June 13, 2022
The Honorable Gavin Newsom
Governor of the State of California
State Capitol
Sacramento, CA 95814
SUBJECT: Requesting support for RCCD IETTC budget line item
Dear Governor Newsom:
On behalf of Inland Action, this letter is to support the $33 million line-item in the budget deal recently agreed to by the State Senate and Assembly for the Riverside Community College District Inland Empire Technical Trade Center (IETTC) in the Jurupa Valley area centrally located at the intersection between two counties compromising 4.6 million people and growing rapidly. Inland Action is a non-profit organization of business and community leaders dedicated to the economic and community betterment of the Inland Empire region of California.
The Inland Empire (IE) comprises Riverside and San Bernardino counties – the 10th and 12th largest counties in America by population, respectively, and among the fastest growing regions in the United States. While we enjoy a variety of traditional postsecondary institutions offering certificate and degree programs, there are only a handful of public technical training centers in southern California. These centers are largely private and for-profit and are often expensive and inaccessible without students incurring significant debt to attend. These private and for-profit centers, while offering technical training in skilled trades, generally lack the necessary infrastructure, support systems and complementary academic offerings that California Community Colleges can holistically provide to the region’s most at-risk populations.
Given the need for local technical training capacity to support the region’s residents, current and emerging employers, and the strong commitment of the Riverside Community College District (RCCD) to build and scale pathways that offer residents the ability to move from poverty to self-sufficiency, RCCD and partners plan to establish the Inland Empire Technical Trade Center (IETTC). The IETTC is a response to the urgent need for good jobs for the region’s residents, diversification of the regional economy, and for a locally available educated and skilled workforce for the region’s current and future employers.
A central component of the IETTC will be an integrated “earn and learn” model providing students with industry-based opportunities for application and development of technical skills through apprenticeship, pre-apprenticeship, and other potential work-based learning opportunities.
Inland Action strongly supports the $33 million included in the State Senate and Assembly budget deal for the RCCD IETTC project to move forward with a groundbreaking timeline for 2025-2026.
Sincerely,
Deborah Barmack
President