* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. OKAY. [00:00:01] FEBRUARY 3RD, 2026. I WOULD LIKE TO CALL THE LONG BEACH WORKFORCE INNOVATION NETWORK MEETING TO ORDER ON THIS DAY, FEBRUARY 3RD. UH, MADAM CLERK, PLEASE CALL THE ROLE, UH, FOR THE RECORD, OR DO I DO THAT NEXT? OKAY. FOR THE RECORD, MEMBER CHAIR, OR MEMBER CARTER AND CHAIR LABAR ARE EXCUSED FROM THE MEETING FOR THE RECORD MEMBERS MADRID. MEMBER MADRID IS UNEXCUSED FROM THE MEETING. ARE THERE ANY OBJECTIONS FROM THE MEMBERS? OTHERWISE, WE'LL PROCEED WITH THE CALL OR MAYBE I DO THE OBJECTIONS AFTER. UM, MEMBER . MEMBER FABE. HERE. MEMBER FAYE. PRESENT. MEMBER GOMEZ. MEMBER GORDON PETERSON. MEMBER HALL, PRESENT. MEMBER . PRESENT. MEMBER RUIZ. PRESENT. MEMBER RUSSELL. PRESENT. MEMBER SAVAGE. PRESENT. MEMBER SMITH. PRESENT. MEMBER TESFAYE. PRESENT. MEMBER THOMAS. PRESENT AND VICE CHAIR QUO. PRESENT, WE HAVE QUORUM. GREAT. UM, MADAM CLERK, PLEASE READ THE FIRST ITEM. ITEM NUMBER ONE IS A RECOMMENDATION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES FOR THE LONG BEACH WORKFORCE INNOVATION NETWORK. MEETING OF THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11TH, 2025. FANTASTIC. MAY I HAVE A MOTION FOR THIS ITEM? SO MOVED. GREAT. PETERSON. IT HAS BEEN MOVED AND SECONDED BY ANYBODY. I'LL SECOND. SECOND. SECOND. LOVE THE ENERGY. EXCELLENT. . UM, THEN MEMBERS, ANY QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS OR CORRECTIONS ON THE MINUTES? I'M SEEING NONE. OKAY. WE'LL, NOW TAKE PUBLIC COMMENT. ANYONE WHO WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK ON THE MINUTES, PLEASE LINE UP IN FRONT OF THE MICROPHONE AT THE FRONT. OKAY. MADAM CLERK, PLEASE CALL FOR VOTE. MEMBER . YES. MEMBER FALVEY. YES. MEMBER FAYE APPROVE. MEMBER GORDON PETERSON. YES. MEMBER HALL APPROVED. MEMBER ANA. APPROVED. MEMBER RUIZ. APPROVED MEMBER RUSSELL. APPROVED. MEMBER SAVAGE. APPROVED MEMBER SMITH. APPROVED MEMBER TE FAYE APPROVED MEMBER THOMAS APPROVED VICE CHAIR QUO APPROVED. MOTION IS CARRIED. THANK YOU. UM, MADAM CLERK, CAN YOU PLEASE READ THE NEXT ITEM? ITEM NUMBER TWO IS A RECOMMENDATION TO APPROVE THE WORKFORCE INNOVATION AND OPPORTUNITY ACT POLICIES IMPACTING ADULT DISLOCATED WORKER AND YOUTH TESTING. OKAY. LOOKS LIKE WE HAVE A PRESENTATION FOR THIS. YES. GREAT. BEFORE WE MOVE FORWARD WITH THE PRESENTATION, IF I CAN JUST HAVE A MOTION IN A SECOND, PLEASE. FANTASTIC. MAY I HAVE A MOTION FOR THIS ITEM? SO MOVE SECOND. GREAT. IT HAS BEEN MOVED BY NUMBER TO FAVE. FAVE AND SECONDED BY MEMBER SAI. PERFECT. THANK YOU. GOOD AFTERNOON, BOARD MEMBERS. UM, IT'S NICE TO SEE YOU ALL AGAIN. AND FOR THOSE WHO I HAVEN'T HAD A PLEASURE OF MEETING, MY NAME IS CARLA CORONA AND I AM PART OF THE CONTRACTS AND COMPLIANCE TEAM. UM, AS REFERENCED IN THE POLICY DOCUMENT, UH, WE ARE CONTINUALLY REVIEWING AND UPDATING OUR WIOA POLICIES TO ENSURE THEY COMPLY WITH THE LATEST STATE DIRECTIVES AND FEDERAL REGULATIONS. UH, TODAY I WILL PRESENT THE SELF-SUFFICIENCY POLICY FOR YOUR APPROVAL. UH, THIS UPDATE IS NEEDED, NEEDED TO ALIGN OUR POLICY WITH CURRENT STATE GUIDANCE AND FINAL REGULATIONS. UH, SO THE PURPOSE OF THIS POLICY IS TO PROVIDE GUIDANCE AND ESTABLISH THE SELF-SUFFICIENCY STANDARD FOR WIOA ADULT AND DISLOCATED WORKER PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS. UM, AND TO SHARE A LITTLE BIT OF BACKGROUND, UM, ABOUT THIS POLICY, UM, UNDER WIOA SECTION 1 34, UM, THE GOAL IS TO ENSURE THAT INDIVIDUALS WHO RECEIVE TRAINING ARE THOSE WHO ARE UNLIKELY OR UNABLE TO SECURE EMPLOYMENT THAT LEADS TO ECONOMIC SELF-SUFFICIENCY OR COMPARABLE WAGES THROUGH CAREER SERVICES ALONE. UM, ADDITIONALLY, INDIVIDUALS MUST NEED TRAINING SERVICES TO ACHIEVE THIS, UH, LEVEL OF EMPLOYMENT. UM, AS A LOCAL AREA, WE DO HAVE THE FLEXIBILITY TO ADJUST THE ECONOMIC SELF-SUFFICIENCY BASED ON OUR LOCAL NEEDS. UM, TYPICALLY THIS POLICY IS UPDATED, UM, EVERY YEAR, UM, WHEN THE LOWER LIVING STANDARD INCOME LEVELS AND THE POVERTY GUIDELINES ARE RELEASED. UM, AT MINIMUM, OUR SELF-SUFFICIENCY, UM, [00:05:02] IS DEFINED AS EMPLOYMENT THAT PAYS AT LEAST A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE LOWER LIVING, UM, INCOME STANDARD LEVELS, UH, FOR OUR LOCAL AREA. AND THIS IS PER, UH, SECTION ALSO 1 34. UM, SO THIS YEAR WE ARE TRANSITIONING FROM OLDER SELF-SUFFICIENCY MEASURES TO A MORE PRECISE APPROACH. WE WILL NOW USE THE ECONOMIC POLICY INSTITUTE'S FAMILY BUDGET CALCULATOR. UH, THIS TOOL ESTIMATES, UM, THE ACTUAL INCOME NEEDED FOR VARIOUS FAMILY TYPES IN LOS ANGELES LONG BEACH AND THE GLENDALE AREA TO MAINTAIN A MODEST BUT ADEQUATE STANDARD OF LIVING. UM, AND THIS DOES TAKE INTO ACCOUNT EXPENSES SUCH AS HOUSING, FOOD, CHILDCARE, TRANSPORTATION, HEALTHCARE, AND OTHER NECESSITIES AND TAXES. UM, SO LONG BEACH STAFF, UH, WILL NOW USE THE EPI CALCULATOR MOVING FORWARD UNLESS, UM, FURTHER UPDATES ARE PROVIDED. UM, BY USING THE, UH, UPI FAMILY BUDGET CALCULATOR, LB WIN CAN BETTER UNDERSTAND WHAT LOCAL FAMILIES NEED TO BE FINANCIALLY SECURE. UH, THE EPI CALCULATOR GIVES US A CLEARER PICTURE OF THE REAL COST, UH, FACED BY DIFFERENT TYPES OF FAMILIES IN OUR AREA. UH, THIS CHANGE WILL HELP US DECIDE WHO QUALIFIES FOR MORE ACCURATELY, ENROLL MORE PARTICIPANTS AND GIVE, UH, BETTER SUPPORT. ANY QUESTIONS? THANK YOU FOR THAT. AND MEMBERS, ANY QUESTIONS? I, I HAVE A QUESTION. GREAT. I, WHEN I WAS READING THIS, YOU KNOW, I, I THINK IT MAKES SENSE TO, TO FIT OUR LOCAL COMMUNITY. ARE THERE ANY OTHER BOARDS OR REGIONS IN THE STATE THAT HAVE A SELF-SUFFICIENCY STANDARD THAT, THAT HAVE UPDATED? UM, YES. WE, UM, THIS POLICY OR, UH, THIS CALCULATOR IS BEING USED BY OTHER LOCAL, UM, BOARDS. UM, AND IT SEEMS TO BE AS, UH, MORE OF A BEST PRACTICE, UM, SINCE IT DOES CAPTURE MORE FAMILIES, DIFFERENT SCENARIOS. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? OKAY. THANK YOU SO MUCH. WE WILL NOW TAKE PUBLIC COMMENT. ANYONE WHO WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK ON THIS, UM, PLEASE COME TO THE MIC. I MIGHT BE GOING OUT OF ORDER, BUT LET JUST, I'LL SEE NONE. OKAY. UM, IF THERE'S NO FURTHER DISCUSSION, MME. CLARK, PLEASE CALL FOR THE VOTE. MEMBER . MEMBER FAVE APPROVE. MEMBER FAYE APPROVE. MEMBER GO. UH, MEMBER GORDON PETERSON. MEMBER HALL, APPROVE. MEMBER POINT TO NOT APPROVED. MEMBER RUIZ. APPROVED MEMBER RUSSELL APPROVED MEMBER SAVAGE. APPROVED MEMBER SMITH, APPROVED MEMBER TES FAYE APPROVED MEMBER THOMAS AND VICE CHAIR QUO APPROVED. MOTION IS CARRIED. THANK YOU. UM, MADAM CLERK, COULD YOU PRE PLEASE READ THE NEXT ITEM? ITEM NUMBER THREE IS A RECOMMENDATION TO RECEIVE AND FILE A PRESENTATION ON LABOR INDUSTRY DATA. THANK YOU. MAY I HAVE A MOTION FOR THIS ITEM? THE LABOR INDUSTRY DATA. SO MOVED. THANKS. SECOND. AND SECONDED BY, WAS THAT, UH, MEMBER REESE? YES. GREAT. THANK YOU. MEMBER FAVE, MOTIONED, UM, STAFF. MAY WE HAVE A PRESENTATION ON THIS? GOOD AFTERNOON. I'M NOT STAFF , BUT, UH, MY NAME'S ROBERT KLEINHANS. I'M THE DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF ECONOMIC RESEARCH AT CAL STATE LONG BEACH. I ALSO HAVE A KLEIN AND ECONOMICS CONSULTING FIRM. I'VE BEEN DOING ECONOMICS FOR ABOUT 30 YEARS, AND JAIME ASKED ME TO COME AND GIVE A PRESENTATION ON THE, UM, THE INDUSTRY AND LABOR MARKET. AND SO, UM, BY WAY OF, DO I HAVE ABOUT 15, 10 MINUTES OR FIF? SO, JUST BY WAY OF BACKGROUND, THE OFFICE OF ECONOMIC RESEARCH AT CAL STATE LONG BEACH IS AFFILIATED WITH THE ECONOMICS DEPARTMENT. WE'VE BEEN, UH, HAVING A CLOSE WORKING RELATIONSHIP WITH VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS AT, IN THE CITY OF LONG BEACH, PROBABLY FOR 30 YEARS OR SO. UM, AND, UH, AMONG OTHER THINGS WE'VE DONE THE ECONOMIC FORECAST FOR LONG BEACH, UH, DOWNTOWN ON AN ANNUAL BASIS, INITIALLY JUST CAL STATE LONG BEACH, AND MORE RECENTLY WITH THE LONG BEACH ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP. AND IN TERMS OF MY BACKGROUND, I'M A REGIONAL ECONOMIST. SO, YOU KNOW, YOU HEAR ABOUT GDP AND INFLATION RATES AND THINGS LIKE THAT, WHICH TELL US ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING AT THE MACRO LEVEL. I'M A MAIN STREET ECONOMIST. I LOOK AT THE KINDS OF JOBS THAT ARE BEING CREATED HERE IN THE CITY OF LONG BEACH AND IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA. UH, HOW THOSE JOBS COME ABOUT, HOW WELL WE MATCH OUR WORKFORCE WITH THOSE JOB NEEDS BY INDUSTRY. THAT'S THE KIND OF STUFF THAT I GET INTO. SO IF YOU WANT TO HAVE ADVICE ON HOW TO MANAGE YOUR PORTFOLIO, [00:10:01] DON'T ASK ME. OKAY. I'VE GOT A BROTHER JACK, WHO'S THE FINANCIAL GUY. SO HAPPENS WE HAVE TWO ECONOMISTS IN THE FAMILY. GO FIGURE. BUT, UH, I'M THE, I'M THE, UH, REGIONAL ECONOMY GUY. AND SO I'VE BEEN WORKING AS THE DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF ECONOMIC RESEARCH FOR ABOUT FIVE YEARS. SO LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT, UH, THINGS. AND AS MUCH AS I'VE JUST KIND OF DISCOUNTED THE IMPORTANCE OF THE NATIONAL NUMBERS, THEY'RE STILL IMPORTANT FOR US TO UNDERSTAND WHAT MAKES THE LOCAL ECONOMY TICK. SO I AM GONNA TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE VITAL SIGNS OF THE ECONOMY, UH, THE THREE MOST IMPORTANT ONES BEING THE LABOR MARKET, GDP AND, UM, INFLATION. UM, AND THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR YOU TO LEARN SOME TERMINOLOGY THAT, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN IMPRESS YOUR FRIENDS WITH AT, UH, COCKTAIL PARTIES AND THE LIKE. SO WE'RE, WE'VE BEEN HEARING TERMS LIKE KHAP ECONOMY, MAYBE YOU'VE BEEN HEARING A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE JOBLESS BOOM. I'LL TALK ABOUT EACH OF THOSE IN TURN. SOME OF YOU MAY REMEMBER STAGFLATION, NOW WE'RE TALKING ABOUT STAGFLATION LIGHT. AND I THREW IN THE WORD UNCERTAINTY BECAUSE OVER THE PAST YEAR, SO GOING BACK TO EARLY IN 2025, WE'VE HAD A, AN OVERWHELMING AMOUNT OF UNCERTAINTY ABOUT THE DIRECTION OF THE ECONOMY POLICY AND SO ON, THAT HAS KIND OF, UM, SHAPED THE WAY THINGS HAVE HAPPENED. SO IN BRIEF, THE JOBLESS BOOM OR JOBLESS GROWTH IS, UH, THE FACT THAT WHILE OUR UNEMPLOYMENT RATE IS NOT IN BAD SHAPE AT 4.5% FOR THE MONTH OF JANUARY, UM, WE'VE HAD LITTLE OR NO GROWTH OVER THE LAST SIX MONTHS IN THE NATIONAL ECONOMY. AND YET, AND, AND, AND ON TOP OF THAT, UH, WE'VE HAD FEW JOB OPENINGS. SO A COUPLE YEARS AGO, WE HAD JOB OPENINGS THAT FAR EXCEEDED THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO WERE UNEMPLOYED. THE JOB OPENINGS ARE THAT BLACK LINE AND THE RED LINE SHOWS THE NUMBER OF UNEMPLOYED. SO A FEW YEARS AGO, THE JOB OPENINGS WERE MUCH HIGHER THAN THE NUMBER OF UNEMPLOYED. TODAY, ON THE FAR RIGHT HAND SIDE, YOU CAN SEE THAT THEY'RE KIND OF NECK AND NECK. SO THE LABOR MARKET HAS TIGHTENED. JOB OPPORTUNITIES ARE NOT WHAT THEY WERE A FEW YEARS AGO. BUT DO KEEP IN MIND ON THE FAR LEFT, THAT WAS THE PANDEMIC. AND SO THERE WAS A LOT OF ADJUSTMENT IN THOSE YEARS IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE PANDEMIC THAT MADE FOR JOB OPENINGS. OKAY, SO THAT'S THE JOBLESS PART OF JOBLESS GROWTH. THIS IS THE GROWTH PART. WE'VE HAD FEW JOBS CREATED IN THE NATIONAL ECONOMY OVER THE PAST SEVERAL MONTHS. AND YET UP AT THE TOP, YOU CAN SEE THAT ON A QUARTERLY BASIS, GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT, WHICH IS OUR MEASURE OF OUTPUT FOR THE ECONOMY, HAS GROWN BY 4.4%. THE NORM'S ABOUT TWO, 2.2%. SO WE'VE BEEN GROWING AT ABOUT DOUBLE THE NORMAL RATE FOR THE NATIONAL ECONOMY AND INTO THE INTEREST OF TIME, I WON'T GO INTO THESE DETAILS, BUT, UH, AI INVESTMENT HAS MADE A, A BIG CONTRIBUTION TO THAT GROWTH. BUT CONSUMER SPENDING BY PEOPLE LIKE YOU AND ME, HAS ALSO MADE A SUBSTANTIAL CON CONTRIBUTION TO, UH, GDP GROWTH. SO THIS IS THE QUANDARY WE FIND OURSELVES IN. WE'VE GOT AN ECONOMY THAT'S GROWING, BUT IT'S NOT REALLY CREATING JOBS, JOBLESS GROWTH, OKAY? THE SAME. AND, AND IT'S WORTH NOTING THAT A LOT OF THAT SPENDING AND, UH, SPENDING POWER IS COMING FROM THE UPPER 20% OF INCOME EARNERS. AND SO THE KHAP ECONOMY, THAT STORY IS SHOWN HERE. IF YOU GO ON THE LEFT HAND SIDE, YOU'LL SEE THAT BACK IN THE 1990S, THE SPLIT OF SPENDING HAS WAS MORE OR LESS EVEN BETWEEN THE TOP 20% IN GREEN AND THE BOTTOM 80% IN BLUE. BUT YOU CAN SEE THAT THAT DIVERGED OVER THE LAST 20 YEARS, REALLY 25 YEARS IN THIS DECADE, IN THIS, UH, CENTURY. UM, AND I ATTRIBUTE THAT IN LARGE PART TO THE DYNAMISM THAT OUR ECONOMY HAS HAD. WHENEVER YOU SEE A LOT OF TECHNICAL CHANGE, TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE, THERE ARE WINNERS AND LOSERS, AND A LOT OF TIMES THOSE WHO, UM, YOU KNOW, ARE INVESTED MORE HEAVILY IN THE STOCK MARKET OR IN A POSITION TO CAPITALIZE ON IT, AND THEY END UP DOING BETTER. AND SO THAT'S DRIVING A GOOD PART OF THIS, UH, GAP THAT'S OCCURRING BETWEEN THE TOP 20% AND THE BOTTOM 80%. SO THE BOTTOM LINE IS THAT OUR CONSUMER SPENDING, IS HE HEAVILY INFLUENCED BY THAT TOP 20% AT THE PRESENT TIME. DON'T GET ME WRONG, THE BOTTOM 20% IS NOT LOSING GROUND. IT'S JUST THAT THEY'RE ONLY MAINTAINING GROUND, NOT GAINING GROUND IN TERMS OF THEIR PURCHASING POWER OF, UM, OF THEIR MONEY. AND SO, UM, UH, IT'S WORTH NOTING. THE NEXT THING IS STAGFLATION LIGHT. SO BACK IN THE 1970S, WE HAD DOUBLE DIGIT INFLATION RATES, AND WE HAD NO GROWTH. TODAY WE HAVE, UM, NO GROWTH IN THE LABOR MARKET, AND WE HAVE INFLATION RATES IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF 3% THAT ARE ABOVE THE 2% TARGET THAT THE FED HAS ESTABLISHED FOR MANY YEARS. SO THE INFLATION IS THERE, BUT IT'S NOT A LOT OF INFLATION, NOT DOUBLE [00:15:01] DIGIT INFLATION, IT'S JUST THAT IT'S PERSISTENTLY ABOVE THE FED TARGET. SO THAT'S THE INFLATION PART OF STAGFLATION. AND THE STAG PART REFERS TO THE FACT THAT THE LABOR MARKET IS STAGNATING. SO NOW YOU'RE WELL EQUIPPED TO ENGAGE IN ANY CONVERSATION ABOUT THE ECONOMY. OKAY, SO MY FORECAST, OUR FORECASTS ARE SHOWN HERE. JUST SO YOU KNOW, WE'RE NOT LOOKING AT A RECESSION OR ANYTHING IN 2026. UH, BUT A BUMPY ROAD, I THINK LIES AHEAD. UM, MUCH LIKE WHAT WE SAW IN 2025. SO IN CALIFORNIA, WE'VE HAD AN UNEMPLOYMENT RATE AT 5.5% IN THE 5% RANGE PERSISTENTLY FOR QUITE SOME TIME. YOU'LL HEAR A LOT OF NEWS COMMENTATORS TALKING ABOUT HOW THIS SPEAKS TO THE ILLS OF THE STATE ECONOMY, BUT IT'S BEEN LIKE THIS SINCE THE 1990S, ABOUT A 1% GAP BETWEEN THE NATIONAL AND THE STATE. UNEMPLOYMENT RATES HAS TO DO WITH THE MIX OF INDUSTRIES IN CALIFORNIA'S ECONOMY COMPARED TO THIS NATION AS A WHOLE. WE HAVE A MUCH HEAVIER RELIANCE ON AGRICULTURE, MAYBE NOT HERE IN LONG BEACH. UM, WE HAVE A MUCH HEAVIER RELIANCE ON O OTHER SEASONAL KINDS OF INDUSTRIES LIKE TOURISM, HOSPITALITY AND THINGS LIKE THAT, THAT CONTRIBUTES TO A HIGHER UNEMPLOYMENT RATE. SO IT IS KIND OF WHAT IT IS, UH, AND WE, WE CAN'T REALLY CHANGE THAT. SO IT, WE SHOULD SPEND OUR TIME CONSTRUCTIVELY THINKING ABOUT OTHER WAYS TO IMPROVE THE ECONOMY. I WOULD POINT OUT THAT OUR LABOR FORCE HAS BARELY GROWN, UH, SINCE THE PANDEMIC. IT'S ONLY GROWN BY ABOUT 1%, 4% FOR THE NATION. IT'S ACTUALLY LOWER FOR LONG BEACH. WE'LL GET INTO LONG BEACH IN A MINUTE. UH, I'M GONNA SKIP THIS IN THE INTEREST OF TIME, BUT I WOULD JUST POINT OUT THAT WHILE WE'VE BEEN HEARING A LOT ABOUT HOW CURRENT IMMIGRATION ACTIONS HAVE BEEN, UH, DETRIMENTAL TO OUR LABOR FORCE, EVEN BEFORE THAT CAME INTO PLAY, THE DEMOGRAPHICS WERE BAKED IN THE CAKE. THE FACT THAT WE WOULD BE LOOKING AT LABOR SHORTAGES OVER THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE, BECAUSE THE BOOMER POPULATION, WHICH IS AT TOP ROW MOSTLY, UH, HAS BEEN LEAVING THE LABOR FORCE IN LARGE NUMBERS THAT EXCEED THE YOUNGER GENERATION OF 18 TO 24 YEAR OLDS THAT ARE ENTERING THE LABOR FORCE. IT'S A VERY CRUDE WAY OF EXPLAINING THE DEMOGRAPHICS THAT ARE AFFECTING THE, THE WORKFORCE, THE LABOR FORCE AT THE NATIONAL OR AT THE STATE LEVEL. BUT, UM, IT AMOUNTS TO, AS YOU SEE IN THE BOTTOM TABLE, ABOUT 4% OF THE LABOR FORCE. SO WE HAVE TO BE AWARE OF THAT AS WE, UH, TRY TO SHAPE, UH, WORKFORCE OPPORTUNITIES IN THE FUTURE. SO CALIFORNIA'S ECONOMY IS TREADING WATER IN, UH, IN MY OBSERVATION. UM, I'M JUST GONNA WALK OVER HERE. SO ONLY 1, 2, 3, 4 OUTTA 17 INDUSTRIES ARE CONTRIBUTING TO JOB GROWTH RIGHT NOW. AND THAT'S BEEN THE CASE FOR MOST OF 2025. PROBABLY WILL BE THE CASE HERE IN 2026. SO THAT'S A CONCERN BECAUSE A LOT OF HEAVY HITTING INDUSTRIES DOWN THERE ARE FLAT TECH, ENTERTAINMENT, MANUFACTURING, CONSTRUCTION, OKAY, LOCALLY. UH, OKAY, SO YOU MIGHT SAY, AND, AND I THINK IF ANY GROUP IS AWARE OF THIS, YOU SHOULD BE. YOU MIGHT SAY, WELL, IF IT'S OUT THERE AND IF THERE ARE SOME NUMBERS, WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO GET OUR HANDS ON THE NUMBERS. THAT'S TRUE OF THINGS LIKE THE LABOR MARKET FOR CITY OF LONG BEACH. IT'S LESS TRUE OF THINGS LIKE JOB DATA. WHICH INDUSTRIES ARE ADDING JOBS, WHICH INDUSTRIES ARE, YOU KNOW, CREATING NEW ESTABLISHMENTS, INCREASING PAYROLL. THAT INFORMATION IS HARDER TO COME BY. SO MY WORK AROUND'S GONNA BE TO TALK ABOUT THE COUNTY ECONOMY. MAYBE IN A FUTURE MEETING IF I GET INVITED BACK, UM, WE CAN DIG UP SOME DATA. JAIME, UH, THAT LOOKS AT THE LOCAL. THAT IS TO SAY, CITY OF LONG BEACH ECONOMY, AND TELL US MORE ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING AT THAT LEVEL. SO THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE LAST YEAR FINISHED THE YEAR AT 5.5%. YOU CAN SEE IT'S GONE UP AND DOWN OVER THE LAST 15 YEARS. THAT BIG SPIKE, ABOUT TWO THIRDS OF THE WAY ACROSS IS THE PANDEMIC. WHAT CONCERNS ME IS ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE, UH, AND AGAIN, I'M GONNA STEP OVER HERE, I FEEL LIKE A WEATHERMAN . SO WE'VE GOT THE LABOR FORCE UP HERE THAT GREW IN PRIOR TO THE PANDEMIC, UM, AND THEN, UH, IT DROPS AT THE TIME OF THE PANDEMIC HAS NOT RECOVERED. SAME THING IS TRUE OF HOUSEHOLD EMPLOYMENT. THESE ARE JOBS OF PEOPLE WHO RESIDE HERE IN THE CITY OF LONG BEACH. SO IT SEEMS AS THOUGH WE'VE REACHED A PLATEAU WITH HOUSEHOLD EMPLOYMENT AND THE LABOR FORCE THAT IS LOWER THAN IT WAS BEFORE THE PANDEMIC. SO THAT'S A CONCERN, ESPECIALLY WHEN WE WANNA GROW THE ECONOMY. NOW, YOU YOU MAY KNOW THAT SOMEWHERE, WELL, I THINK I'VE GOT A SLIDE I'LL TELL YOU IN A MINUTE. UH, SO WHAT WE DO HAVE IN THE WAY OF, UM, WHAT DRIVES THE LONG BEACH ECONOMY IS THE MIX OF INDUSTRIES THAT [00:20:01] APPEARS HERE. AND THIS IS THE MIX OF INDUSTRIES IN TERMS OF JOB COUNT. SO NEARLY 20% OF THE JOBS IN THE CITY OF LONG BEACH ARE IN THE HEALTHCARE SECTOR, FAR LEFT. AND THEN YOU'VE GOT GOVERNMENT AND THESE OTHERS, IT'S COLOR CODED, AND THE COLOR CODING TELLS US THIS, IF IT'S YELLOW, IT'S WHAT'S CALLED A POPULATION SERVING INDUSTRY. SO THOSE INDUSTRIES CIRCULATE THE INCOME ONCE IT'S BEEN EARNED. THE DARK GREEN ARE THE TRADED INDUSTRIES THAT GROW THE LOCAL ECONOMY. SO OBVIOUSLY THAT'S GONNA BE OUR LOGISTICS SECTOR WITH TRANSPORTATION AND WAREHOUSING. WHOLESALE TRADES ALSO A PART OF THAT. BOTH OF THOSE ARE SHADED IN DARK GREEN MANUFACTURING'S, ANOTHER INDUSTRY LIKE THAT. SO SEEING THE KIND OF JOB CREATION THAT WE'RE SEEING IN THE AEROSPACE INDUSTRY IS SOMETHING THAT'S GONNA CONTRIBUTE TO THE GROWTH OF THE OVERALL ECONOMY. THERE ARE SOME LIGHT GREEN INDUSTRIES THAT REPRESENT A HYBRID BETWEEN THE TWO. YOU'VE GOT SOMETHING LIKE RETAIL AND RESTAURANTS THAT SERVE BOTH THE LOCAL POPULATION, AND IN THIS CASE THE VISITOR TOURIST POPULATION. SO IT'S IMPORTANT FOR US TO KNOW THE STRUCTURE OF THE ECONOMY BASED ON THIS, SO THAT WE KNOW WHERE WE'RE GETTING OUR GROWTH FROM. AND WE'RE ALSO, WE ALSO KNOW HOW HEALTHY OUR POPULATION SERVING INDUSTRIES HAPPEN TO BE. IF I WERE TO LOOK AT THINGS LIKE PAYROLL AND SO ON, WE MIGHT GET A MUCH DIFFERENT STORY, BUT WE DON'T HAVE TIME TO GET INTO THAT TODAY. BUT IN TERMS OF THE LOCAL, THAT IS TO SAY LONG BEACH INDUSTRIES THAT ARE, UH, DRIVING THE ECONOMY AT THE PRESENT TIME. UH, IT'S SAFE TO SAY THAT WE'RE GETTING A PRETTY GOOD READ FOR LA COUNTY. SO FOR ALL OF 2025 IN LA COUNTY, WE HAD 4.6 MILLION JOBS. LET'S SEE IF I CAN GET THAT UP, UP HERE AT THE TOP. AND THE JOB COUNTS GREW BY BARELY BY TWO TENTHS OF 1%. BUT YOU CAN SEE IN GREEN THE INDUSTRIES THAT CONTRIBUTED TO THOSE JOB GAINS, UM, HOWEVER SMALL THEY WERE. UH, SO HEALTHCARE YOU SAW ON THAT LIST, GOVERNMENT YOU SAW ON THAT LIST, TRANSPORTATION AND WAREHOUSING YOU SAW ON THAT LIST. LOOK DOWN AT THE BOTTOM. AND YOU CAN SEE WE'VE LOST A LOT OF MANUFACTURING JOBS COUNTYWIDE. I'M NOT SURE THAT THAT'S THE CASE FOR THE CITY OF LONG BEACH. SO WE, WE KNOW ACTIVITY ON THE GROUND HAS BEEN HAPPENING THAT'S BEEN DRIVING, UH, GAINS IN CONSTRUCTION, UH, PROFESSIONAL SCIENTIFIC AND, AND TECHNICAL SERVICES. SOME OF THESE OTHER INDUSTRIES, WE DON'T HAVE A TI THE TIME TO TALK ABOUT, BUT THEY ARE VERY IMPORTANT TO THE GROWTH OF THE COUNTY AND THE LOCAL ECONOMY. SO, JUST KIND OF WRAPPING UP OUR LABOR MARKET'S SIMILAR TO THE COUNTY, BUT NOT EXACTLY. AND WE KNOW THAT THERE ARE SOME DIFFERENCES. UM, THE MAJOR INDUSTRIES ARE TRACKING WITH THE ECONOMY, BUT SOME OF THOSE MAJOR INDUSTRIES, UM, ARE GONNA BE KEY TO OUR FUTURE. BUT THEY'RE NOT SHOWING VERY MANY SIGNS OF LIFE AT THE PRESENT TIME. UH, WE'RE BUCKING THE TREND WITH AEROSPACE, WITH LEISURE AND HOSPITALITY. I WOULD POINT OUT THAT IF YOU TOOK A LOOK AT THE NUMBER OF PAYROLL JOBS WE HAVE IN THE CITY OF LONG BEACH, WHICH IS MAYBE 140,000 JOBS OR SOMETHING, I, NO, I'M SORRY. IT'S ABOUT 180,000 JOBS THAT'S SMALLER THAN OUR WORKFORCE. WE HAVE ABOUT 230, 200 40,000 RESIDENT WORKERS, BUT ONLY ABOUT EIGHT 180, 190,000 JOBS. I THINK IT, I, IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME SINCE I'VE BEEN ABLE TO WORK THAT NUMBER. UH, THE, THE POINT IS THAT THERE ARE SOME CITIES THAT ARE JOB MAGNETS, UM, OR JOB CENTERS, AND LONG BEACH WANTS TO BE ONE, AND WE CAN BE ONE. WE HAVE WHAT IT TAKES, UH, BUT WE'RE NOT THERE YET, AT LEAST BASED ON THAT METRIC. WE HAVE A LOT OF COMMUTERS, NOT UNLIKE MANY CITIES AROUND SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA. SO ONLY ABOUT A THIRD OF LONG BEACH WORKERS LIVE AND WORK IN THE CITY, ABOUT TWO THIRDS LIVE HERE, BUT WORK ELSEWHERE. AND THAT'S TRUE OF, AS I SAY, MANY OTHER CITIES AROUND THE REGION BECAUSE WE'RE SO WELL INTEGRATED. OKAY. SO THAT'S SAID. UM, AND I'M SORRY, I'VE GOT MY KLEIN'S ECONOMICS LOGO AND EVERYTHING. THAT'S BECAUSE I DIDN'T HAVE, I DON'T HAVE ANY STAFF. THE OFFICE OF ECONOMIC RESEARCH IS SELF-SUPPORTING, AND WE DON'T HAVE ANY PROJECTS RIGHT NOW, SO I COULDN'T HIRE ANYBODY TO CONVERT ALL THIS TO A CAL STATE LONG BEACH LOGO AND EVERYTHING. BUT MAYBE ANOTHER TIME. SO I'M HAPPY TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS IF YOU HAVE, IF THERE IS TIME SHARING TIME. THANK YOU SO MUCH. UM, YEAH. DO WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE MEMBERS TODAY? YES, SIR. MEMBER SAVAGE. OH, CAN YOU, UM, OPEN YOUR MIC? YES, THANK YOU. UM, IF YOU COULD JUST GO BACK OVER FOR JUST A MOMENT WHERE YOU TALKED ABOUT WHAT MAKES A CITY A A MAGNET. OH. AND, AND SOME OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE DOING WELL, AND SOME OF THE THINGS THAT STILL LEAVE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US. OKAY. UM, I THINK THAT CONTINUES TO BE IMPORTANT. YEAH. OVERALL, UH, AS WE LOOK AT THIS, UM, YOU KNOW, FROM OUR PERSPECTIVE AS FROM CITY GOVERNMENT'S PERSPECTIVE, THIS IS A REAL BALANCING [00:25:01] ACT THAT CITIES HAVE TO DEAL WITH. THE INDUSTRIES THAT CONTRIBUTE TO GROWTH, THOSE IN GREEN ARE NOT THE BIGGEST JOB CREATORS. THEY'RE ALSO NOT THE BIGGEST CREATORS TO DIRECT TAXABLE SALES, WHICH OF COURSE, IS ON THE MINDS OF LOCAL OFFICIALS AND OTHERS WHO WANT TO SEE INDUSTRIES CONTRIBUTE TO LOCAL COFFERS. SO IT'S GOTTA BE A KIND OF BALANCED APPROACH. WE, WE, ON THE ONE HAND, WE WANNA ATTRACT BUSINESSES THAT ARE IN THOSE, UH, TRADED SECTORS. SO, YOU KNOW, WE'VE GOT AN ACE IN THE HOLE WITH THE PORT OF LONG BEACH. ANYTHING RELATED TO, UH, TRANSPORTATION, LOGISTICS, UH, WE'VE GOT A MAGNET THERE. SO THAT'S GREAT. WE DO HAVE ENERGY AS WELL. UM, AND ALTHOUGH IT'S GOING AWAY, UM, BUT THEN WE ALSO HAVE MANUFACTURING. WE'VE CHOSEN TO FOCUS ON AEROSPACE. AND THIS IS AN INDUSTRY THAT, YOU KNOW, IN 1990, LA COUNTY HAD 130 JO 130,000 PLUS JOBS IN THE AEROSPACE INDUSTRY. TODAY IT'S ABOUT 50, 55,000, SOMEWHERE IN THAT NEIGHBORHOOD. SO IT'S NOT NEARLY WHAT IT USED TO BE, BUT IT HAS TOTALLY TRANSFORMED, AND WE'RE NO LONGER MAKING PLANES SO MUCH AS WE'RE PRODUCING AEROSPACE, UH, AT AND MAINLY FOR PRIVATE, UH, ENTERPRISE, UH, ACTIVITIES. SO THAT'S THE, WE'RE DOING A RIGHT, THE RIGHT THING BY TRYING TO LURE YOUNG AEROSPACE COMPANIES HERE. AND WE HOPE THAT THEY WILL STAY HERE AS THEY'VE MATURED. THAT'S THE REAL CHALLENGE. UH, BUT WE, WE TRY TO CAPITALIZE ON OUR, UM, PORT. WE CAPITALIZE ON OUR LONGSTANDING HISTORY OF AEROSPACE. WE HAVE A CONVENTION AND VISITOR CENTER THAT IS RIGHT ON THE PACIFIC OCEAN. HOW MANY OTHER PLACES HAVE THAT HERE IN CALIFORNIA? SO WE'RE TRYING TO CAPITALIZE ON THAT, BOTH WITH BUSINESS MEETINGS AND WITH MORE RECENTLY WITH ENTERTAINMENT EVENTS. SO I THINK WE'RE DOING A LOT OF THE RIGHT THINGS. AND AT THE SAME TIME, WE'VE GOT A HUGE MEDICAL CENTER COMPLEX, A COUPLE OF THOSE, UM, I, WE NEED TO DO MORE OF THE SAME. UH, SO I DON'T WANNA SOUND LIKE A CHEERLEADER. I MEAN, I THINK THAT IF WE HAD THE TIME TO DO A DEEPER DIVE, WE COULD PROBABLY TALK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, GETTING INTO THE WEEDS A LITTLE BIT MORE. BUT, UM, THEN THE TRICK IS TO MATCH THE WORKFORCE TO THE, THE JOBS THAT ARE IN THOSE EMPLOYERS. AND, UM, THAT'S THE, PROBABLY THE TALLEST ORDER. AND THAT'S NOT JUST FOR LONG BEACH, BUT FOR JUST ABOUT EVERY CITY OR COMMUNITY HERE IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA. THANKS. THANK, THANK YOU SO MUCH. DO WE HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? MEMBER SMITH? OH, THANKS FOR YOUR PRESENTATION, ROBERT. I'M WONDERING ABOUT, UH, IMPACT ON THE ECONOMY OF THE COMING OLYMPIC GAMES IN THE NEXT COUPLE YEARS. SURE. WHAT YOU SEE COMING FROM THAT? I KNOW YOU TALKED ABOUT THE HOSPITALITY TOURISM AS A MAJOR GROWTH SECTOR. I'M ALSO WONDERING ABOUT, LIKE, AS WE PREPARE PEOPLE FOR THAT WORKFORCE, UH, SUSTAINABLE JOBS. AND I'M WONDERING IF YOU'VE EVER KIND OF LOOKED AT, UH, PREVIOUS OLYMPIC CITIES AND WHAT JOBS STAYED BEHIND RATHER THAN CREATING JOBS THAT DISAPPEAR IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE GAMES, OR KIND OF THOUGHTS AROUND, IT MAY BE A, A FUTURE CONVERSATION, BUT TRY TO KEEP IT QUICK. 'CAUSE I KNOW YOU'RE, THANK YOU. YOU'RE SHORT ON TIME, BUT THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION. UH, THE FIRST STUDY THAT WAS DONE AND, AND PAID FOR BY THE OLYMPIC ORGANIZING COMMITTEE BACK WHEN IT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE THE 2024 OLYMPICS, WAS DONE BY A COMPANY CALLED BEACON ECONOMICS. I WAS ON THE TEAM THAT DID THAT STUDY. AND THEN SINCE THEN I'VE DONE FOUR SCAG, UH, SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF GOVERNMENTS. WE JUST DID A STUDY, UM, THAT WAS, UH, PRESENTED BACK IN DECEMBER. SO I HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF UNDERSTANDING ABOUT THIS. AND HERE'S, HERE'S WHAT I KNOW IN A NUTSHELL. NUMBER ONE, UH, LONG, UM, SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA IS WELL POSITIONED TO DO AN OLYMPICS BECAUSE WE HAVE A LOT OF EXISTING INFRASTRUCTURE THAT CAN BE BROUGHT TO BEAR WITHOUT INVESTING IN WHAT COULD BE STRANDED ASSETS LIKE A STADIUM OR SOMETHING THAT COULDN'T BE PUT TO A FUTURE USE. WE ALREADY HAVE ARENAS AND STADIUMS AND AND SO ON. SO THAT'S GOOD. THE JOB CREATION, WHICH IS VERY IMPORTANT, UM, YOU KNOW, THINK ABOUT IT, IT'S GONNA BE TEMPORARY. IT'S GOING TO BEGIN TO RAMP UP PROBABLY IN LATE 2027, BECAUSE THERE'S A LOT OF PREPARATION INVOLVED. THERE'S ALREADY STUFF GOING ON NOW, BUT NOT TO THE SAME DEGREE THAT YOU'RE GONNA SEE IN 2028. BUT IT RAMPS UP IN THE WEEKS AND MONTHS PRIOR TO THE START OF THE OLYMPICS. IT PEAKS DURING THE OLYMPICS, OF COURSE, BEFORE IT, UM, TRAILS OFF. YOU'VE GOT THE, UH, PARALYMPICS AS WELL. MOST OF THOSE JOBS, LET'S BE HONEST, MOST OF THE JOBS ARE GONNA BE TEMPORARY JOBS, AND MANY OF THOSE JOBS ARE NOT GONNA BE GREAT PAYING JOBS. SO THERE WILL BE A BOOST TO THE LOCAL ECONOMY AND THE WHEN IT'S DONE RIGHT, THE ECONOMIC IMPACT ANALYSIS. WE'LL LOOK AT THE NET EFFECT [00:30:01] EVERY SUMMER. WE HAVE A LOT OF TOURISTS WHO COME HERE. HOW MANY OF THOSE TOURISTS ARE GOING TO BE DIVERTED BECAUSE OF THE OLYMPICS AND WHAT'S THE NET EFFECT? AND BASED ON WHAT WAS DONE BY BEACON A NUMBER OF YEARS AGO, THAT NET EFFECT IS STILL GONNA BE SOMEWHAT POSITIVE. SO THAT'S A GOOD THING. IN TERMS OF SUSTAINED JOBS, I'M NOT SURE THAT THERE WILL BE SUSTAINED JOB CREATION DIRECTLY TIED TO THE OLYMPICS, BUT I DO THINK, AND THIS IS ESPECIALLY TRUE FOR LONG BEACH, WHICH HAS BEEN IN THE SHADOW OF LA FOREVER, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO SHINE AS A CITY HERE IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA. WITH ALL THE EVENTS THAT ARE TAKING PLACE HERE. THERE WILL BE A LOT OF CORPORATE, YOU KNOW, BUSINESS PRESENCE FROM THE US AS WELL AS AROUND THE GLOBE. AND IF WE DO THINGS RIGHT, WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO TURN THAT INTO SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS ATTRACTION. SO IT'S AN INDIRECT EFFECT THAT I WOULD ANTICIPATE WE'RE, WE'LL BE, BRING THE MOST BENEFITS HARDEST TO MEASURE, BUT I THINK WE NEED TO BE AWARE OF THAT. SORRY FOR THE LONG ANSWER. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD IF WE HAD, IF WE HAVE TIME? YEAH, I HAVE ONE MORE. QUE YEAH. I HAVE ONE QUESTION. UM, IN YOUR ECONOMIC DATA, IS THERE EVER AN ANALYSIS ON HOW STARTUPS VERSUS MORE LIKE LONGER LASTING OR LONGER STANDING COMPANIES IMPACT THE, UH, THE ECONOMY FOR A CITY? FOR INSTANCE, A STARTUP MIGHT COME IN AND, UH, SOMETIMES THEY HAVE ECONOMIC DIFFICULTIES, THEY HAVE MASS LAYOFFS, AND THEN THAT IMPACTS THE PEOPLE WHO USED TO BE WORKING WITH THEM. WHEREAS LIKE A BIGGER COMPANY, THEY MAY COME IN, BUT THEY MAY PAY LESS BECAUSE THEY'RE, YOU KNOW, SEASONED THAT WHOEVER THEIR HR DOES. UM, DO YOU GUYS HAVE DATA ON HOW A STARTUP VERSUS A ESTABLISHED COMPANY AFFECTS THE AREA? UM, I'LL HAVE TO PAINT THIS IN VERY BROAD STROKES. I MEAN, WE DON'T HAVE DATA PER SE, BUT I, I JUST HAVE TO KIND OF PAY ATTENTION TO, YOU COULD SAY, THE LIFECYCLE OF AN INDUSTRY OR THE LIFECYCLE OF A COMPANY. AND SO WHEN YOU HAVE STARTUPS, THEY ARE INVESTING IN THEMSELVES. THEY OFTENTIMES HAVE SMALL PAYROLLS AND, YOU KNOW, UM, THE, THE LIKELIHOOD OF FAILURE FOR SMALL BUSINESSES IS HIGH. ONE IN FIVE, UH, LOSE, UH, GO OUT OF BUSINESS WITHIN FIVE YEARS. I FORGET, I'M NOT SURE IF THAT'S THE RIGHT PERCENTAGE. IT'S, I'M A LITTLE RUSTY. SO, UM, HAVING STARTUPS IS A GOOD THING IN THE SENSE THAT YOU'RE HOPING FOR FUTURE, UH, GROWTH AND EXPANSION AND JOB CREATION, BUT IT'S A RISKY BET. AND SO, UH, THAT'S SOMETHING TO KEEP IN MIND. BUT IN TERMS OF PRODUCT AND BUSINESS LIFECYCLE, WHEN, UH, YOU KNOW, DEPENDING ON THE INDUSTRY, WHAT THAT COMPANY DOES IN THE FUTURE AS IT GROWS, IF IS IT GOING TO MAINTAIN ITS ROOTS IN THE LOCAL COMMUNITY? OR AT SOME POINT IF, UM, MANY TIMES WE THINK ABOUT THIS IN TERMS OF MANUFACTURING, WELL, WILL IT STAY PUT OR WILL IT GO SOMEWHERE ELSE WHERE THERE ARE LOWER COSTS OF LABOR AND SO ON? AND, UH, SO IF YOU TRACK WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH THE AEROSPACE INDUSTRY, THAT HAS PRETTY MUCH BEEN THE CASE. EVEN WITH SOME OF THESE YOUNGER COMPANIES THAT COME HERE, THEY'LL DO THE R AND D HERE BECAUSE THAT'S OUR FORTE. IT'S OUR FORTE, NOT JUST IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, BUT HERE IN LA IN LONG BEACH. SO THAT'S SOMETHING WE NEED TO KEEP TOP OF MIND. UH, BUT IF THEY GET TO THE POINT WHERE THEIR MANUFACTURING ITEMS, OFTENTIMES THEY'RE LOWER COST PLACES TO DO THAT. AND SO THEY MAY NOT KEEP THE SAME JOB BASE HERE, UH, AS THEY EVOLVE FROM A SMALL OR MEDIUM COMPANY TO A LARGER COMPANY. UM, LARGER COMPANIES HAVE MORE STAYING POWER. THEY TEND TO BE MORE INVOLVED IN CIVIC AFFAIRS. SO, UH, HAVING A LITTLE BIT OF BOTH, I SUPPOSE IS A GOOD STRATEGY. I DON'T KNOW IF I'VE ANSWERED YOUR QUESTION AS WELL AS YOU'D LIKE, BUT, UM, THOSE ARE MY THOUGHTS. YEAH. YEAH. THANKS. ANY REMAINING QUESTIONS ON THIS TOPIC? WE'RE NOW WELL EQUIPPED FOR COCKTAIL PARTIES. YES. THE JOB WORTH. YEAH. THANK YOU. THAT WAS THE WHOLE GOAL, . THANKS VERY MUCH. THANK YOU SO MUCH. UM, WE'LL NOW TAKE PUBLIC COMMENT IF NO PUBLIC COMMENT. MADAM CLERK, PLEASE CALL FOR THE VOTE. MEMBER GOBAR. MEMBER FAVE APPROVE. MEMBER FAYE APPROVE. MEMBER GOMEZ, APPROVE MEMBER GORDON PETERSON, MEMBER HALL APPROVED. MEMBER MADRID, I'M SORRY. MEMBER OT APPROVED MEMBER RUIZ. APPROVED MEMBER RUSSELL APPROVED MEMBER SAVAGE, APPROVED MEMBER SMITH, APPROVED MEMBER TES FAYE APPROVED MEMBER THOMAS APPROVED VICE QUEL APPROVED. MOTION IS CARRIED. THANK YOU MADAM CLERK, COULD YOU PLEASE READ THE NEXT ITEM? ITEM NUMBER FOUR IS A RECOMMENDATION TO RECEIVE AND FILE [00:35:01] A PRESENTATION ON LONG BEACH OUT OF SCHOOL YOUTH DATA. THANK YOU SO MUCH. MAY I HAVE A MOTION FOR THIS ITEM? SO, MOVE SECOND. THANK YOU. MOTION BY MEMBER FAVE. SECONDED BY CO UH, MEMBER KOBO. YES. UM, DO WE HAVE A PRESENTATION FOR THIS ONE? THE LA OPPORTUNITY YOUTH COLLABORATIVE? NO, BUT Y'ALL COULD HEAR ME CHECK. DON'T MAKE ME BRING OUT MY KARAOKE SKILLS. UM, GOOD AFTERNOON EVERYONE. MY NAME IS MELANIE FARON. I'M WITH THE LA OPPORTUNITY YOUTH COLLABORATIVE. UM, WE'RE SO EXCITED TODAY TO BRING TO YOU FIRSTHAND. Y'ALL GOT FRESH OFF THE PRESS, UH, PRINTOUTS RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU. IF YOU DON'T HAVE ONE, PLEASE LET US KNOW AND WE'LL PASS IT TO YOU. UM, BUT THIS IS FRESH OFF THE PRESS DATA THAT WE'VE COLLECTED ON OPPORTUNITY YOUTH HERE IN LONG BEACH. UM, I'M JOINED HERE WITH MY COLLEAGUE, DR. MAKA, UM, WHO COMPILED ALL THIS RESEARCH. BUT JUST LET ME GIVE YOU AN OVERVIEW OF THE WORK THAT WE DO HERE. UM, WE ARE A COLLECTIVE IMPACT INITIATIVE. SO WHAT THAT MEANS IS WE BRING TOGETHER PARTNERS TO BRING, TO LOOK AT A COMMON AGENDA. AND OUR COMMON AGENDA IS TO LOOK AT OPPORTUNITY YOUTH THRIVING AND HOW WE DECREASE THE DISCONNECTION RATE ACROSS LA COUNTY. AND WE'VE HAD THE PRIVILEGE OF DIVING DEEP HERE IN LONG BEACH FOR THE PAST FOUR YEARS. WE'RE BORN OUTTA THE ASPEN INSTITUTE, AND THEY HAVE BEEN FUNDING US FOR THE PAST OVER 10 YEARS, AND ACTUALLY HAVE, UM, GRANTED US SOME FUNDS TO ALSO PASS TO LB WIND TO LOOK AT, TO START A PEER NAVIGATOR PROGRAM, WHICH I'M SURE, UM, WE CAN GET INTO A LITTLE BIT LATER. BUT JUST KNOWING THAT THERE HAS BEEN LONGSTANDING FUNDING FOR US AS A COLLABORATIVE TO BRING PARTNERS LIKE THE FOLKS HERE IN LONG BEACH TOGETHER. AND NOW, UM, WE'RE AT A POINT WHERE WE'RE STARTING TO LOOK AT PILOTING, I PILOTING THINGS TO LOOK AT HOW WE, UM, RETAIN AND GET YOUNG PEOPLE TO PERSIST IN PROGRAMS. WE'RE BOUNDED WITH ALLIANCE FOR CHILDREN'S RIGHTS. UM, WE HISTORICALLY HAVE FOCUSED ON FOSTER YOUTH, BUT WE REALLY HAVE NOW EXPANDED OUR DEFINITION FOR OPPORTUNITY YOUTH. AS YOU KNOW, OUT SCHOOL YOUTH, UH, BY THE FEDERAL DEFINITION, ARE YOUNG PEOPLE WHO ARE DISCONNECTED FROM SCHOOL AND WORK IN LA COUNTY. WE'VE REALLY PUSHED THIS DEFINITION TO THINK ABOUT YOUNG PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT ONLY DISCONNECTED FROM SCHOOL AND WORK, BUT ALSO IMPACTED BY THE FOSTER CARE SYSTEM, THE JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEM, AND THE UNHOUSED SYSTEMS, BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT WHILE YOUNG PEOPLE ARE CONNECTED TO SYSTEMS, THEY'RE STILL OFTEN PUSHED INTO DISCONNECTION AFTER THEY LEAVE THOSE SYSTEMS. AND SO, HOW ARE WE THINKING ABOUT THESE YOUNG PEOPLE PROACTIVELY? SO THEY ARE NOT JOINING THE DISCONNECTION RATE IN LONG BEACH OR IN LA COUNTY? BY WAY OF THAT, WE ARE A SYSTEM. WE FOCUS ON SYSTEMS CHANGE, AND AS I MENTIONED BEFORE, WE HOLD CONVENINGS. WE BRING PARTNERS TOGETHER. WE'VE PREVIOUSLY BROUGHT TOGETHER THE COLLEGES HERE IN LONG BEACH, LB ONE HERE, LACO, AS WELL AS L-L-B-U-S-D, TO LOOK AT HOW WE'RE THINKING ABOUT TRANSITIONS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE FROM K THROUGH 12 INTO THE WORKFORCE OR INTO POST-SECONDARY. MY BIGGEST NOTE THAT WE DO IS THAT WE REALLY WORK WITH YOUNG PEOPLE AND WE MAKE SURE THAT YOUNG PEOPLE ARE PART OF THE CHANGE AND THAT THEY ARE A NORTH STAR IN WHAT WE ARE DESIGNING FOR CHANGE. AND THAT IS OUR, I THINK OUR BIGGEST THING TO NOTE HERE. UM, WHILE WE DO, WHILE WE DO ALL THE WORK TO WORK WITH OUR GOVERNMENT PARTNERS AND OUR CBOS, WE MAKE SURE THAT YOUNG PEOPLE ARE PART OF THE DESIGN PROCESS. UM, AND WE PREVIEW, WE'RE HOPING TO, WE'RE NOT HOPING, WE ARE PLANNING A, A LARGER CONVENING ON THIS IN, UM, THE UPCOMING MONTHS. PART OF OUR PROCESS HAS BEEN TO PUT A STRATEGIC PLAN TOGETHER. BORN OUT OF THE LA PERFORMANCE PARTNERSHIP PILOT. WE RENEWED OUR STRATEGIC PLAN JUST LAST YEAR TO CREATE A JOINT APPROACH REGIONALLY ON HOW WE ARE GOING TO ATTACK AND HOW WE ARE GOING TO, UM, IMPROVE THE DISCONNECTION RATES THAT ARE HAPPENING THROUGH THE COUNTY. AND SO WE HAVE A, A STRATEGIC PLAN CALLED HORIZONS 30 2K THAT WAS NAMED BY OUR YOUNG PEOPLE. AND WE REALLY LOOKED AT THE DATA TO LOOK AT A FOUR YEAR IMPACT PRIOR TO THE PANDEMIC WE WERE, UH, DECREASING IN THE COUNTY. AND WE ARE, WERE RECONNECTING YOUNG PEOPLE, BUT THAT WAS ALL UNDONE WITHIN THE TIME OF THE PANDEMIC. AND SO WE WERE, WE'RE TRYING TO GET TO PRE PANDEMIC LEVELS IN, IN FOUR YEARS. SO WE STARTED OFF LAST YEAR AND BY 2028, WE'RE HOPING TO DECREASE OUR DISCONNECTION RATE BY 30 2K. BEFORE I PASS IT TO, UM, ARI, I DO WANNA MENTION THAT WE PUT OUT SOME DATA FOR, UM, LONG BEACH, A FEW JUST ABOUT LAST YEAR. AND THERE WAS SO MUCH EXCITEMENT FROM CITY COUNCIL BECAUSE THIS WAS A NUMBER THAT WASN'T QUANTIFIED IN LA COUNTY, OR EXCUSE ME, IN LONG BEACH. WE KNEW THAT THIS WAS HAPPENING IN LONG BEACH, BUT THERE WAS ENERGY TO QUANTIFY THIS AND THEN MOVE THIS NUMBER. AND SO REALLY WE THEN COMMISSIONED A, A DEEPER REPORT WITH OUR COLLEAGUE HERE TO LOOK AT HOW ARE WE, HOW ARE WE STRATEGIZING AS A COMMUNITY IN LONG BEACH TO LOOK AT THE DISCONNECTION RATE. AND AS WITH THE PREVIOUS PRESENTATION, LOOKING AT HOW WE ARE REALLY FOCUSING ON CONNECTING OUR YOUNG PEOPLE 16 TO 24 BACK INTO THE WORKFORCE OR WITHIN POST-SECONDARY. SO WITHOUT FURTHER ADO, I'LL PASS IT TO MY COLLEAGUE, ARI. THANK YOU. [00:40:02] OKAY. CAN YOU GUYS HEAR ME OKAY? UM, USE THIS. OKAY, I'M GONNA SKIP THIS SLIDE 'CAUSE IT'S SUMMARIZES WHAT I'M ABOUT TO TALK ABOUT, RIGHT? BUT IT'S JUST, IT'S IN THERE FOR YOU IF YOU WANT. OKAY. SO WE ARE GONNA START OFF JUST IN GENERAL, RIGHT? SO, UH, MELANIE MENTIONED A FEW THINGS. UM, SO OPPORTUNITY YOUTH AND I USE DISCONNECTED AND OPPORTUNITY YOUTH INTERCHANGEABLY. UM, FOR THE PURPOSE OF THIS PRESENTATION, WHEN I SAY OPPORTUNITY YOUTH OR DISCONNECTED YOUTH, THESE ARE, UH, YOUTH TEENS AND YOUNG ADULTS WHO ARE 16 TO 24, NOT IN SCHOOL AND NOT AT WORK. OKAY? UH, WE HAVE, IT'S, IT'S QUITE A BIT MORE DIFFICULT TO CAPTURE, UM, UH, HOUSING INSECURE AND FOSTER AND, AND, UH, UH, PROBATION, ALL THAT. THAT'S A LITTLE HARDER TO, TO GET. UM, BUT ALL OF THE DATA HERE THAT YOU'LL SEE IS FROM THE AMERICAN COMMUNITY SURVEY, WHICH HAPPENS EVERY YEAR. AND IT'S PART OF THE US CENSUS BUREAU, JUST THE, THE CENSUS BUREAU. OKAY? SO, UM, THIS CHART IS SHOWING, UH, THE COUNTS AND THE RATES OF OPPORTUNITY YOUTH IN THE CITY OF LONG BEACH. UH, SO YOU SEE IN 2014 IT WAS QUITE HIGH, UM, OVER ALMOST 9,000 AND ABOUT, UH, A LITTLE UNDER A QUARTER. SO ONE OUT OF EVERY FOUR, ALMOST IN 2014, 16 TO 24 YEAR OLDS WERE NOT AT SCHOOL AND NOT AT WORK. SO DISCONNECTED FROM THOSE TWO FUNDAMENTAL INSTITUTIONS. UM, AND THEN THERE'S AMAZING PROGRESS. SO THIS, UH, A COUPLE OF IMPORTANT THINGS. UM, YOU'LL SEE A LOT OF VARIATION BETWEEN YEARS BECAUSE OF THE SMALLER POPULATION SIZE, RIGHT? IF YOU, IF THIS WAS LA COUNTY, IT WOULD BE KIND OF A SMOOTH, UM, SMOOTH SHIFTS. BUT BECAUSE THE, THE POPULATION CHANGES YEAR TO YEAR, AND IT'S A RELATIVELY SMALL POPULATION. I THINK IN 2023, THERE WERE A TOTAL OF SOME SOMETHING LIKE 60 3016 TO 24 YEAR OLDS IN THE CITY OF LONG BEACH. UM, UH, SO YOU CAN, THAT'S A, YOU CAN SEE THE, THE OI COUNTS MAY CHANGE A LOT OR THE RATES MAY CHANGE A LOT, UH, AND THE OTHER ONE DOESN'T. THAT, THAT, THAT'S WHY IS BECAUSE OF THE SMALLER POPULATION AND THE AMERICAN COMMUNITY. JUST TO NOTE, THE AMERICAN COMMUNITY SURVEY IS, USES A SAMPLING METHOD, RIGHT? IT'S NOT LIKE EVERYBODY COMPLETES THE SURVEY. THEY GET ENOUGH PEOPLE TO COMPLETE THE SURVEY WHERE THEY'RE COMFORTABLE TO GENERALIZE TO THE WHOLE POPULATION. UM, OKAY, SO, UH, OVERALL THE OI NUMBERS DECLINED SINCE 2014, BUT REMAINED ABOVE PRE PANDEMIC LOWS. AND THAT'S NOT ABOUT THE PERCENTAGE, IT'S MORE ABOUT THE COUNTS. UM, AND THEN OF COURSE, EVERYWHERE IN THE UNITED STATES IT'S THE SAME. 2020 IT SPIKED, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, THE CENSUS BUREAU SAID IN 2020, WE DON'T WANT YOU TO, IF YOU CAN AVOID USING 2020 DATA, DO IT BECAUSE IT'S VERY UNRELIABLE. BUT I PUT IT IN HERE JUST IN CASE. UM, SO WHAT WE SEE THOUGH IN THE PAST COUPLE YEARS IS THE RATES HAVE GONE WAY DOWN. UH, BUT THE NUMBER, THE RAW NUMBER IS STILL GREATER THAN WE WE WANT, RIGHT? UM, AND I'LL SHOW YOU, I'VE GOT THE LAST SLIDE IS A, IS IS A LITTLE BIT OF DATA ON 2024. UM, OKAY, SO THIS IS TEEN AND YOUNG ADULT, UH, EMPLOYMENT AND SCHOOL ENROLLMENT. SO I KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF NUMBERS, UH, BUT WHAT IT'S SHOWING IS, UH, ON THE LEFT IT'S EMPLOYMENT STATUS, SO EMPLOYED NOT IN LABOR FORCE, UNEMPLOYED, AND THEN SCHOOL IN SCHOOL, ET CETERA. UH, SO SCHOOL STATUS ALONG THE TOP AND THEN DIVIDED BY 16 TO 18, WHICH ARE, WE'LL CALL THEM TEENS, 19 TO 24 YOUNG ADULTS. AND THEN THE OVERALL 16 TO 24 POPULATION. THERE'S JUST A FEW THINGS I WANT YOU TO NOTICE IN YELLOW. THOSE ARE THE RAW OI NUMBERS, OKAY? SO YOU CAN ALREADY SEE, AND WE'LL TALK ABOUT THIS MORE, YOU CAN ALREADY SEE THAT 16 TO 18 YEAR OLDS, GENERALLY SPEAKING, AND HERE AS WELL, ARE NOT DISCONNECTED BECAUSE THEY'RE ALMOST, ALMOST ALL OF 'EM ARE IN SCHOOL, RIGHT? UM, WHERE DISCONNECTION STARTS TO REALLY HAPPEN IS AFTER HIGH SCHOOL. THAT IS WHEN WE LOSE A LOT OF LOT OF YOUNG PEOPLE. UM, SO YOU CAN SEE THE 19 TO 24 YEAR OLDS, THEIR, THEIR NUMBERS ARE HIGHER, RIGHT? AND, AND SOMETHING YOU CAN ALSO SEE, AND WE'LL TALK ABOUT THIS IN A MINUTE, IS SO, UH, NOT IN LABOR FORCE MEANS THEY'RE NOT EVEN, THEY'RE NOT ATTACHED TO THE LABOR MARKET AT ALL. IF YOU'RE UNEMPLOYED, IT MEANS YOU'RE STILL LOOKING FOR A JOB, BUT YOU JUST DON'T HAVE ONE. NOT IN THE LABOR FORCE MEANS YOU'RE COMPLETELY [00:45:01] REMOVED FROM THE LABOR FORCE. AND WHAT WE SEE IS THOSE NUMBERS ARE QUITE HIGH FOR 19 TO 24 YEAR OLDS. OKAY? SO NOW WE LOOKED AT, NOW WE LOOK AT DISCONNECTION BY AGE, BY INDIVIDUAL AGE. SO YOU CAN SEE KIND OF, YOU KNOW, REINFORCES WHAT WE, WHAT WE JUST MENTIONED. UM, AND THIS IS AGAIN, IS TRUE ALMOST EVERYWHERE. UH, 16, 17, 18 YEAR, UM, IN THIS CASE, 19 YEAR OLDS TOO. THEIR, THEIR NUMBERS ARE VERY LOW RIGHT? AFTER THAT, THAT'S WHEN THE BULK OF THE, OF THE DISCONNECTION HAPPENS, RIGHT? OKAY. UM, SO THIS IS DISCONNECTION BY RACE, ETH AND ETHNICITY. SO, UM, WHAT WE SEE HERE, SO THE PURPLE ONE IS 2019 COUNTS AND RATES, AND THE ORANGE IS 2000, UH, 23 COUNTS AND RATES. SO WHAT WE CAN SEE IS BLACK AND AFRICAN AMERICAN YOUTH EXPERIENCED THE HIGH HIGHEST DISCONNECTION RATE, UM, IN FACT MORE THAN DOUBLE THE CITY AVERAGE FOR THAT YEAR. AND LATINO YOUTH REPRESENTED THE LARGEST CHAIR OF OI, UH, BECAUSE OF POPULATION SIZE AND, AND ELEVATED RATES. UM, AND THEN ASIAN YOUTH HAD THE LOWEST DISCONNECTION, UH, GENERALLY REFLECTS HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE ENROLLMENT STABILITY. SO THEY, YOU KNOW, ARE IN SCHOOL AND THEN CONTINUE ON WITH SCHOOL. UM, BUT AGAIN, THE, THE, THE RAW NUMBERS THEMSELVES ARE RELATIVELY LOW, RIGHT? AND WE WILL SEE IN 2024, SO IF YOU PAY ATTENTION TO THE BLACK AND AFRICAN AMERICAN COUNTS AND RATES FOR 2023, UM, IT WAS ALMOST, IT WAS, UH, JUST OVER ONE IN FIVE WERE DISCONNECTED IN 2023, THAT NUMBER HAS CHANGED A LOT IN 2024. IN FACT, THE PERCENTAGE IS HALED, IT'S 10% IN 2024. BUT AGAIN, THE POPULATION SIZE IS NOT, IS NOT HUGE, RIGHT? IT'S GREAT NEWS. BUT THAT'S WHY WE'RE SEEING A LOT OF, UH, IN ADDITION TO ALL THE WORK BEING DONE, IT'S A RELATIVELY SMALLER, SMALLER, UH, POPULATION. OKAY? OKAY. SO THIS IS DISCONNECTION AND EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT FOR YOUNG ADULTS. OKAY? SO WHAT THIS MEANS IS THIS IS THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF EDUCATION THEY'VE ACHIEVED AT THE TIME OF THEM TAKING THE SURVEY. SO THE, UH, THE GREEN IS OPPORTUNITY YOUTH AND THE PURPLE IS CONNECTED YOUTH, SO NON NOT OPPORTUNITY YOUTH. SO THE, THE, THE STORY HERE IS, UH, A NORMAL ONE, IT'S, UH, OI ARE FAR MORE LIKELY TO HAVE LESS EDUCATION THAN THEIR CONNECTED PEERS. UM, AND THIS IS WHERE THE, THIS IS WHERE IT REALLY STARTS TO SHOW LIKE THE, THE GAPS THAT WE'LL SEE LATER ON WITH, WITH THESE INDIVIDUALS STARTS HERE. UM, AND, AND THE, THE, THE OUTCOMES OF BEING DISCONNECTED ARE IN GENERAL NOT VERY GOOD, RIGHT? THERE'S, THERE'S LOWER LIFE SATISFACTION, THERE'S LOWER OVER, UH, THERE'S LOWER, UH, UH, UH, OVERALL PAY. UM, THERE'S, THERE'S MORE BARRIERS. IT'S JUST A WHOLE LIST OF THINGS THAT NO ONE WANTS, BUT BECAUSE THEY'RE DISCONNECTED AND, AND THE LONGER THEY'RE DISCONNECTED, THE WORSE THE OUTCOMES TYPICALLY, RIGHT? SO THIS IS WHERE WE START TO SEE THIS IS LIKE THE LIFTOFF POINT WHERE LIKE, NOW WE'RE STARTING TO SEE DIFFERENCES. AND SO THE, THIS IS REALLY THE TIME. THIS, THIS IS THE PLACE TO LIKE GET THEM RIGHT, IS, UH, IS TO TRY AND KEEP THEM AFTER HIGH SCHOOL AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE, RIGHT? UM, OR, OR GET THEM TO SOME PATHWAYS OR, YOU KNOW, ALL THE RESOURCES AND SUPPORT, ET CETERA. LIKE DO ANYTHING WE CAN NOT TO LOSE THEM HERE, BECAUSE IF WE DO, IT'S, IT GETS INCREASINGLY HARDER TO GET THEM BACK AND THEY HAVE WORSE AND WORSE OUTCOMES FOR THEM, BUT ALSO IT'S NOT GOOD FOR THE ECONOMY, ET CETERA. UM, SO, UH, POST-SECONDARY ATTAINMENT GENERALLY IS LIMITED FOR OI. AND, AND WE START TO SEE THAT WIDENING GAP, RIGHT? SO THAT'S FOR 19 TO 24 YEAR OLDS. THIS ONE IS FOR 23 AND 24, JUST THE OLDER, THE OLDER, UH, UH, YOUNG ADULTS, RIGHT? SO WHAT WE SEE HERE IS NOW WE'RE AT 23, 24, WHEREAS THE OPPORTUNITY YOUTH LACK REALLY ANY POST POST-SECONDARY CREDENTIALS NON KNOW WHY THEIR CONNECTED PEERS ARE, ARE [00:50:01] DOING WHAT THEY'RE DOING. THEY'RE GOING TO SCHOOL, THEY'RE GETTING DEGREES, THEY'RE ON THE WAY TO GET DEGREES, ET CETERA. SO THESE EDUCATIONAL DIFFERENCES REALLY PREDICT FUTURE WAGE AND EMPLOYMENT GAPS, WHICH IS WHY IT'S JUST CRITICAL TO TO, TO NOT LET THEM, NOT LET THEM GO. OKAY? SO NOW WE'RE COMPARING SOCIOECONOMIC AND EMPLOYMENT CHARACTERISTICS OF OPPORTUNITY YOUTH AND NON OPPORTUNITY YOUTH. SO FIRST THING WE SEE IS, UM, THE, THE EMPLOYMENT HISTORY FOR, FOR THESE TWO POPULATIONS IS VERY DIFFERENT, RIGHT? SO FOR EXAMPLE, UH, ABOUT 25% OF OPPORTUNITY HAD WORKED IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS AT THE TIME OF THE TAKING THE SURVEY COMPARED TO, UM, WHERE IS IT SEVEN OVER 70% FOR THEIR CONNECTED PEERS, RIGHT? AND SO ANOTHER THING WE KNOW IS THAT THE EARLIER WE, YOU CAN GET LABOR MARKET ATTACHMENT OR EXPERIENCE, THE BETTER, RIGHT? AND NOW WE HAVE THESE OPPORTUNITY YOUTH WHO ARE, SOME OF THEM MAY BE IN THEIR HIGH TEENS, AND THEY, THEY, THEY HAVEN'T, THEY HAVEN'T WORKED, RIGHT? UH, AGAIN, NOT, NOT, NOT GOOD. UM, SO OI ALSO FACED, SO IN ADDITION TO THIS, TO, TO THE, THE, THE STRUGGLES OF, OF BEING DISCONNECTED, THEY ALSO HAVE THESE OTHER BARRIERS, RIGHT? THAT SOMETIMES MAY PARTIALLY CAUSE THEM TO BE DISCONNECTED OR THE OTHER WAY AROUND. UM, SO THEY'RE ALSO, IT'S LIKE A DOUBLE, YOU KNOW, IT'S, IT'S EVEN HARDER BECAUSE SOME OF THEM ARE, ARE PARENTS, RIGHT? UH, OTHER ONES DON'T HAVE HEALTH INSURANCE. SO THEY HAVE THESE OTHER STRUCTURAL BARRIERS THAT ARE, MAKE IT VERY DIFFICULT FOR THEM TO, TO, TO THRIVE LIKE WE WANT THEM TO. OKAY? SO NOW WE GO TO GEOGRAPHIC DIFFERENCES IN, UH, OI CONCENTRATIONS. SO, UM, THE CENSUS, UH, THE CENSUS BUREAU DIVIDED, UH, DIVIDES THE UNITED STATES INTO, UH, DIFFERENT AREAS. AND FOR THE PURPOSES OF THE, THE, THE CENSUS, THEY, THEY USE WHAT'S CALLED PUBLIC USE MICRO DATA AREAS OR PUMAS, OKAY? THEY'RE TYPICALLY, UM, AREAS OF, UH, AT LEAST A HUNDRED THOUSAND. AND USUALLY PUMAS DON'T CROSS COUNTY LINES, RIGHT? SO I THINK LA COUNTY HAS, I THINK IT'S NOW 71 PUMAS, WHICH IS A LOT. AND FOUR OF THOSE ARE IN LONG BEACH OR, OR THE CITY OF LONG BEACH. SO WHAT WE SEE HERE IS, UH, THE RIGHT IS 2019, THE GREEN, THE, THE, THE PURPLES AND, AND THE GREEN IS 2023. UH, SO WE CAN SEE THAT THE LONG BEACH, SOUTHWEST AND PORT, THAT'S THE, THE PU THAT'S THE PUMA, UM, IS CONTRIBUTING, UH, OVER 40% OF THE CITY'S SHARE OF OPPORTUNITY YOUTH. OKAY? SO THAT IS WHERE A LOT OF 'EM RESIDE. UH, FAR FEWER RESIDE IN, UH, CENTRAL LONG BEACH CENTRAL AND SIGNAL HILL. AND THESE ARE THE NAMES OF THE PUMAS. THESE AREN'T MY NAMES. LONG BEACH EAST, AGAIN, FEW AND LONG BEACH NORTH. A GOOD PERCENTAGE OF THEM ARE THERE TOO. SO WE CAN SEE IN LONG BEACH, SOUTHWEST PORT, THE OI RATE, THE DISCONNECTION RATE IS REALLY HIGH AS ONE OUT OF FOUR. SO IF YOU, IF YOU GO TO THAT AREA AND YOU SEE A TEEN OR A YOUNG ADULT BETWEEN THESE AGES, THERE'S A 25% CHANCE THAT PERSON JUST IS NOT, NOT ENGAGED IN SCHOOL OR WORK, RIGHT? SO, SO THERE'S BEEN SOME CHANGES FROM SO LONG BEACH NORTH, BIG IMPROVEMENT, UM, UH, BUT WE STILL, WE STILL GOT A LOT OF FOLKS IN LONG BEACH IN THE SOUTHWEST AND PORT AREA. SO IT'S IMPORTANT BECAUSE WE HAVE TO KNOW WHERE TO DEPLOY THE RESOURCES, RIGHT? IF WE DON'T KNOW WHERE THE THE KIDS ARE, WE DON'T KNOW WHERE TO DEPLOY THE RESOURCES. SO, OKAY, SO THIS IS THE LAST SLIDE. UM, WHEN WE WROTE THIS REPORT, 20 20, 20 24, DATA WASN'T YET RELEASED. UM, IT'S NOT SURPRISING THAT THEY'RE NOT ON SCHEDULE, RIGHT? , UH, SO, BUT I WANTED, I WANTED TO TO, TO PRESENT SOME, SOME DATA FOR, FOR THE, THIS IS THE LATEST DATA THAT'S AVAILABLE. SO WHAT WE SEE IS A PRETTY AWESOME FINDING, RIGHT? UH, IT'S ABOUT A 20% DECREASE IN THE NUMBER OF OPPORTUNITY YOUTH IN THE CITY OF LONG BEACH RELATIVE TO 2023. THAT'S HUGE. [00:55:01] SO, UH, IT'S GOING DOWN, IT'S TRENDING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. THE, WE JUST NEED TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO CONTINUE DOING THIS, RIGHT? UM, UH, SO, AND THERE'S JUST, AGAIN, SOME DATA THERE. UH, THE LAST THING I'LL SAY IS THAT THE AFRICAN AMERICAN AND BLACK, UM, TEEN AND YOUNG ADULTS, THAT NUMBER HAS CHANGED DRAMATICALLY, RIGHT? IT WAS, IT WAS OVER 20% IN 2023. IT'S 10.3% NOW, RIGHT? UM, AND THE, THE ROCK, THE, THE COUNT HAS ALSO CHANGED A LOT. IT'S A LOT LOWER. UM, SO THAT'S IT. UM, HAPPY TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE MEMBERS? JUST ONE QUESTION. YEAH. LOOKING AT THIS DATA, I NOTICED, CAN YOU TELL ME IF THE TWO MAJOR RACES, THAT NUMBER HAVE GONE UP VERSUS, I'M TRYING TO SEE IF SOME OF THE BLACK AND AFRICAN AMERICAN IDENTIFIED THEMSELVES AS TOO MAJOR RACIST VERSUS JUST BLACK, AND THAT'S WHERE THE NUMBERS SHIFTED VERSUS IT GOT ACTUALLY BETTER IN THE REAL LIFE. THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION. I, I HAVE NOT LOOKED AT THAT TO SEE BECAUSE IT'S, IT'S, IT'S NOT AS EASY AS YOU WOULD THINK TO LOOK TO LOOK AT THAT BECAUSE THERE'S SO MANY, UM, LIKE IF YOU GET ALL OF THE RACES, THERE'S, IT'S LIKE HUNDREDS AND HUNDREDS OF ROWS. UM, BUT, SO LET'S SEE. UH, OKAY, SO TWO, YEAH, TWO, TWO PLUS. OH, SO FOR HERE, FOR THIS ONE, I, SO WHAT IT DOES, IT HAS TWO MAJOR RACES, AND THEN IT ALSO HAS THREE OR MORE MAJOR RACES, AND I COMBINE THEM INTO TWO PLUS. UM, BUT YEAH, ONE DAY I REALLY DO WANT TO TAKE A, A CLOSE LOOK AT, AT, AT, UH, AT THAT DATA. UM, YEAH, GOOD QUESTION. GREAT, THANK YOU. YEAH. I'M WONDERING, DO WE KNOW WHAT ATTRIBUTED TO OR, OR CONTRIBUTED TO THE RATE GOING DOWN SO SIGNIFICANTLY IN NORTH LONG BEACH, UH, DROPPED ALMOST 5% WERE THEN SKYROCKETED ALMOST IN, IN WEST LONG BEACH. UM, WAS THERE STRATEGIC EFFORTS BY THE CITY OR DIFFERENT, UM, MAYBE NON-PROFIT GROUPS DURING THAT TIME IN LIKE THE COVID? IT SEEMS LIKE COVID MAY HAVE PLAYED A FACTOR TOO. I'M NOT SURE. YEAH, GOOD QUESTION. THAT'S CAN YOU, I THINK HYMAN PROBABLY HAS THE ANSWER. YEAH, I, AND I MEAN, I DON'T KNOW IN YOUR ROLE TOO, I'M JUST WONDERING WHAT, LIKE, WHAT, WHAT WAS DONE THEN? SO SIGNIFICANTLY, WAS IT THE ROLE OF JORDAN HIGH SCHOOL AND THE SCHOOL IN NORTH LONG BEACH AS WELL? I KNOW THEIR GRADUATION RATES HAVE GONE UP. I'M JUST KIND OF WONDERING ABOUT THAT DATA. UH, I DON'T KNOW. UM, I I I'M ASSUMING IT'S PROBABLY A MIXTURE OF FACTORS, BUT, UM, BUT I, BUT I'M NOT SURE. IT'S HARD, IT'S HARD TO TELL CAUSATION. I'M NOT GONNA ADD MUCH TO THAT. 'CAUSE, UH, THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION. I, I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF EFFORTS THAT ARE BEING MADE RIGHT NOW ON MULTIPLE PARTS TO REALLY ENGAGE OUR COMMUNITY IN THESE EFFORTS. UM, AND I THINK THAT'S A BIG PART OF IT. UM, WE HAVE A NUMBER OF PROGRAMS THAT WE'RE TRYING TO RUN OUT OF HERE THAT REALLY FOCUS ON THIS POPULATION. SO I THINK THAT HAS SOMETHING TO DO WITH IT. BUT IT'S HARD TO SAY . EXACTLY. UH, I DON'T KNOW IF ELI IF YOU HAVE ANY ADD YOU OR THE YOUTH TEAM HAS ANY ADDITIONAL INFORMATION TO SHARE AROUND IT. WE'RE, WHAT WAS THE DECREASE? THE DECREASE WAS IN THE NORTH SIDE, RIGHT? YEAH. AND THE INCREASE WAS ON THE WEST SIDE. YEAH. AND I WOULD LOVE TO SAY, HEY, WE OPEN . IT SOUNDS LIKE IT, IT HAS A COUNTER EFFECT. , OR, OR YOU SAID, YEAH, IT'S THE OPPOSITE. SO AT THE VERY LEAST, IT DOES SPEAK TO THE INTENTIONALITY THAT WE HAVE HERE, THAT WE KNEW THAT THERE WAS AN INCREASE OR A HIGHER, UH, THERE WAS A DISPROPORTIONALLY HIGH RATE OF DISCONNECTED VIEW IN THE WEST SIDE. SO THAT'S WHY WE DID OPEN THAT CENTER IN WRIGLEY TO BE MOST ACCESSIBLE, ESPECIALLY PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION FOLKS. I DON'T KNOW WHAT IT'S ATTRIBUTED TO THE DIFFERENCE. I'M NOT SURE IF IT'S LINKED TO MAYBE, UH, POPULATION SIZE AS WELL. YES, THAT'S PART OF, OKAY. YEAH. THE POPULATION DIFFERENCE IN THE NORTH SIDE. GOT IT. YEAH. SO ONE THING, I DON'T KNOW, I DON'T THINK I SHOWED IT, BUT, UH, IN 2014, I THINK THE, THE POPULATION OF 16 TO 24-YEAR-OLD WAS SOMETHING LIKE 38,000 AND NOW IT'S OVER 60. SO IT'S THAT JUST THAT ALONE CAN CHANGE, CAN CHANGE THINGS. I ALSO JUST WANNA MENTION, I MENTIONED THAT WE'RE DOING A DATA CONVENING PROBABLY AT THE END OF MARCH. AND PART OF THE CONVERSATION IS TO BRING THE COMMUNITY MEMBERS TOGETHER TO, TO, TO PINPOINT THIS. LIKE WHAT ARE THE STRATEGIES THAT HAVE BEEN IN RESOURCE OR BROUGHT TOGETHER TO SEE THIS NUMBER GO DOWN, TO HAVE MORE OF A STORYTELLING. AND THEN AS ARI WAS TALKING ABOUT, THEN WE FIGURING [01:00:01] OUT HOW TO PRIORITIZE OUR RESOURCES. SO YOU ALL ARE THE FIRST ONES REVIEWING THIS, BUT REALLY WE WANT TO BRING A LONG BEACH COMMUNITY TOGETHER AND ALL OF THE OI SERVING ORGANIZATIONS AND IN, UM, PARTNERS TO THINK ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED HERE. SO ELI AND HEATHER WILL HAVE A ANSWER IN TWO MONTHS. . OKAY. IF NO FURTHER QUESTIONS, MADAM CLERK, CAN WE CALL FOR THE VOTE? JUST WANTED TO CONFIRM. IS THERE ANY PUBLIC COMMENT FOR THIS ITEM? OH, YES. THANK YOU. SEEING NONE. MEMBER COBAR RODRIGUEZ. MEMBER FAVE MEMBER FAYE APPROVED. MEMBER GOMEZ, APPROVED MEMBER GORDON PETERSON APPROVED MEMBER HALL, APPROVED MEMBER POINT TO NOT APPROVED. MEMBER RUIZ. APPROVED MEMBER RUSSELL. APPROVED MEMBER SAVAGE. APPROVED MEMBER SMITH. APPROVED MEMBER TE FAYE APPROVED MEMBER THOMAS AND VICE CHAIR QUO APPROVED. MOTION IS CARRIED. THANK YOU RA. AND MELANIE, UM, THE, UH, MADAM CLERK, CAN YOU PLEASE READ THE NEXT ITEM? YES. ITEM NUMBER FIVE IS A RECOMMENDATION TO DISCUSS HOW TO PROCEED WITH YOUTH DEVELOPMENT GOALS FOR 2026. DID YOU WANNA JUMP IN? SO THANK YOU. WELL, I THINK, OKAY, LET'S FIRST DO THE MOTION AND THEN, UM, THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR WILL HAVE A COMMENT. SO MOTION. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. SO, UM, WE PURPOSELY ALIGNED THIS PARTICULAR ITEM RIGHT AFTER THAT PRESENTATION BECAUSE WE WOULD LIKE, AND I'LL ASK ELI TO JUMP IN AND HELP OUT A LITTLE BIT. UM, WE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE A CONVERSATION ABOUT HOW WE PROCEED RELATED TO, UH, YOUTH DEVELOPMENT GOALS. FOR THIS YEAR. AND THEN OBVIOUSLY MOVING FORWARD, UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE HAVE DISCUSSED IS THE POSSIBILITY OF CREATING A, UH, ONE OF THREE POTENTIALS. UM, THERE'S THREE COMPONENTS TO THIS. I THINK THERE'S THE POTENTIAL FOR A, UH, YOUTH ADVISORY COUNCIL, AND I MAY BE GETTING THESE NAMES WRONG, BUT A YOUTH ADVISORY COUNCIL, A SUBCOMMITTEE ON YOUTH. UM, AND THEN ALSO, WHAT WAS THE OTHER ONE? THE YOUTH, A YOUTH BOARD, I THINK IT WAS. EACH ONE OF 'EM COMES WITH DIFFERENT COMPONENTS TO IT, DIFFERENT REQUIREMENTS AS TO WHAT, UM, WHAT THEY'RE REQUIRED TO DO AS PART OF IT. UM, BUT OUR INTENTIONS ARE TO TRY TO DEVELOP SOMETHING AND WANTED TO HAVE A CONVERSATION AROUND HOW WE ENGAGE WITH THE YOUTH MORE DIRECTLY AND HOW WE HAVE THEM INFORM US ABOUT THEIR PARTICULAR NEEDS AND INTERESTS IN, IN WHATEVER INDUSTRIES WE'RE DISCUSSING AT THAT POINT IN TIME. SO, UM, ELI, I THINK THERE WAS, UH, IN A, THERE I, IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY, THE PACIFIC GATEWAY WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT BOARD DID HAVE A YOUTH COMMITTEE PREVIOUSLY, RIGHT? CORRECT. YES. WE HAD A YOUTH COMMITTEE. IN FACT, WE HAD BOARD MEMBER, UH, WHO WAS PART OF THAT, IF YOU RECALL CORRECTLY. UM, IT WAS A RELATIVELY SMALL GROUP. I THINK IT WAS A SEVEN MEMBER GROUP. UH, MAYBE I THINK IT HAD TWO REPRESENTATIVES FROM THE YOUTH POPULATION AS WELL. BUT IT WAS ALMOST TREATED AS A, AS A SUBCOMMITTEE OF, UM, OF THE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT BOARD. BUT AT LEAST I THINK IT HAD TWO REPRESENTATIVES FROM THE YOUTH COMMUNITY, MEANING ACTUAL YOUTH THEMSELVES. UH, PRIOR TO THAT, UH, PACIFIC EIGHT, WE HAD A FULL YOUTH COUNCIL. UH, THE YOUTH COUNCIL, OF COURSE, WAS MANDATED BY THEN THE WORKFORCE INVESTMENT ACT. UH, WITH THE ADOPTION AUTHORIZATION OF THE WORKFORCE INNOVATION OPPORTUNITY ACT, IT REMOVED THE REQUIREMENT OF HAVING A DEDICATED YOUTH COUNCIL. I BELIEVE THAT WAS BACK IN 2018. SO SINCE, SINCE 2018, WE'VE JUST HAD THAT SUBCOMMITTEE, WHICH WAS, UH, A BIT LESS FORMAL, BUT STILL, UH, STRUCTURED ENOUGH WHERE THEY HAD A REGULAR, FREQUENT MEETING, UH, FREQUENCY, AND ALSO HAD A DEDICATED AGENDA. UM, IT WAS IN EXISTENCE FOR QUITE A WHILE. AND I THINK THE ONLY REASON WHY IT HAS NOT MET REGULARLY SINCE THEN, UM, WAS IT WAS IMPACTED BY THE PANDEMIC, AND I THINK IT HASN'T BEEN CONVENED SINCE. SO OUR INTENTIONS HERE AS PART OF THIS PARTICULAR ITEM IS JUST SIMPLY TO HAVE A CONVERSATION, SEE IF THERE IS INTEREST IN CREATING SOMETHING THAT ALLOWS US TO BE ABLE TO HAVE, UM, MORE OF A VOICE FROM OUR YOUTH PARTICIPANTS INTO THIS PARTICULAR BOARD. UM, SO WELCOME ANY THOUGHTS ON, FROM ALL OF YOU ON WHAT YOU THINK WE SHOULD DO, UM, AND HOW WE SHOULD PROCEED, WHAT RECOMMENDATIONS YOU MAY HAVE, UM, JUST TO HAVE A CONVERSATION AROUND IT, AND THEN WE CAN BRING THAT FORWARD. WHAT WE CAN DO IS, UM, BASED ON THIS CONVERSATION AND DISCUSSION, THEN WE [01:05:01] CAN, UH, BRING FORWARD AT THE NEXT BOARD MEETING, SOME PROPOSED APPROACHES AND WHAT THAT WOULD LOOK LIKE, AND THEN HAVE AN ACTUAL, UM, AGENDA ITEM THAT WE WOULD TAKE ACTION ON TO IDENTIFY HOW WE WANNA PROCEED. UH, I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR ELI'S PROPOSAL SINCE YOU'VE BEEN INVOLVED IN THIS, IF HE HAS ANY RECOMMENDATION ON THIS, JUST FOR A DISCUSSION. THE SPOT. UM, SO, UM, MOST RECENTLY THE, THE CITY, WELL NOW IT'S BEEN A WHILE. IT'S BEEN AROUND FIVE YEARS. THE CITY NOW HAS AN OFFICE OF YOUTH DEVELOPMENT. I THINK WE'VE HAD PRESENTATIONS FROM THEM IN THE PAST. THAT OFFICE LIVES WITHIN THE CITY'S HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT. AND SINCE IT'S, UM, FORMATION, THEY'VE HAD A YOUTH ADVISORY COMMITTEE. UM, IT'S, IT'S, UM, A FORMAL GROUP. IT'S, I DON'T THINK IT'S OVERSEEN BY THE CITY CLERK, AND I DON'T THINK THEY HAVE TO, UH, APPROVE OR THROUGH THE MAYOR THE, UM, THE, THE MEMBERSHIP OF IT. BUT IT DOES MEET ON A REGULAR BASIS. THEY DO TOUCH ON, UM, SEVERAL YOUTH MATTERS MUCH MORE HOLISTICALLY AROUND EVERYTHING FROM HEALTH, EDUCATION, EMPLOYMENT, ADVOCACY. UH, IT'S NOT JUST SIMPLY FOCUSED ON, ON WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT AND ECONOMIC INCLUSION. UH, IT IS MUCH BROADER. UM, IT IS MADE UP ENTIRELY OF YOUTH REPRESENTATIVES. UM, IT IS ALSO ONE, I THINK OF MAYBE THREE OR FOUR OTHER YOUTH GOVERNING, SORRY, YES, YOUTH AND FAMILY RELATED GOVERNING BOARDS IN THE, AND COMMISSIONS IN THE CITY THAT HAVE SOME YOUTH REPRESENTATION. UM, I'M TOTALLY ON THE SPOT HERE, BUT I THINK WHAT COMES TO MIND IS I WILL LIKE TO EXPLORE MAYBE HAVING THE YOUTH REPRESENTATIVES THAT SIT IN THOSE, UM, COMMITTEES, MAYBE FORM A SEPARATE, UH, WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT SPECIFIC GROUP AS WELL. UM, THAT COULD THEN ALSO INCLUDE SOME ADULT REPRESENTATIVES THAT COULD BE MEMBERS OF THIS BOARD, UM, TO THEN WORK IN, IN TANDEM WITH THEM AND HELP, UM, FOLLOW OUR, OUR RECOMMENDED PRIORITIES. ALSO, JUST IN TERMS OF A BROADER VISION, I THINK WE ARE SET UP TO, UM, WORK TOWARDS THE GOALS OF THE YOUTH STRATEGIC PLAN, WHICH IS THE YOUTH, UH, AND EMERGING AND ADULTS AT STRATEGIC PLAN PLAN MORE SPECIFICALLY, UH, PLAN NUMBER, GOAL NUMBER THREE, WHICH IS PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE HAS SOME OUTLINED GOALS ALREADY THAT WE HAVE MADE SOME REALLY STRONG EFFORTS TOWARDS. UH, BUT THAT, THAT DOES SERVE AS A GUIDING LIGHT FOR THIS TO BE FORMED, UH, BODY. SO THERE'S SOMETHING TO WORK TOWARDS AND, UH, UH, A SERIES OF MEASURES THAT COULD, UH, THAT CAN BE USED TO HOLD US ACCOUNTABLE. SO, UM, IT'S JUST QUITE OPEN THERE. I I KNOW THAT MY COLLEAGUE, OUR PUBLIC SERVICE CORE MEMBER, UM, JOSEPH MOROSA WAS WORKING ON SOME RESEARCH ON THIS. I'M NOT SURE IF HE WAS ABLE TO COME UP WITH SOMETHING THAT WE COULD THEN SHARE WITH THE, THE GROUP HERE. NO. OKAY. UM, NOT YET ON THAT. UM, BUT ONE OF THE THINGS, UH, FOR ME, PART OF IT IS, UH, OBVIOUSLY MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE THE YOUTH VOICE AS PART OF THIS. UM, SO I'D LOVE TO HAVE YOUTH PARTICIPANTS BE INVOLVED IN THIS PROCESS. I DON'T WANNA OVERCOMPLICATE THINGS FOR THEM. AND WHAT I MEAN BY THAT IS DEPENDING ON, YOU KNOW, THE DIFFERENT, UH, COMMITTEE VERSUS, UH, SUBCOMMITTEE VERSUS YOUTH ADVISORY COUNCIL, SOME OF THEM ARE REQUIRED TO FOLLOW BROWN ACT AND ALL OF THIS TYPE OF STUFF, OTHERS ARE NOT, WHICH MAKES IT A LITTLE BIT EASIER FOR THEM TO ENGAGE, HAVE CONVERSATIONS, AND THEN BE ABLE TO, UM, PROVIDE US A REPORT AS PART OF THIS, UM, BODY. RIGHT. SO, UH, I, I DON'T WANNA OVER, YOU KNOW, MY INTENTIONS WOULD BE TO HAVE THEM BE A PART OF OUR PROCESS, BUT NOT OVERWHELM THEM WITH ALL OF THE, FOR A LACK OF A BETTER TERM, BUREAUCRATIC PROCESSES THAT COME INTO PLAY WITH ACTUALLY HAVING, YOU KNOW, A BOARD. RIGHT. UM, BECAUSE I WANT THEM TO FEEL COMFORTABLE AND NOT HAVE TO BE, UH, INVOLVED IN A PROCESS WHERE NOW YOU GOTTA BE OPEN, OPEN PUBLIC FORUM. YOU HAVE TO HAVE COMMENT PERIODS, YOU KNOW, COMMENT YOU PERIODS. YEAH. UM, ALL OF THAT TYPE OF STUFF THAT WE DO HERE AS PART OF THIS. RIGHT. UM, WANT THEM TO FEEL COMFORTABLE IN HAVING CONVERSATIONS, AD HOC CONVERSATIONS, TO BE ABLE TO THEN PROVIDE US WITH SOME FEEDBACK, YOU KNOW, AND THEN WE CAN ADDRESS WHATEVER IS NEEDED AS PART OF IT. SO, UM, TO WHATEVER EXTENT, YOU KNOW, WE WANT TO HAVE SOME CONVERSATIONS AROUND THAT WOULD LOVE TO, AND THEN FIGURE OUT HOW WE THEN IDENTIFY YOUTH PARTICIPANTS TO BE A PART OF IT. WE HAVE, WE OBVIOUSLY HAVE A GREAT GROUP GOING THROUGH PUBLIC SERVICE CORPS THAT WE CAN CALL UPON. AND THEN AS ELI MENTIONED, [01:10:01] UM, THERE IS ALREADY A YOUTH COUNCIL FOR THE CITY, UM, THAT COULD ALSO FEED INTO SOME OF OUR PARTICULAR NEEDS AS WELL. YEAH. AND IF, UM, YOU MENTIONED AN AD HOC APPROACH, JAIME, UH, IF THAT'S, UH, A RECOMMENDATION AS WELL. WE HAVE SEVERAL EXAMPLES OF THAT. OUR, OUR YOUTH SERVICES TEAM HERE HAS ALWAYS UPLIFTED THE YOUTH VOICE AND ENSURED THAT WE ENGAGE YOUTH, ESPECIALLY WHEN THERE IS LIKE VERY GOAL ORIENTED EFFORTS. LIKE, HEY, IF WE'RE GONNA WORK ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF OUR SUMMER YOUTH KICKOFF, OR OUR MLK DAY OF SERVICE, THERE'S YOUTH ENGAGED IN THE PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT OF THOSE THINGS. SO THEY'RE VERY EVENT OR ACTIVITY SPECIFIC. UH, THERE IS POTENTIALLY SOME VALUE IN MAYBE HAVING SOMETHING THAT'S, UH, A BIT MORE FORMAL AND, UM, CONSISTENT. BUT THAT'S SOMETHING FOR ALL OF YOU TO MAYBE EXPLORE AND, AND DISCUSS HERE TO SEE WHAT, WHAT IS BEST. IS IT MORE AD HOC BASED? IS IT SOMETHING FORMALIZED? OR A LITTLE COMBINATION OF, OF EVERYTHING. BUT AS HEIME MESSAGE, WE ALSO HAVE SEVERAL, UM, PARTICIPANT GROUP, UH, GROUPS THAT WE COULD, UH, BORROW TALENT FROM TO SUPPORT AND, AND MAYBE MOVE THIS FORWARD. I'D, UH, REALLY LIKE THE IDEA OF WORKING WITH THE OFFICE OF YOUTH DEVELOPMENT. I'VE DONE WORK WITH THAT, UM, COUNCIL BEFORE I, AND I A HUNDRED PERCENT AGREE WITH YOU IN, IN TERMS OF TAPPING INTO THAT, MY ONLY CONCERN WOULD BE THE REPRESENTATION OF OUTTA SCHOOL OR DISCONNECTED YOUTH IN THAT, I KNOW WHEN I'VE TALKED WITH MORGAN WHO OVERSEES THAT, IT'S, IT'S A LARGE NUMBER OF STUDENTS WHO ARE IN LONG BEACH UNIFIED, OR, AND I THINK THE SAME WITH THE PUBLIC SERVICE CORE. IT WOULD BE A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO ARE ON COLLEGE. RIGHT? AND SO MY QUESTION WOULD BE HOW ARE WE CONNECTING WITH THOSE WHO ARE TRYING TO SERVE, ESPECIALLY WE SAW IN THE REPORT, AND WHAT STRATEGIC EFFORTS COULD BE MADE TO IDENTIFY LEADERS WITHIN THAT GROUP, MAYBE THROUGH YOUR OWN PROGRAMMING WHO HAVE GONE THROUGH IT, WHO HAVE, UH, MORE SEASONED IN, UM, LB WIND'S MISSION AND GOALS WOULD BE REALLY APPROPRIATE. I THINK I REALLY ALSO WOULD BE CONCERNED ABOUT MAKING IT TOO FORMAL. I KNOW THE SCHOOL DISTRICT IS CURRENTLY REALLY TRYING NOT TO PUT STUDENTS IN FRONT OF SPACES WHERE THERE CAN BE BACKLASH, ESPECIALLY WITH KIND OF THE POLITICAL NATURE OF OUR ENVIRONMENT ALL OVER. AND SO WE'VE HAD, UM, STUDENTS WHO WERE RECEIVING BAD FEEDBACK THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS AND STUFF. SO I'D BE CONCERNED WITH ANYTHING THAT'S TOO FORMAL CURRENTLY. UM, DEPENDING ON WHAT THEY'RE BEING ASSIGNED AND WHAT THEY'RE PRESENTING ON THAT YOU COULD GET SOCIAL MEDIA OR, OR OTHERWISE KIND OF NEGATIVE FEEDBACK FOR THEM, WHICH COULD BE DETRIMENTAL. SO, JUST SOME THOUGHTS. YEAH. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? MEMBER RUIZ? SO, I, I, I KIND OF, SO I'M PART OF THE CARPENTER'S UNION. I'M PART OF THE EXECUTIVE EXECUTIVE BOARD FOR, UM, LONG BEACH LOCAL 5 6 2. AND, UH, THE WAY WE STARTED WITH, UH, WITH US WHEN, UH, WE STARTED YOUNG GUNS COMMITTEE, THAT'S HOW WE STARTED. UM, UH, IT STARTED OUT AT ORANGE COUNTY. THAT'S, THAT'S WHERE I GOT MY START INTO LIKE THE, THE SIDE OF, OF GETTING INTO LIKE THE, THE, THE UNION AND BEING MORE INVOLVED. AND, I MEAN, I THINK THE PROGRAM WORKS. IT WAS OPEN TO ALL, UM, FROM FIRST TO LIKE EIGHT STAGE APPRENTICES. WE ALL GOT TOGETHER, WE ALL COMMUNICATED, WE TALKED ABOUT OUR STRUGGLES THAT WE HAD IN THE FIELD. AND THEN, UM, EVENTUALLY EVERYBODY DEVELOPED INTO LEADERSHIP IN DIFFERENT TYPES OF ROLES IN THEIR COMPANIES. SO I THINK IT'S KIND OF THE SAME THING WITH THE YOUTH. I MEAN, WE HAVE A, WE HAVE, UM, AN AN A LP PROGRAM, WHICH GIVES 'EM THE TRAINING TO BE ABLE TO GET 'EM TO THE, TO THE PATH TO, TO BE MORE SUCCESSFUL IN THE INDUSTRY. AND THEN THERE'S ALSO A COMMIT, THE YOUNG GUN COMMITTEE MEETS WITH A YOUNGER CROWD. THEN YOU HAVE A MENTORS COMMITTEE. YOU HAVE VOLUNTEERS COMMITTEE, AND THEN WE ALL MEET WITH THEM. AND, YOU KNOW, IT'S, IT'S SUPERINTENDENTS, GENERAL FOREMANS, YOU KNOW, JOURNEYMEN. IT'S, IT'S EVERYBODY KIND OF INTERTWINED TOGETHER AND EVERYBODY HAS AN OPINION AND THEY TALK ABOUT WHAT, WHAT, YOU KNOW, WHAT THEY'RE STRUGGLING WITH. AND THEN WE DO ENHANCEMENT CLASSES AND THE, IN THE, IN THE CARPENTERS UNION. SO, I MEAN, IT REALLY WORKS TO HAVE EVERYBODY'S OPINION AND THEIR VOICE, BECAUSE SOMETIMES, UH, THAT'S, THAT'S OUR BIGGEST PROBLEM. I'M PRETTY SURE EVERYBODY ELSE IS PART OF THE BUILDING TRADES HERE. THE, THE, THE DROPOUT RATE'S HIGH OF HOW MANY ACTUALLY STAY IN THE INDUSTRY. AND IT REALLY HELPS TO HAVE SOMEONE ELSE TELL YOU, HEY, I WENT THROUGH THAT SAME STRUGGLE SIX YEARS AGO, AND YOU'RE, YOU'RE GONNA GET, YOU'RE GONNA UNDERSTAND IT. YOU'RE GONNA GET IT. SO I THINK THAT REALLY HELPS. AND USUALLY THE, THE BOARDS, UH, IT'S TWO GUYS THAT ARE SEASONED INTO THE, INTO THE PROGRAM AND, AND THE, AND WHAT, HOW TO GET IT BETTER. AND THEN EVENTUALLY LEADERS SPEAK UP AND TAKE, TAKE THE SPOT, AND THEN THE NEXT PERSON MOVES UP, YOU KNOW, YOU GOTTA TRAIN YOUR REPLACEMENT. THAT'S WHAT I WAS TAUGHT A LONG TIME AGO. SO I THINK IT WOULD WORK. YEAH. SOUNDS LIKE A, A GOOD APPROACH. UM, I WONDER IF THERE'S A, UH, POSSIBILITY WHERE WE COULD DEVELOP A SUBCOMMITTEE BY GETTING, UM, REPRESENTATIVES AT LEAST ONE REPRESENTATIVE FROM EACH PROGRAM THAT WE COORDINATE, AND THEN THAT BODY MAKES UP A YOUTH COMMITTEE. UH, BUT THEN OUT ON TOP OF THAT, I THINK [01:15:01] IT WOULD BE VERY IMPORTANT TO THEN ALSO HAVE, UM, AT LEAST TWO MEMBERS OF OUR WORKFORCE OF DEVELOPMENT BOARD ALSO THEN GUIDE AND STEWARD THAT YOUNGER, UH, THAT, SORRY, THAT YOUTH DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE, BECAUSE, UH, I THINK THERE IS A NEED TO, UM, THERE'S AN ELEMENT OF, I THINK, MENTORSHIP AND GUIDANCE THAT NEEDS TO BE INCORPORATED INTO THAT, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO AGENDA SETTING, GOAL SETTING, UM, UH, CANDOR AND CONVERSATION STARTING AS WELL. UH, NOT SURE WHAT ARE SOME THOUGHTS ON THAT. AND, AND MAYBE I CAN ASK THIS QUESTION OF OUR EMPLOYERS THAT ARE IN THE ROOM. UM, DO YOU SEE A LOT OF YOUTH COMING THROUGH YOUR DOORS FOR POSITIONS, UM, THAT YOU HAVE AVAILABLE? UM, AND, AND IF YOU DO, WHAT ARE, YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE THE PROS AND CONS WITH THAT? UH, IF YOU DON'T, YOU KNOW, DO YOU SEE A NEED IN TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO GET MORE YOUTH PARTICIPANTS INTO YOUR, YOUR, YOUR POSITIONS? UM, AND SO THAT CAN BE PART OF THIS CONVERSATION AS WELL, RIGHT? 'CAUSE IT'S, IT'S INTENDED TO BE HOW DO YOUTH GET MORE ENGAGED AND INVOLVED FROM AN INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE, BUT ALSO HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE PROVIDING THOSE PATHWAYS FOR THESE YOUTH PARTICIPANTS TO BE ABLE TO GET INTO POSITIONS WITHIN THE EMPLOYERS HERE THAT WE HAVE HERE IN LONG BEACH. AND FOR RIGHT NOW, IT CAN SIMPLY BE, YES, WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO HAVE A CONVERSATION, UH, TRY TO FIGURE THIS OUT, UM, AND THEN COME BACK. MAYBE WHAT WE CAN DO IS COME BACK WITH SOME RECOMMENDATIONS AT ONE OF THE NEXT, UM, BOARD MEETINGS, UM, TO PROVIDE YOU SOME OPTIONS AROUND IT. UM, MEMBER SAVAGE, YES. UM, I DO BELIEVE IT'S, WE SHOULD CONTINUE. SO I ANSWERED THAT QUESTION INITIALLY. . ALRIGHT. AND SO I DON'T WANT TO OVERSIMPLIFY MY QUESTION, BUT, UH, AS I THINK ABOUT YOUTH, AND WE'RE TALKING ABOUT YOUTH DEVELOPMENT AND WE'RE TRYING TO GAIN THE VOICE OF THE YOUTH, OFTEN IT, IT'S BUILT AROUND WHAT IS OUR PARTICULAR GOAL IN ENGAGING THE YOUTH. NOW, IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT YOUTH DEVELOPMENT, HOW WE DEVELOP OUR YOUTH FOR THEIR ABILITY TO ENGAGE IN THE WORKFORCE, OR ARE WE ENGAGING OUR YOUTH FOR THEM TO INFORM US OF THE SUPPORTS THEY NEED AS IT RELATES TO SERVICES, AS IT RELATES TO ANY NUMBER OF THINGS. UM, SO THAT THEN LEADS US TO WHAT PARTICULAR VENUES WHERE SOME OF THESE COMMUNICATIONS ARE ALREADY TAKING PLACE. AND SO WE'VE SPOKEN, YOU KNOW, HERE ABOUT THE OFFICE OF YOUTH DEVELOPMENT, BUT I THINK FOR US, WHAT BECOMES OUR GOAL? AND I, AND BASED ON JUST THE LATEST, THE LAST OF THE COMMENTS, UH, IN OUR YOUTH SHOWING UP AT VARIOUS EMPLOYERS, UM, MAYBE NOT AS PREPARED, UH, AS WE WOULD WANT THEM TO BE. IF THAT'S A PARTICULAR GOAL, UH, THAT WE HOPE TO ACHIEVE, THEN WE HAVE A STRATEGY. WE DEVELOP A STRATEGY TO ADDRESS THAT. BUT I REALLY APPRECIATE THE COMMENT, UH, THAT WAS MADE EARLIER THAT WE, WHEN YOU HAVE VERY VOCAL STUDENTS, AND THEN YOU HAVE STUDENTS WHO ARE A BIT MORE RESERVED, WHO HAVE GREAT IDEAS, AND THEY'RE IN VERY DARK CORNERS, BUT YOU ALSO WANT TO HEAR FROM THEM. BUT THEY MIGHT GET OSTRACIZED BASED ON THEIR COMMENTS AND THEIR INPUT, BUT YOU'RE TRYING TO COLLECT THEIR VOICE. THEY MAY, MAY NEED SAFE SPACES, THEY MAY NEED CERTAIN TYPES OF SUPPORTS AS IT RELATES TO YOUTH DEVELOPMENT. WELL, WE WOULD JUST MISS THAT. TOTALLY. SO I THINK IT COMES DOWN TO, IN THIS CASE, SINCE IT'S AN AGENDA ITEM, WHAT EXACTLY ARE WE HOPING TO ACHIEVE? AND THEN LOOK AT IT THAT WAY. 'CAUSE IT MAY BE DIFFERENT PARTICULAR, UM, VENUES OR CHANNELS THAT WE COLLECT INFORMATION. AND AFTER WE'VE DONE ALL OF THAT, WHAT ARE WE PREPARED TO ACT ON? WHAT ARE WE, YOU KNOW, WE, WE WE'RE ASSEMBLING, UH, YOUTH DEVELOPMENT AND WE WANT THESE GOALS, BUT ONCE WE LEARN OF WHAT THEY ARE, WHAT ARE WE PREPARED TO DO, JUST TO LISTEN, PUT, UH, RESOURCES BEHIND IT? WHAT ARE WE PREPARED TO DO? WHICH I THINK ALSO SHOULD BE PART OF THE CONVERSATION. THANK YOU. SO IN TERMS OF NEXT STEPS, UM, THE LB WIN TEAM WILL PUT TOGETHER SOME STRATEGY GOALS AND OPTIONS FOR THE BOARD TO CONSIDER AT THE NEXT [01:20:01] MEETING. IS THAT THE PLAN? OKAY, GREAT. WE CAN DO THAT. EXCELLENT. SO, UM, WANTED TO SEE IF THERE'S ANY PUBLIC COMMENT ON THE YOUTH DEVELOPMENT GOALS FOR THE YEAR OR THE APPROACH. SEEING NONE. UM, MADAM CLERK, PLEASE CALL FOR THE VOTE. MEMBER GOBAR, YES, APPROVE. MEMBER FAVE. APPROVE. MEMBER FAYE APPROVE. MEMBER GOMEZ, APPROVED MEMBER GORDON PETERSON. MEMBER HALL APPROVED. MEMBER . MEMBER RUIZ APPROVED MEMBER RUSSELL APPROVED MEMBER SAVAGE. APPROVED MEMBER SMITH, APPROVED MEMBER TE FAYE APPROVED MEMBER THOMAS VICE CHAIR QUO APPROVED. MOTION IS CARRIED. THANK YOU. JUST A QUICK TIME CHECK. WE HAVE ABOUT 30 MINUTES LEFT AND ABOUT FOUR TO FIVE ITEMS LEFT, SO LET'S TRY TO BE COGNIZANT OF THAT AS WE CONTINUE ON. UH, MADAM CLERK, PLEASE READ THE NEXT ITEM. OH MY GOD. ITEM SIX, RECOMMENDATION TO RECEIVE AND FILE AN UPDATE FROM THE BUSINESS ENGAGEMENT TEAM, INCLUDING WORK SITE DEVELOPMENT ON THE JOB TRAINING, JOB PLACEMENT, SUPPORT, AND RAPID RESPONSE TO LOCAL LAYOFF EVENTS. THANK YOU. MAY I HAVE A MOTION? SECOND. THANK YOU. MOTIONED BY MEMBER THOMAS. SECOND BY MEMBER FAVE. TURN IT OVER TO THE LBN TEAM FOR REPORT OR BUSINESS ENGAGEMENT TEAM. APOLOGIES. ALL RIGHT. UH, GOOD AFTERNOON, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. UM, I'LL KEEP IT BRIEF. I, WE JUST GAVE YOU A PRETTY COMPREHENSIVE UPDATE LAST TIME, SO THERE'S JUST, UH, THE NEWS FOR THIS TIME. SO, LOOKING AT OUR WORK EXPERIENCE WORK SITES, THESE NUMBERS ARE PRETTY SIMILAR TO WHAT WE SAW LAST TIME. UH, WHAT WE'RE DOING NOW IS REALLY PREPPING FOR SUMMER, WHICH IS WHEN WE HAVE OUR BIGGEST PUSH FOR WORK EXPERIENCE. SO WE'RE GONNA START LOOKING AT OUR COMMUNICATIONS, HOW WE OUTREACH TO NEW POTENTIAL WORK SITES. IF ANY OF YOU WOULD LIKE TO HOST OUR YOUTH FOR THE SUMMER, PLEASE CONSIDER SIGNING UP AS A WORK SITE. UM, BUT WE'LL BE STARTING THAT PUSH AND ALSO LOOKING AT RENEWING OUR WORK SITES IN THE COMING MONTHS. SO WE'LL SEE A LOT MORE ACTIVITY THROUGH THE SPRING. UM, BUT I DO WANNA HIGHLIGHT THIS WORK SITE. UH, HE WAS SUPPOSED TO BE HERE TODAY TO SAY A FEW WORDS TO Y'ALL, BUT HE COULDN'T MAKE IT THE LAST MINUTE. UM, HE'S RUNNING HIS LOCAL BUSINESS, AND SO WE GOTTA CUT HIM SOME SLACK. BUT THIS IS JOHNNY. HE RUNS SWEET GRASS SUGAR CANE JUICE. OH, SORRY, THERE'S A TYPO ON THE SLIDE, BUT THAT'S MEANT TO BE CANE. I, AND HE PARTICIPATED ACTUALLY IN OUR LONG LEVEL UP LONG BEACH, UH, EXTREME SMALL BUSINESS MAKEOVER PROGRAM IN 2024 THROUGH THE BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT, UH, BUREAU. AND THEN HE SIGNED UP TO BE A WORK SITE, AND HE'S HOSTED MANY OF OUR YOUTH SINCE THEN. AND HE'S ALSO HIRED, UH, MULTIPLE OF THEM, INCLUDING ONE ON THE JOB TRAINING THAT STARTED TIME YESTERDAY. SO I HAVE A BRIEF STATEMENT THAT HE SENT OVER TO SHARE SINCE HE COULDN'T BE HERE. HE SAYS, THE WEX AND OJT PROGRAMS IN LONG BEACH HELPED ME GROW MY SMALL BUSINESS BY MAKING IT POSSIBLE TO HIRE AND THEN TRAIN NEW TEAM MEMBERS AFFORDABLY. I'VE SINCE THEN HIRED ON FOUR INTERNS INTO REGULAR PAID EMPLOYEES HERE. THE PROGRAM HAS ALSO HELPED ME FOCUS WORKING ON MY BUSINESS INSTEAD OF ALWAYS WORKING IN IT WHILE REINVESTING SAVINGS BACK INTO OPERATIONS AND THE LOCAL COMMUNITY. GREAT. UM, SO WE LOVE WHEN THIS HAPPENS WHEN, UH, LOCAL BUSINESSES BRING ON INTERNS AND THEN DECIDE THEY WANNA KEEP 'EM AROUND. UM, MAYBE IT'S PART-TIME WHILE THEY'RE YOUTH STILL IN SCHOOL, BUT THEY CAN ALSO SOMETIMES TURN INTO FULL-TIME OPPORTUNITIES, WHICH IS WONDERFUL. UH, SO THE, THE OJT TRAINEE IS MOVING INTO A STORE MANAGER POSITION. AWESOME. YAY. YEAH. UM, SO OUR ON THE JOB TRAINING UPDATES, YOU'LL SEE, UH, SWEET GRASS SUGAR CANE IS ON THERE. UM, SO WE HAVE, AND THIS IS UPDATED FOR JUST THIS PROGRAM YEAR. LAST TIME WE WERE REPORTING FROM LAST FEBRUARY, BUT OUR PROGRAM YEAR IS JULY THROUGH JUNE. SO WE'RE LOOKING SINCE JULY, AND WE ARE AT, UM, SEVEN TOTAL BUSINESSES SERVED AND 12 TOTAL O JTS. UH, WE'VE GOT FOUR THAT ARE PENDING IN THE QUEUE THAT WE'RE HOPING TO SEE SOME MORE START REALLY SOON. UM, TWO O JTS THAT JUST STARTED THIS WEEK. AND THEN JOB FAIRS AND RECRUITMENT EVENTS. WE HAVEN'T HAD ANY MORE EVENTS SINCE THE LAST TIME WE MET. WE'VE, WE WERE ON PAUSE FOR THE HOLIDAYS, BUT WE DO HAVE A FEW IN THE WORKS. UM, WE HAVE IN THE SPRING, WE'RE ALREADY PLANNING FOR A TGI TWO S PLUS JOB FAIR, AND THAT'S IN PARTNERSHIP WITH OUR HEALTH DEPARTMENT, THE HEALTH EQUITY TEAM. UM, THEY REQUESTED, UH, THAT WE WORK WITH THEM ON A, A SPECIFIC EVENT THAT'S FRIENDLY FOR THIS POPULATION. UM, WE'RE ALSO WORKING WITH [01:25:01] ANOTHER MEMBER OF THAT TEAM TO, UH, CREATE A LATINX JOB FAIR, BUT WE'RE STILL WORKING OUT THE DETAILS OF THAT ONE AND WHEN EXACTLY IT'S GOING TO BE. I KNOW IT'S A DIFFICULT TIME TO BRING THAT COMMUNITY TOGETHER, SO THERE'S A LOT STILL TO FIGURE OUT THERE. AND THEN IN MAY, UH, WE'RE ALSO LOOKING AT A JOB FAIR AND PARTNERSHIP WITH DPSS THAT WE'LL HOST HERE. AND MORE TO COME, UM, RAPID RESPONSE. LET'S SEE. UM, WE HAVE SEVERAL EMPLOYERS WITH RECENT WARRANT FILINGS, INCLUDING FULL STACK MODULAR, WHICH IS POTENTIALLY 205 AFFECTED WORKERS, BUT WE'RE PENDING CONFIRMATION OF THOSE LAYOFFS. UM, LAKESHORE LEARNING HAS BEEN, UH, ON OUR LIST WITH 163 AFFECTED WORKERS FOR THEIR FACILITY IN CARSON. SO NOT IN LONG BEACH, BUT WE ALWAYS COLLABORATE WITH THE BOARD FOR THE AREA WHERE THE BUSINESS IS AND PROVIDE SERVICES TO ANYONE FROM LONG BEACH. UM, AND THEN THE BIGGEST NEWS THAT THAT DROPPED LAST WEEK IS AMAZON LAYING OFF 168 PLUS WORKERS, UH, FOR LONG BEACH. SO WE'RE CONTINUALLY REACHING OUT TO THOSE EMPLOYERS AND TRYING TO CONNECT WITH THE IMPACTED WORKERS, MAKE SURE THEY HAVE THE INFORMATION NOT ONLY ABOUT OUR PROGRAMS, BUT UM, ABOUT EDDS RESOURCES AND OTHER RESOURCES AVAILABLE TO THEM TO HELP THEM TRANSITION HOPEFULLY VERY QUICKLY INTO THEIR NEXT CAREER. UM, AND YOU'LL SEE ON HERE, WE, WE DIDN'T INCLUDE TWO OF THESE LAST TIME THAT HAVE ZEROS NEXT TO THEM. THERE ARE TIMES WHEN THE EMPLOYERS DECLINE TO HAVE AN ACTUAL ORIENTATION. SO WE PROVIDE ALL THE INFORMATION TO THEM TO DIS DISPERSE TO THEIR EMPLOYEES. UM, AND THAT INCLUDES INFORMATION FOR OUR ADULT SERVICES CENTER. SO WE HOPE THAT THEY CAN STILL COME THROUGH OUR DOORS AND WE CAN PROVIDE THEM SERVICES. OKAY. AND THAT'S IT FOR ME, BUT I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. ANY QUESTIONS? SEEING NONE, MADAM CLERK, PLEASE CALL FOR THE VOTE. AND JUST TO CONFIRM, OH, SORRY, THERE'S NO COMMENT, COMMENT, ANY PUBLIC COMMENT ON THIS ONE? SEEING NONE. THANK YOU. UH, MEMBER GOVIA, APPROVED. MEMBER FAVE APPROVED MEMBER FAYE APPROVED. MEMBER GOMEZ, APPROVED MEMBER GORDON PETERSON. MEMBER HALL APPROVED MEMBER POINT TO NOT APPROVED. MEMBER RUIZ. APPROVED MEMBER RUSSELL APPROVED. MEMBER SAVAGE. APPROVED MEMBER SMITH APPROVE MEMBER TEST. FAYE APPROVE. MEMBER THOMAS AND VICE CHAIR QUOTE, APPROVE. MOTION IS CARRIED. THANK YOU, MADAM CLERK, COULD YOU PLEASE READ THE NEXT ITEM? ITEM NUMBER SEVEN IS A RECOMMENDATION TO RECEIVE AND FILE A DISCUSSION ON THE PROG PROGRAMMATIC ACTIVITIES, INITIATIVES AND STRATEGIES PROVIDING ACCESS TO ADULT, DISLOCATED WORKER AND YOUTH WITH EMPLOYMENT EDUCATION, TRAINING, AND SUPPORTIVE SERVICE ACTIVITIES. MAY I HAVE MOTION FOR THIS ITEM? MOTION BY MEMBER THOMAS. SECOND. SECOND BY MEMBER ANA AND MEMBER FAVE. . UH, SECOND BY MEMBER. ENA. UH, ANA. YEAH. ELI, OVER TO YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH. I, I TOOK A WEEK OFF, SO THIS IS A, A LITTLE BIT OF A, COMING HERE IN SOME OF THESE SLIDES ARE TO MY SURPRISE, BUT IT'S BEEN A NICE SURPRISE. UH, SO, UH, IT SEEMS LIKE HERE, LIKE WE'RE PRESENTING A SUCCESS STORY. I DON'T KNOW IF THERE'S A A, A VIDEO ASSOCIATED WITH IT, BUT THIS IS, UH, DESIREE TURNER, IF YOU COULD GO BACK TO IT. UH, SO, UH, IT SEEMS LIKE, UH, THERE IS SOME NARRATIVE THERE, FOLKS. GIVE YOU SOME TIME TO READ IT. OKAY. UH, IT SEEMS LIKE THIS IS A CUSTOMER FROM OUR, UM, OUR RERP PROGRAM WITH LONG BEACH CITY COLLEGE THAT THEN WAS CONNECTED WITH OPPORTUNITIES WITH OUR, UM, PLA PROJECT. UH, THEY ARRANGED A SESSION TO CONNECTED TO ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE CONSTRUCTION FIELD, AND WAS CONNECTED TO A PROGRAM WITH WINTER, WHICH IS WOMEN IN NON-TRADITIONAL ROLES. UH, THROUGH THE PROGRAM, DISCOVERED A PASSION FOR TILE SETTING AND COMPLETED HER TRAINING AND DEVELOPED A STRONG FOUNDATIONAL SKILLS. UH, SHE HAS BEEN ACCEPTED TO LOCAL FOUR BRICK LAYERS AND ALLIED CRAFTS WORKERS, BAC, AND SECURED EMPLOYMENT AS A UNION TILE FINISHER. UH, SHE'S THRIVING IN A CAREER THAT ALLOWS HER TO WORK WITH HER HANDS, EXPRESS HER CREATIVITY, AND BUILD STABLE FUTURE. HER JOURNEY REFLECTS THE POWER OF PERSEVERANCE, GUIDANCE, ACCESSIBLE TRAINING, AND STANDS AS A REMINDER OF NEW BEGINNING AS ALWAYS POSSIBLE. SO IT'S DESIREE TURNER. THANK YOU. UH, ANOTHER SUCCESS STORY HERE, UH, WE HAVE JEAN WPE. OKAY. [01:30:05] SO JEAN WPE, UH, RECEIVED, UH, SOME OCCUPATIONAL, UH, SKILLS TRAINING, UH, MORE SPECIFICALLY A TRAINING SCHOLARSHIP FROM US WHERE HE WAS ABLE TO GET, UH, TRAINING ON COMMERCIAL TRUCK DRIVING THAT EVENTUALLY LED TO GENERAL PAY SUCCESSFUL AT OBTAIN OF A CLASS A CDL. AND, UH, THAT BECAME A KEY TO ENTERING THE WORKFORCE. UH, HE GOT THIS TRAINING PROGRAM THROUGH A, UH, COLLEGE OF INSTRUMENT TECHNOLOGY, WHO HAS BEEN ONE OF OUR LONGSTANDING PARTNERS, UH, AND ALSO A TRAINING PROGRAM THAT'S ON THE STATE ETBL APPROVED LIST. UH, IN ADDITION TO A CLASS A TRAINING, HE RECEIVED SOME OSHA CERTIFICATIONS, AND THEN WITHIN A FEW WEEKS OF COMPLETING TRAINING, RECEIVED EMPLOYMENT AS AN OVER THE ROAD TRUCK DRIVER WITH MAY TRUCKING COMPANY, WHERE HE, UH, NOW HAS, UH, COMP, UH, EARNING A COMPETITIVE WAGE, HAS ACCESS TO BENEFITS, AND HAD CLEAR PATH FOR CAREER GROWTH. SO THESE ARE TWO EXAMPLES OF CAREER SERVICES OFFERED THROUGH OUR ADULT SERVICES TEAM. UH, ONE, ONCE AGAIN, LIKELY THROUGH OUR, OUR ERP PROGRAM. SECOND IS THROUGH A TRADITIONAL WE OA, AND THEN WE SEE A PICTURE OF JIN WPE THERE. AND FOLKS, UH, MY COLLEAGUE NAWA REALLY WANTED TO BE HERE AND SHARE THESE, UM, SUCCESS STORIES WITH YOU. HE DID HAVE TO STEP AWAY UNEXPECTEDLY, BUT, UM, IF WE COULD IN FUTURE MEETINGS, MAYBE SHARE ADDITIONAL CONTEXT. SO THANK YOU FOR BEARING WITH ME. UM, THEN HERE, UH, YOU SEE A COLLABORATION. THIS IS FROM OUR YOUTH SERVICES TEAM, COLLABORATION WITH DIRT BAGS, CALIFORNIA WELCOME HOME OASIS. THESE ARE TWO INTERCONNECTED, UH, SOCIAL ENTERPRISES. DIRT BAGS. CALIFORNIA'S MORE OF A TRADITIONAL BUSINESS. UH, THEY RESTORE HARLEY DAVIDSONS IN NORTH LONG BEACH OFF OF ARTESIA, AND I THINK MAYBE ORANGE, IF YOU EVER SEE IT THERE. IT LOOKS LIKE A VERY UNASSUMING SPACE FROM THE OUTSIDE. BUT YOU GO IN AND IT'S THIS WONDERFUL STATE OF THE ART, UH, STUDIO WITH BEAUTIFUL EPOXY FLOORING AND THE MOST WONDERFUL CLASSIC CARDS THAT YOU COULD SEE, INCLUDING A, UH, LIKE A 64 CHEVELLE, AND THEN A A TON OF, OF HARLEY DAVIDSON'S. THIS SHOP IS RAN BY A, UM, RELATIVELY KNOWN AND, UH, LOCAL BUSINESS OWNER NAMED MIKEY LOKO, A BIT OF A LOCAL CELEBRITY IN HIMSELF. UH, HE ALSO HAS A PARTNERSHIP WITH, UH, BABY BRO'S PIZZA, INCLUDING THE DOWNTOWN LOCATION. BUT THROUGH HIS OWN, UH, PERSONAL EXPERIENCE, UH, AND LIVED EXPERIENCE, MIKEY LOKO, UH, REALLY BROUGHT IT UPON HIMSELF TO GIVE BACK TO THE COMMUNITY. AND HE HAS DONE SO IN SEVERAL DIFFERENT WAYS. ONE OF THE WAYS THAT HE HAS DONE THIS IS TO THE, THROUGH THE CREATION OF WHAT HE CALLS A DIRT BACKS ACADEMY. IT'S LITERALLY AN ACADEMY WHERE HE TAKES A GROUP OF DISCONNECTED YOUTH, EQUIPS HIM WITH A WHOLE BUNCH OF SKILLS, ESPECIALLY THOSE RELATED TO, UM, A LOT OF SOFT SKILL DEVELOPMENT, HOW TO INTERACT WITH ADULTS, HOW TO TALK WITH THEM, HOW TO INTERFACE IN THE WORKPLACE. AND THEN ALSO A, A SERIES OF HANDS-ON TECHNICAL SKILLS RELATED TO THE REMODELING AND THE RETROFITTING OF CLASSIC HARLEY DAVIDSON TRUCKS. THAT IS SORT OF THE TACTICAL HANDS-ON COMPONENT THAT ALLOWS HIM TO REALLY INTERFACE WITH THE YOUNG PEOPLE, BRING OUT THAT VULNERABILITY, AND HAVE REALLY HEART TO HEART CONVERSATIONS THAT ARE IMPERATIVE FOR THEIR DEVELOPMENT. THE CONNECTION WITH WELCOME HOME OASIS IS THAT, UH, MIKEY LOKO LITERALLY TOOK ONE OF HIS A, A HOUSE, I THINK THE FIRST HOUSE THAT HE OWNED IN NORTH LONG BEACH AND CONVERT, CONVERTED IT TO A HOUSING SPACE FOR YOUNG MEN. SO THIS IS A, A HOUSING SITE WHERE, UH, FOR YOUNG FOLKS THAT ARE FACING H HOUSING INSECURITY AND NEED A SAFE SPACE, WHILE THEY'RE ENGAGED IN TRAINING THAT SITE, UH, LITERALLY HOUSES THEM AND CREATES A SHELTER FOR THEM, FOOD ACCESS AS WELL. WHILE THEY PARTICIPATE IN THIS TRAINING, MY COLLEAGUE, ALEJANDRA BALMER HAS WORKED REALLY CLOSELY WITH WELCOME HOME OASIS THROUGH DIRT BIKES, CALIFORNIA, TO GO OUT THEIR ON SITE MEET WITH, MEET WITH THESE YOUNG MEN, ENROLL THEM IN A PROGRAM, PROVIDE YOUTH MENTORSHIP AND SKILLS DEVELOPMENT RELATED TO HANDS-ON TRADE AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, ENGAGING, OF COURSE THROUGH ALL THOSE REAL WORLD PROJECTS THAT I JUST MENTIONED. AND WE CO-ENROLL 'EM IN OUR WEOA YOUTH AND PROGRAM, OR COURSE OUR MAIN CORE DISCONNECTED YOUTH, UM, A SOURCE WHERE THEN ARE, THEY'RE ABLE TO ACCESS ADDITIONAL SUPPORTIVE SERVICES THAT THEN FOSTER AND ENABLE THEIR ENGAGEMENT IN THE DIRT BAGS ACADEMY. SO IT'S A CO-ENROLLMENT MODEL THAT WE RUN WITH THEM. SO, UH, THEY HAVE SOME FANTASTIC, I I DIDN'T, THEY HAVE THEIR OWN PRO PRODUCED VIDEOS WHERE THEY GIVE YOU A LITTLE BIT MORE OF A LOOK INTO WHAT THEY DO, BUT WE'RE WORKING CLOSELY WITH A PARTNER NAMED WINGSPANS, WHO WE'VE PROCURED RECENTLY, WHERE THEY'RE PRODUCING A VIDEO THAT, UH, WE'LL BE ABLE TO SHOWCASE AND SHARE WITH YOU IN, UH, A FUTURE MEETING [01:35:01] FIRE CORE. SO THE FIRE CORE PROGRAM, UH, LAUNCHED IN NOVEMBER, 2020, SI 2026, AFTER A COMPETITIVE APPLICATION AND INTERVIEW PROCESS DURING WHICH 23 INTER INTERNS WERE SELECTED FOR THE PROGRAM'S SECOND COHORT, UH, THIS IS DESIGNED AS A PAID CAREER CONNECTED PATHWAY TO PUBLIC SAFETY. UH, IT PROVIDES YOUNG ADULTS EXPOSURE TO FIRE SERVICE OPERATIONS, EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS, AND, UH, JUST CAREER LOCAL GENERAL MUNICIPAL CAREERS. THE YOUNG FOLKS HERE ALSO HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO ENGAGE IN A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT COMMUNITY FACING PROGRAMS AND ACTIVITIES, AND INCLUDING THE COORDINATION OF THE SPARK OF LOVE TO TOY DRIVE, WHERE THEY, UH, DEDICATE MORE THAN 2000 HOURS ACROSS WAREHOUSE LOGISTICS, COMMUNITY OUTREACH, AND TOY DISTRIBUTION. IT'S SUPPORTING THE, UM, THE, THE GRANTING OF, UH, GIFTS TO YOUNG PEOPLE DURING THE HOLIDAY SEASON FOLLOWING THE TOY DRIVE. UH, FIRE CORE PARTICIPANTS ALSO COMPLETE INTENSIVE CERT TRAINING, WHICH IS, OF COURSE, COMMUNITY EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM TRAINING, AND, UM, THEY ENGAGE INTO DISASTER PREPAREDNESS, MEDICAL OPERATIONS, ET CETERA. THERE IS A VIDEO I THINK THAT MY COLLEAGUE REZA SHARED WITH US. REZA IS, UH, PEARL IS A PERSON THAT COORDINATES THIS PROGRAM, WHICH IS FUNDED THROUGH OUR CALIFORNIA VOLUNTEERS YOUTH SERVICE CORE FUNDING. AND THEN IF WE COULD FIND THAT VIDEO, WE'LL SEE IF WE COULD PLAY IT. I'M NOT SURE IF YOU'LL NEED A INSTAGRAM OR ACCOUNT OR SOMETHING, CARLA, THAT WE'LL SEE. I THINK IT SHOULD OPEN, IF NOT, WE COULD SEND IT. IT'S IN THE TEENS CHAT. YEAH. OKAY. WE'RE GOOD. PERHAPS IN THE INTEREST OF TIME, IF THE LINK ISN'T AVAILABLE, COULD IT BE SENT AS A FOLLOW-UP TO THE BOARD MEMBERS? MOST DEFINITELY. GREAT. OKAY. DO FOLKS HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? OKAY. OKAY. NO QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD. UM, ANY PUBLIC COMMENT? SEEING NO PUBLIC COMMENTS? UM, MADAM CLERK, PLEASE CALL FOR THE VOTE. MEMBER . MEMBER FAVE APPROVED. MEMBER FAYE APPROVED. MEMBER GOMEZ, APPROVED MEMBER GORDON PETERSON, APPROVED MEMBER HALL APPROVED MEMBER ANA, APPROVED MEMBER RUIZ. APPROVED MEMBER RUSSELL APPROVED MEMBER SAVAGE. APPROVED MEMBER SMITH APPROVE. MEMBER TESFAYE, APPROVE. MEMBER THOMAS APPROVED AND VICE CHAIR QUOLL APPROVED. MOTION IS CARRIED. THANK YOU, MADAM CLERK, PLEASE, UH, READ THE NEXT ITEM. ITEM NUMBER EIGHT IS A RECOMMENDATION TO RECEIVE AND FILE AN, AN UPDATE ON, ON GRANTS MOVE. THANK YOU. OKAY. HOW MUCH TIME DO WE HAVE FOR THIS SECTION? HOW MUCH, PARDON ME? HOW MUCH TIME DO WE HAVE FOR THIS SECTION? UH, MAYBE FIVE TO 10 MINUTES. OKAY. FIVE MINUTES. FIVE MINUTES. JUST, YEAH, WE'LL DO. OKAY. UH, SO TYPICALLY WE, WE, Y'ALL RECEIVE A COMPREHENSIVE UPDATE ON THE GRANTS THAT WE'VE APPLIED FOR THOSE I HAVE BEEN RECENTLY FUNDED, BUT I DO WANT TO TAKE THIS MOMENT TO FOCUS MORE SPECIFICALLY ON OUR CALIFORNIA JOBS FIRST ROUND TWO APPLICATION. SO, UH, WE RECENTLY APPLIED FOR THE SECOND ROUND OF THIS FUNDING, UH, THE SECOND ROUND. IT WAS, UM, IT, SO THE WHOLE PROCESS HAS BEEN A REALLY NUANCED PROCESS THAT WE'VE BEEN ENGAGED IN SINCE SEPTEMBER. SO SINCE SEPTEMBER, WE NOTICED THAT WE KNEW THAT THIS MONEY WAS COMING DOWN THE PIKE. UH, WE KNEW THAT WE WANTED TO SUBMIT A PROPOSAL AROUND AEROSPACE AND DEFENSE. HOWEVER, THROUGH, UH, WE HAD LOTS OF GUIDANCE FROM NOT ONLY THE STATE, BUT ARE ALSO THE REGIONAL, UM, CON REGIONAL, I THINK BACKBONE OR CONVENER OF THIS, UH, FUNDING IS THE, UH, LADC, UH, LOS ANGELES ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION. AND WE WERE UNDER VERY, UH, STRICT GUIDANCE THAT, UH, THERE, THERE COULD ONLY BEEN, THERE COULD HAVE ONLY BEEN ONE APPLICATION PER INDUSTRY SECTOR, UH, PER REGION. SO THAT MEANS WE HAD TO COORDINATE VERY CAREFULLY WITH OUR OTHER SEVEN WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT BOARDS, UM, OTHER AGENCIES THAT WERE ALSO INTERESTED IN, IN SUBMITTING A, IN AN AEROSPACE AND DEFENSE PROJECT. UM, SO WE, WE COORDINATED WITH THOSE ENTITIES. IT, IT TOOK SOME BIT OF NEGOTIATION AND NUANCE, UH, COORDINATION, BUT WE EVENTUALLY DID SUBMIT AS A LEAD WITH SEVERAL DIFFERENT PARTNERS. AND SINCE SEPTEMBER, WE HAVE COORDINATED VERY CAREFULLY WITH AND CLOSELY WITH THE ALL COUNTY, UH, DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY. UH, AS I MENTIONED ALSO EARLIER, ALL A DC AND OTHER PARTNERS THAT WE [01:40:01] APPLIED FOR. SO WE APPLIED FOR 14 POINT, SORRY, $14.7 MILLION. THIS IS FOR A CROSS REGIONAL PROJECT THAT WILL, UM, ESTABLISH THE CITY OF LONG BEACH THAT'S LEADING THE IMPLEMENTATION AND THE, THROUGH THE CREATION OF A SPACE BEACH COMMAND CENTER, WHERE WE WILL SERVE AS A REGIONAL PROJECT MANAGEMENT OFFICE AND THE EXECUTIVE EXECUTION BACKBONE FOR A MODEL THAT WILL, UM, BRING TOGETHER WORKFORCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT RESOURCES, UH, AND PROVIDE, UH, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT SUPPORT, BUSINESS ATTRACTION, UH, PROGRAM COORDINATION, UH, TO A MYRIAD OF DIFFERENT PARTNERS ACROSS THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGION, NOT JUST THE COUNTY. SO THIS WILL ALSO INCLUDE VENTURA AND RIVERSIDE COUNTIES. WE WILL PROVIDE, UM, UH, PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND ALSO, UM, OVERSEE A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT EFFORTS THAT WILL EVENTUALLY LEAD THE SUPPORT AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF FI OF, OF 500 TO 900 DIRECT JOB PLACEMENTS IN AEROSPACE AND DEFENSE ACROSS THE REGION. UH, WE, THIS PROJECT IS, UH, MADE UP OF FOUR ANCHOR PROJECTS, OR SORRY, IT'S ONE ANCHOR PROJECT, MEANING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SPACE SPEECH COMMAND OFFICE, WHICH IS LED BY US. AND THEN UNDER US, WE HAVE A PROJECT LED BY THE RIVERSIDE COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT FOCUSING ON TALENT DEVELOPMENT PIPELINE. THAT ALSO INCLUDES OUR PRO, OUR PARTNERS AT LBCC AND C-S-U-L-B. AND THEN ANOTHER PROJECT IS BY BLENDED IMPACT, WHICH IS MUCH MORE FOCUSED ON CAPITAL READINESS AND COMMERCIALIZATION. THAT IS LED LITERALLY BY A COMPANY CALLED BLENDED IMPACT. IT'S A CAPITAL VENTURE FIRM. AND THEN VENTURA ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COLLABORATIVE IS LEADING THE TESTING AND VALIDATION PILLAR THROUGH THE FATHOM WORKS, PROVING GROUNDS AND, UH, RELATED ASSETS. THIS IS ALL TO BUILD UPON THE, UM, THE ENERGY AND THE ECOSYSTEM OF THE AEROSPACE INDUSTRY, CONNECTING LOCAL RESIDENTS TO THE THOUSANDS OF JOB OPPORTUNITIES THAT ARE COMING OUT OF NOT ONLY HERE SPACE SPEECH, BUT ACROSS THE ENTIRE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGION. SO IT'S A BIG FOCUS ON NOT ONLY BUSINESS ATTRACTION, MAYBE 80% FOCUS ON THAT, BUT ALSO, OF COURSE, A WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY TO ENSURE THAT OUR RESIDENTS ARE READY AND PREPARED FOR THOSE JOBS. UH, THE REPORT THAT YOU HAVE IN FRONT OF YOU, OR IN YOUR PACKET, GOES VERY MUCH MORE INTO DETAIL INTO THE, THE APPLICATION AND WHAT WAS SUBMITTED. IT INCLUDES AN EXECUTIVE SUMMARY THAT ALSO PROVIDES INFORMATION ABOUT THE CLUSTER PROJECTS THAT ARE, UH, THAT WERE SUBMITTED, UH, UNDER OUR LEADERSHIP. FOLKS HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? WHEN WILL IT BE AWARDED? UH, THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION. SO IT'S MADE UP OF A PROCESS WHERE WE WILL BE NOTIFIED IN THE COMING MONTHS IF WE'RE INVITED TO, UH, JOIN A PITCH SESSION THAT WILL TAKE PLACE IN APRIL. THEN WE WILL FIND OUT SOMETIME LATER IN THE SUMMER IF WE WERE TO BE FUNDED. AND IF WE ARE FUNDED, IT WILL BE IMPLEMENTED IN OCTOBER. OKAY. COOL. I, I JUST WANTED TO COMMEND YOUR TEAM ON GETTING THIS DONE ON. I, I WAS INVOLVED A LITTLE BIT, UH, AT LEAST SEEING THE FIRST ROUND, AND I THINK THAT TOOK THEM TWO OR THREE YEARS TO DEVELOP THE AWARDEES OF THAT FIRST ROUND SO THAT YOU GUYS WERE ABLE TO TURN THIS AROUND IN A MATTER OF MONTHS IS REALLY IMPRESSIVE. AND REGARDLESS OF WHAT HAPPENS, LIKE GREAT JOB ON GETTING IT DONE AND BRINGING TOGETHER SO MANY PARTNERS FROM REGIONS THAT KIND OF NOTORIOUSLY DON'T GET ALONG SOMETIMES TOO, UM, YOU SHOULD BE PROUD OF THE WORK. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU. AND MUCH, UH, CREDIT TO OUR ECOSYSTEM PARTNERS, INCLUDING MANY OF THE EMPLOYERS HERE THAT OPEN THE DOORS TO US TO VISIT SOME OF THE SITES, UM, LITERALLY IN PERSON TO SEE FIRSTHAND WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE IN LONG BEACH. SO I THINK THAT REALLY DID HELP ANCHOR AND, AND INFORM THE DECISION THAT LONG BEACH SHOULD BE THE LEAD. NOT ONLY BE THE, THE LEAD THAT, BUT NATURALLY WE ARE THE FIT TO, UM, COORDINATE THIS WORK. UM, SO THANK YOU ALL FOR, FOR DOING THAT, INCLUDING VA THANK YOU, , FOR THE ONES THAT ARE DECLINED, UM, WAS L BWIN DENIED THESE OR DID L BWIN DECLINED TO PAR BID FOR THEM? UH, LET'S SEE. NO, WE DIDN'T. IT'S NOT THAT WE, WE JUST SIMPLY WERE NOT AWARDED. OKAY. UH, WE WERE NOT AWARDED THOSE. ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD MEMBERS? FROM NOT ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS? SORRY, I HAVE ONE MORE. OH, YES. DO YOU THINK ON THE, UM, TABLE IN THE FUTURE WE COULD SEE WHEN THEY WERE AWARDED? I DON'T, I DON'T NECESSARILY SEE THE DATE, SO IT'S, I CAN'T TELL WHAT WAS DONE FROM LAST TIME VERSUS THIS TIME. SO IF THERE'S NEW ONES, YEAH, IT'S USUALLY, UM, WE CLEAR THE LIST AT THE BEGINNING OF EVERY, UH, FISCAL YEAR, BUT WE COULD PROVIDE THE ACTUAL AWARDED DATE THERE. YEAH. JUST TO BE ABLE TO TRACK AND SEE WHAT'S NEW AND COMING IN. THANK YOU. YEAH. ANY REMAINING QUESTIONS OR [01:45:01] COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD? SEEING NONE, PUBLIC COMMENT ONE MADAM CHAIR, IF I MAY. YES. UH, JUST WANTED TO MAKE A QUICK COMMENT AROUND THE CALIFORNIA JOBS FIRST INITIATIVE. UM, AND JUST SIMPLY SAY, UH, KUDOS TO ELI. HE REALLY TOOK THAT ON, REALLY APPRECIATED HIM STEPPING UP AND GETTING EVERYBODY TOGETHER. WE HAD A LOT OF HELP FROM A LOT OF DIFFERENT ENTITIES AND GROUPS, INCLUDING LUCIUS FROM THE MAYOR'S OFFICE ON THIS AS WELL. UM, BUT I ALSO WANNA SAY THAT THE INTENT OF THIS IS HOPEFULLY IF WE GET FUNDED, THIS IS A STARTING POINT. UM, THE INTENT OF THIS COALITION, THIS GROUP THAT WE'VE CREATED, IS THAT IT'S GOING TO BE A LONG TERM APPROACH THAT IS GOING TO PROVIDE US OPPORTUNITIES FOR ADDITIONAL FUNDING TO EXPAND AND GROW WHAT WE'RE DOING WITH THE CAL JO CALIFORNIA JOBS FIRST INITIATIVE. SO IT DOESN'T JUST END THERE. UH, WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE COLLABORATE AND THEN BUILD BEYOND WHAT CALIFORNIA JOBS FIRST IS GONNA PROVIDE US. SO, JUST WANTED TO SHARE THAT THE INTENT THERE IS NOT JUST THAT PROJECT, BUT WHAT CAN BE BEYOND THAT AS WELL. YES, SIR. THANK YOU. NO FURTHER PUBLIC COMMENT. MADAM CLERK, PLEASE CALL FOR THE VOTE. MEMBER GOBAR RODRIGUEZ. MEMBER FAVE MEMBER FAYE APPROVED MEMBER GOMEZ, APPROVED MEMBER GORDON PETERSON. MEMBER HALL APPROVED MEMBER POINTS TO NOT APPROVED MEMBER RE APPROVED MEMBER RUSSELL APPROVED. MEMBER SAVAGE. APPROVED MEMBER SMITH, APPROVED MEMBER TESFAYE. APPROVED MEMBER THOMAS AND MEMBER, UH, VICE CHAIR QUAL APPROVED. MOTION IS CARRIED. UM, FOR THE NEXT ITEM, THERE IS NO CHAIR OR VICE CHAIR REPORT. COULD WE SKIP THAT ONE? YES. UH, ITEM NUMBER NINE HAS BEEN WITHDRAWN. GREAT. THANK YOU. UM, MADAM CLERK, PLEASE READ THE NEXT ITEM. ITEM NUMBER 10 IS A RECOMMENDATION TO RECEIVE AND FILE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR'S REPORT. MAY I HAVE A MOTION FOR THIS? THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ALRIGHT. REAL QUICK, IT'LL BE FAST. UH, FIRST OFF, FEDERAL FUNDING. YAY. HAS BEEN APPROVED. YAY. UH, SO FOR THIS FISCAL YEAR, WE DO HAVE OUR WE OA FUNDING THAT IS NOW IN PLACE. SO THAT'S ALL GOOD NEWS. UH, THE OTHER QUICK THING IS JUST A STAFFING UPDATE. UH, WE DO HAVE ONE OF OUR OFFICERS POSITIONS, AS I MENTIONED IN DECEMBER, ELISA MUNOZ, UH, LEFT, RETIRED. UH, WE ARE VERY, VERY, VERY, VERY CLOSE. I WAS ACTUALLY HOPING TO BE ABLE TO ANNOUNCE, UH, THE REPLACEMENT THIS, UH, THIS, UH, MEETING. BUT UNFORTUNATELY WE STILL DON'T HAVE THAT FINALIZED YET. BUT ALL I CAN SAY IS WE DO HAVE A, A PERSON THAT WE'VE MADE THE, UH, OFFER TO AND HOPEFULLY, UH, WE'LL GET THAT ALL CONFIRMED AND IN PLACE, UH, VERY, VERY SOON. BUT I CAN TELL YOU VERY MUCH NEEDED. UM, AND THEN THE LAST PART IS WE DO HAVE TWO OTHER POSITIONS THAT I MENTIONED. WE ARE, UH, NOW IN THE PROCESS OF GOING THROUGH FORMAL INTERVIEWS FOR THE, UM, THE TWO POSITIONS THAT ARE SUPERVISORY POSITIONS FOR THE BUSINESS ENGAGEMENT TEAM AND ALSO FOR THE YOUTH TEAM. UH, SO WE'RE GONNA BE GOING THROUGH THE INTERVIEW PROCESS FOR THOSE VERY, VERY SOON HERE AND HOPING TO HAVE SOME FULLY STAFFED FOLKS SOON, BECAUSE I CAN TELL YOU IT IS A CHALLENGE NOT HAVING THE FOLKS IN PLACE THAT WE NEED. SO THAT IS THE ONLY COMMENT FOR ME. SO THANK YOU. GREAT. DOES ANYBODY HAVE QUESTIONS? SEEING THEM FROM THE BOARD? ANY PUBLIC COMMENT OR QUESTIONS? SEEING NONE. MADAM CLERK, PLEASE CALL FOR THE VOTE. MEMBER EZ APPROVED. MEMBER FAVE. APPROVED MEMBER FAYE. APPROVED. MEMBER GOMEZ. APPROVED MEMBER GORDON PETERSON. MEMBER HALL APPROVED MEMBER OT APPROVED MEMBER RU APPROVED MEMBER RUSSELL. MEMBER SAVAGE. APPROVED MEMBER SMITH, APPROVE. MEMBER TE FAYE APPROVED MEMBER THOMAS AND VICE CHAIR QUO APPROVED. MOTION IS CARRIED. THANK YOU. AT THIS TIME, WE'LL TAKE KNOWLEDGE AND A PUBLIC COMMENT. IF NOT MEMBERS, ARE THERE ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS FROM THIS AUDIENCE OR GROUP? IF NO, IF NONE, I DECLARE THIS MEETING ADJOURNED. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.