We design and implement high-wage, high-growth, high school career technical education pathways for high-needs learners; and open source all accessibility-compliant curricula, class materials, and work-based learning projects. As Livable Wage Jobs and sister-company 2 Degree Shift (2DS), the following projects are in partnership with Downey Unified School District (DUSD), the Bayha Group, and 2CPR Group.
Pathways Implementation
Collaborated on the implementation of two Advanced Manufacturing machine shops, one Welding lab, two Game Development labs, one Electric Vehicle lab, one Audiovisual Technologies lab, and one Plastics Engineering and Sustainability lab:
- Purchasing industrial equipment and upgrading infrastructure for one outdoor and seven indoor commercial labs
- Purchasing four electric vehicle chassis
- Hiring two welding teachers, one AP for CTE teacher, and one Robotics and Mechatronics teacher. Transitioning one Engineering teacher to Advanced Manufacturing and one Automotive teacher to Alternative Fuels and Advanced Transportation
- Articulating coursework with Cerritos College
- Budget management and state approvals
- Professional development and onboarding for College and Career Readiness Technicians
Funding for Pathways Design, Development, and Testing
With DUSD and the Bayha Group, co-manage the implementation of grants written and awarded in 2021: Business & Entrepreneurship $1,728,373; Career Ecosystems $1,730,462; Open Source Downey $1,757,094 = total $5,215,929
Written in 2021 and awarded January 2022: Expanding Advanced Manufacturing and Welding $1,842,720; Technologies with Things $1,820,774; Computer Science Work-Based Learning $1,664,348 = $5,327,842 and CTE Innovation Grant: $1,478,456
Co-wrote and supported in 2022 and awarded in January 2023: Career Technical Education Innovation Grant $1,355,945; Plastics Engineering and Sustainability $1,291,504; Reimagining Biotech: Downey’s Roadmap to
High-Growth Jobs $1,461,332.
Current Projects
High-wage, high-growth pathways. Pathways completed in 2022 include Advanced Manufacturing at Downey and Warren high schools with new fully industrial machine shops for students to work with manual mills, lathes, and Haas CNC mills and lathes. Students earn college articulation and college credit from nearby and awarded Cerritos College. Welding completed at Columbus High School, students work toward welding certification (AWS) and as forklift drivers. The Game Development pathway is located at Warren and Downey high schools. New pathways in their first year of implementation include Alternative Fuels and Advanced Transportation, with four electric vehicle chassis, and Audiovisual Technologies in partnership with AVIXA™. Target students for all pathways are youth who do not plan or qualify to attend a university, who may attend a community college, and who we advise that with a consistent effort, will earn six figures when peers graduate from a university.
Industry-informed Curriculum Developed
- Alternative Vehicle Technologies and Systems
- CS Game Programming
- Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning HVAC
- Machining & Forming Technologies (Advanced Manufacturing)
- Welding and Materials Joining
- Plastice Engineering and Sustainability
- Supported 2CPR Group curriculum in Audiovisual Technologies
- Supporting Bayha Group with Biotechnologies
Livable Wage Jobs/2 Degree Shift, Downey Unified School District, the Bayha Group, and 2CPR Group Partnership
The collaborative approach is reverse engineering from industry to college-articulated courses to high schools and integrating with school administrators, teachers, and students to address today’s challenges. We are a team of educators who share their passion for serving students and supporting teachers. Our obsession is students who, according to test scores and grade point average, are not in the top 20%. We also believe that the 20% need more hands-on experience and work-based learning to succeed in their careers. There are not a lot of multiple-choice tests in high-wage, high-growth jobs. Critical thinking and confidence in ability improve daily while wiring an electric vehicle, welding joints, and milling machine parts.