Los Angeles Mission College Pacoima Center Land Acquisition Project: U.S. Representative Tony Cárdenas (D-CA-29) requested $2,000,000 to support the purchase of land acquisition to construct a parking structure adjacent to Los Angeles Mission College’s Pacoima Center. (Status TBD)

The Community Engagement & Enrichment Center at LA Pierce College: U.S. Representative Brad Sherman (D-CA-32) requested $850,000 for LA Pierce College for the creation of a Community Engagement and Enrichment Center at the College Arboretum. (Status TBD)

Los Angeles Harbor College Center for Community Engagement and Workforce Development: U.S. Representative Nanette Barragán (D-CA-44) requested $850,000 for the Los Angeles Harbor College Community Engagement Center to expand workforce opportunities for LAHC students. (Status TBD)

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) & and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Visit:  LACCD was invited to participate in an Executive Roundtable with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Director Deanne Criswell and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Director Jen Easterly at the Port of Los Angeles. LACCD’s Chief Information Officer Carmen Lidz participated and contributed to the discussion which focused on ensuring students have access to necessary technology infrastructure and secure connectivity. November 7, 2023.

White House Office of Science and Technology (OSTP) Visit:  Coordinated a visit to Los Angeles Pierce College by President Joe Biden’s Chief Science and Technology Advisor and White House Office of Science and Technology (OSTP) Policy Director Arati Prabhakar. She met with students, staff, and faculty and toured LA Pierce College to learn about their efforts to strengthen our nation’s biotechnology and biomanufacturing ecosystem, as well as their zero-emissions vehicle training program. May 2, 2023.

LACCD STEMM Academy for Girls, Women, and Underrepresented Students:  The late US Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA) secured $750,000 in FY 2023 Congressionally Directed Spending, which supports the establishment of the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) STEMM Academy for Girls, Women, and Underrepresented Students. Funding was approved in the Federal Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023. Districtwide Funding Proposal.

LACCD California Center for Climate Change Education at West Los Angeles College:  US Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA) secured $1,323,000 in FY 2023 Congressionally Directed Spending, which supports the Los Angeles Community College District: California Center for Climate Change Education at West Los Angeles College. Funding was approved in the Federal Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023.

Los Angeles Mission College STEMM Program for Non-English-Speaking Students:  Congressmember Tony Cardenas (D-CA) (Congressional District 29) secured $1,000,000 in FY 2023 Congressionally Directed Spending, which supports the Los Angeles Mission College Department of Global Languages and Society and the Department of Life Sciences to establish a comprehensive program for non-English speaking, foreign-born STEM workers and those who may be interested in learning more about STEM professions. And $1,000,000 in funding supports expanding the Los Angeles Mission College Allied Health programs. Funding was approved in the Federal Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023.

Los Angeles Pierce College Partnership with BioCom and Regional Employers:  Congressmember Brad Sherman (D-CA) (Congressional District 30) secured $2,000,000 in FY 2023 Congressionally Directed Spending, which supports the Los Angeles Pierce College, which will increase offerings of stackable certificates aligned to industry certificates, Associate Degrees, and a Baccalaureate Degree in the field of biotechnology. Funding was approved in the Federal Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023.

Los Angeles Trade Technical College Mobile Learning Innovations:  Former Congressmember Karen R. Bass (D-CA) (Congressional District 37) secured $1,000,000 in FY 2023 Congressionally Directed Spending, which supports the Los Angeles Trade Technical College Mobile Learning Innovations in two educational Pathways: Design and Media Arts with a mobile Maker-Space and Culinary Arts with a mobile food truck laboratory. Funding was approved in the Federal Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023.

Los Angeles Community College District and LA Metro GoPass Program:  The late US Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) FY22 secured $1,000,000.00 in FY 2022 Congressionally Directed Spending to expand the Metro Fareless System Initiative Pilot (GoPass) Program in Los Angeles County’s 21 colleges to ensure that all 550,000+ community college students have access to reliable public transportation. Funding was approved in the Federal Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022. Countywide Request (21 LA County Community Colleges).

East Los Angeles College FACES (Family and Community Engagement Services) Partnership Program:  Congressmember Judy Chu (D- CA) (Congressional District 27) secured $200,000 in FY 2022 Congressionally Directed Spending to promote a college, school district, and community collaboration that supports college access and enrollment. Funding was approved in the Federal Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022.

Los Angeles City College (LACC) Basic Needs Project:  Represented by Congressmember Adam B. Schiff (D-CA) (Congressional District 28) and Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA), secured $962,000 in FY 2022 Congressionally Directed Spending to increase access to postsecondary education by providing support services to meet student's basic needs, including food, housing, utilities, transportation, childcare, and school supplies. Funding was approved in the Federal Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022.

Short-term vocational and Biotechnology (Biotech) training at Los Angeles Valley College (LAVC) and Los Angeles Mission College (LAMC):  Congressmember Tony Cardenas (D-CA) (Congressional District 29) and Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA) secured $400,000 in the House and $800,000 in the Senate FY 2022 Congressionally Directed Spending to increase the number of students enrolled in and completing programs within the LAVC Workforce Training program and addressing the newly-emerging demand for biosafety and the evolving needs of industry through the LAMC biotechnology program. Funding was approved in the Federal Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022 for $400,000.

Los Angeles Southwest College Family Resource Center and Los Angeles Southwest College Re-Entry Initiative for Success in Education (RISE) Center:  Congressmember Maxine Waters (D-CA) (Congressional District 43) secured $1,500,000.00 Senate FY 2022 Congressionally Directed Spending for the establishment of both centers to support student parents and their families and student anti-recidivism and gang intervention for justice-impacted individuals. Both these programs will increase and accelerate college completion. College Specific Request. Family Resource Center Project Funding: $750,000. RISE Center Project Funding: $750,000. Total Project Funding for Southwest College: $1.5 Million. Funding was approved in the Federal Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022.

East Los Angeles College South Gate Center Southeast Training Hub in Healthcare Careers:  Congressmember Nanette Barragan (D-CA) (Congressional District 44) and Senator Alex Padilla secured $1.8 million Senate FY 2022 Congressionally Directed Spending to establish the Healthcare Hub to boost the training and supply of healthcare industry professions. Funding was approved in the Federal Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022.

Secured American Rescue Plan Funding:  Helped secure $212.73 million in funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) in HEERF III and MSI funding across all nine colleges in LACCD. We worked in coalition to ensure that the formula for allocating funds was favorable to LACCD and other community colleges (using headcount and FTE). The American Rescue Plan was signed into law on March 11, 2021.

Advocacy Support for DACA Students:  The District strongly advocated for a pathway to citizenship for DACA students and their families, supporting HR. 6, the American Dream and Promise Act, and the US Citizenship Act of 2021. In addition, the District hosted numerous speakers for the LACCD DACA Taskforce, including Rep. Tony Cardenas (D-CA), Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA), Alida Garcia, White House Senior Advisor for Migration

Strengthened Support for African American Students:  LACCD continued to support its efforts to strengthen support for African American/Black students. The District hosted Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA) to speak before the African American/Black Students Taskforce.

Advocated for the Creation of the Basic Needs for Postsecondary Students Program:  A new $5 million basic needs pilot program in the FY 21 Omnibus Appropriations Bill to support the basic needs of eligible community college students. Los Angeles City College received one of the first awards from the program for $990,000.

CARES Act: In collaboration with other stakeholders, LACCD advocated for $14.250 billion in the CARES Act for higher education institutions to prevent, prepare for, and respond to emergency relief resulting from the coronavirus.

DACA Congressional Roundtable: LACCD hosted a Congressional Roundtable with key Hispanic Caucus (CHC) leaders. Participants included Rep. Ruben Gallego, CHC Vice Chair; Rep. Nanette Barragan, CHC Vice Chair; and Rep. Linda Sanchez, CHC Immigration and Border Issue Taskforce Chair. Over 200 students, staff, and faculty participated via Zoom.

Advocated in Support of Student Basic Needs:  Supported Rep. Adam Schiff’s “Food for Thought" legislation would create a competitive grant program to enable community colleges to provide free meals and snacks to eligible college students. LACCD hosted Rep. Schiff at a media roundtable at LA City College on September 5, 2019, to discuss this important legislation and to highlight LACCD’s innovative efforts to address food insecurity for students.

Expanding SNAP Eligibility for Community College Students:  Advocated to expand SNAP benefits, working closely with Rep. Roybal-Allard to secure language in the House Agriculture appropriations bill. The bill amendments require the Department of Agriculture to work with the Department of Education to expand outreach efforts on college campuses. The language was included in the final FY 20 Appropriations package, signed into law by President Trump on December 20, 2019.

Funding for Aviation Workforce:  Advocated the California Congressional Delegation—and a broad coalition of supporters—to include funding in the FY 20 House Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development appropriations bill to create two newly authorized aviation workforce grant programs that could benefit the District. The bill includes $5,000,000 for the Aviation Maintenance Technician Development Program and $5,000,000 for the aviation workforce development program. The Department of Labor awarded a $12 million grant for West LA College to work with five other colleges, the South Bay Workforce Investment Board, plus numerous private-sector employers and professional organizations to provide a variety of different student-focused "career on-ramps" for jobs, education, internships, and apprenticeship opportunities.

FAFSA Simplification:  Advocated the Senate and House for final passage of the "Fostering Undergraduate Talent by Unlocking Resources for Education (FUTURE) Act," which extends mandatory funding for grants available to Historical Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs), and Tribal Colleges under Part F of Title III of the Higher Education Act. This program has played a vital role in increasing STEM production and expanding institutional capacity at HSIs & MSIs. The bill also simplifies the FAFSA application process by requiring greater information sharing between the IRS and the Department of Education. The bill was signed into law by President Trump on December 19. LACCD worked with a broad coalition of supporters to help pass the FUTURE Act.

Advocated to Protect Priority Federal Programs:  Working in coalition with other key stakeholders, LACCD advocated to preserve and expand funding for crucial community college programs, including securing an additional $15 million for apprenticeships, increased funding for Pell, Work Study preserved at $1.3 billion, TRIO increased $1.6 billion (a $50 million increase from the previous year), and the National Science Foundation's HSI grant program received $15 million for FY 19.

Promise Zone Preservation:  Coordinated a fly-in led by LACCD and the South LA Promise Zone to help protect and preserve the Los Angeles County Promise Zone program.

Advocated to Oppose Changes to Immigration Law/Public Charge:  Aggressively opposed changes to the "Public Charge" rule that could impact DACA recipients and their families.

Advocated to Protect DACA:  Following President Trump’s announcement that DACA would end, LACCD responded to ensure its students remained protected. Working with a broad coalition helped draft a letter to the President urging him to uphold the 2012 executive actions that created the DACA program. Continued to advocate for the bipartisan DREAM Act.

Advocated for Increased Student Financial Aid:  Advocated for vital student aid, including increases to Pell Grant funding and year-round Pell. Continued to support FAFSA simplification.

Secured a $2.5 million American Apprenticeship Grant:  In partnership with Managed Career Solutions and other key partners, LACCD advocated for the Department of Labor to secure a highly competitive American Apprenticeship grant to train 1,000 at-risk youth for careers in high-growth technology and biotechnology jobs working with employers such as AltaMed, DIRECTV, Farmers Insurance, and Toyota.

Convened a White House Roundtable on College Promise:  LACCD worked with the White House to convene a roundtable with key California leadership to advance College Promise initiatives statewide.

Coordinated Dr. Jill Biden’s participation in LACCD’s College Promise Kick-Off:  Arranged Dr. Biden’s participation in the LACCD College Promise kick-off, working closely with the Los Angeles Mayor’s Office.

Advocated and Secured a position for LACCD on President Barack Obama’s College Promise Board:  LACCD’s representative was the only community college trustee on the national board.