences. As examples:

• Maintenance and repair workers will be highly sought after for decades. With demand for over 27,000 such workers in the Industrial Systems Technology & Maintenance program, only 187 candidates were available in that supply chain during the study period.
• Architectural drafters are also needed. With an expected demand of over 2,700 certified drafters, only 1099 are in the pipeline now.
• Not surprisingly, electricians are also in high demand, with a projected need for almost 11,000 (10,997) within the next few years. However, as with the other examples, there were only 362 in training during the study period to achieve that skillset.

Also of note is the reality that the burgeoning artificial intelligence (AI) capacity is swiftly layering into these training courses and programs. As the rebuild continues, it will also include substantial upgrades to ensure present and future residents have the technological capacity they’ll need to compete in the economy of the future. As the California Community Colleges revise their programs and courses to address the overwhelming demand for skilled construction and fire-related workers, they’ll also be including AI comprehension and mastery into that mix.

The immense impact of the 2025 LA Fires can’t be understated, from the destruction they caused to the economic growth they now promise. Since they were extinguished, the LA region has been hard at work removing the debris and detritus, while strategizing its next steps toward rebuilding. There is already a growing demand for workers in most fields related to this work, and that demand will continue to grow. The CCCs and their Chancellor’s Office are hard at work expanding their capacities to provide this elevated workforce, and will be doing so for many years to come.