ProjectAttain! Set to to Guide Regional Collaborative

Photo Credit: Andrea Price, Sacramento State

ProjectAttain! will play a key role in guiding the Sacramento K-16 Collaborative that brings together the Los Rios Community College District, Sacramento State, UC Davis, the Sacramento County Office of Education, and others to develop new education-to-career pathways in healthcare and engineering, especially for students from traditionally underrepresented communities.

The Collaborative is one of six partnerships to receive first-round funding from the Regional K-16 Education Collaboratives Grant program funded through a $250 million investment in the state’s 2021 Budget Act. The program is part of a statewide strategy to grow regional economies, expand education-to-career pathways, and align education, vocational, and workforce programs to broaden access to education and employment opportunities.

“We’re creating new regional pipelines – K-12 schools to higher education to the workforce – for California’s students that will prepare our kids for the jobs of the future in their communities. This essential collaboration will help bridge equity gaps and provide more resources to help our students achieve their career goals right in their own communities,” said Governor Gavin Newsom.

The new funding will accelerate ProjectAttain!’s current work focused on adults and introduce new efforts to help K-12 students move through college and into careers.

During the five-year funding period, the Sacramento K-16 Collaborative intends to:

  • Promote educational and workforce equity by enrolling 1,300 additional young men of color at Sacramento State and UC Davis
  • Create and strengthen dual enrollment programs to triple the number of students who can graduate from high school already having completed their first year of college
  • Develop career pathways to triple the number of high school students who graduate ready to enter college programs or apprenticeships in health care or engineering
  • Award 4,000 degrees to adults who have earned their degrees and not claimed them or who are close to completing their degrees, while enrolling an additional 4,000 returning students in community colleges
  • Achieve Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) status for all colleges and universities involved in the Collaborative

Together, the Sacramento K-16 Collaborative partner institutions currently serve more than a half million students.

Anette Smith, ProjectAttain! board chair, says the Collaborative is a natural fit with ProjectAttain!’s existing work.

“The ProjectAttain! board of directors, staff, partners, and volunteers are honored to receive a K-16 Education Collaboratives grant and thank Governor Newsom for his wisdom and vision in creating this opportunity. We recognize this was a very competitive process and we would not have been successful without our partners: Capitol Impact, Third Plateau, and the excellent leaders of area academic institutions for their thought leadership and drive to make this project happen. This funding will transform ProjectAttain! and enable these partners to serve a broad swath of students in our community,” said Smith. “We have been working towards this moment through various organizational iterations for years. As a result, ProjectAttain! is uniquely qualified to lead this project for the greater Sacramento region as an emerging academic backbone organization.”

The Sacramento K-16 Collaborative also includes the Placer County Office of Education, Sierra College Joint Community College District, Yuba Community College District, Lake Tahoe Community College District, and multiple school districts in Sacramento and Placer counties.

For more information about the Regional K-16 Education Collaboratives Grant Program, visit k16collaborative.org.