Catapult Launches ‘Masterclass’ Professional Development Initiative with Los Angeles County Community Colleges
New Partnership with Los Angeles Community Colleges and Association for Career and Technical Education Set to be a National Model of Excellence
LOS ANGELES, Monday, October 9, 2023 — Today, Catapult, in collaboration with the Los Angeles Regional Consortium (LARC) and the Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE), announced a transformative new partnership to enhance career readiness for students learning new and upgrading existing skills for Los Angeles County’s dynamic economy. The initiative will address existing systemic challenges in professional development by introducing innovative educational approaches to the classroom, including institutionalizing proven work-based learning practices.
The project, funded through a grant awarded by ECMC Foundation, is poised to redefine the professional learning landscape in postsecondary education. Aptly titled “Catapulting Career Readiness for Los Angeles’ Community Colleges,” lessons learned and new institutional practices developed will be shared across community colleges nationwide through the partnership with ACTE.
“Catapult is uniquely positioned to redefine professional development in the field, with a proven track record, acclaimed speakers, and successful outcome metrics. This partnership aligns perfectly with the ECMC Foundation’s strategic direction and our commitment to empower and equip educational institutions to thrive in a rapidly evolving world,” said Dr. Kevin J. Fleming, Founder and CEO of Catapult.
“ACTE is excited about the ability to offer this new professional development model to help drive institutional change at community and technical colleges in Los Angeles,” said ACTE Executive Director LeAnn Curry. “We look forward to building on the lessons learned from this targeted effort to expand our capacity to offer intensive, high-quality professional development to all our members across the country.”
Key elements of this groundbreaking initiative include:
- Institution-Wide Professional Development: Over 7,000 employees at nine regional community colleges within LA County will benefit from this institution-wide professional development program. Led by the Los Angeles Regional Consortium, the initiative guarantees clear communication of expectations, securing executive leadership buy-in and participation.
- Dynamic Catapult Masterclasses: This project introduces two, highly anticipated Catapult masterclasses: “Work-Based Learning” in Fall 2023 and “Career Readiness” in Spring 2024. These masterclasses feature an impressive lineup of speakers, including prominent education subject-matter experts. The demographic composition and vast experience of each keynote speaker reflects Los Angeles’ diverse and inclusive range of perspectives.
The project addresses the limitations of traditional professional development, which often fall short in two significant ways:
- Lack of Transfer of Learning: Traditional professional development struggles to bridge the gap between theory and practice. Research shows that only 10% to 20% of what is learned through these methods is effectively applied to job performance. Catapult’s masterclasses, however, offer actionable and applicable content tailored to the specific needs of participants.
- Lack of Follow-Up Support: Traditional methods often lack follow-up support, which is crucial for reinforcing learning and improving job performance. Catapult addresses this by providing customized action planning, cohort-based learning, and inquiry-based professional development, empowering employees to effectively apply what they’ve learned.
“Los Angeles community colleges are built to ensure classroom instruction is contextualized for the in-demand skills of today’s cutting-edge careers, but as a system of higher education, we know there is always more we can do to achieve even greater outcomes for our students,” added Dr. Narineh Makijan, Regional Chair/Assistant Vice President, Los Angeles Regional Consortium. “Growing the pipeline of career technical education faculty and professional development opportunities are key goals of the California state plan for Career Technical Education, and through this initiative, Los Angeles community colleges look to be a model of excellence for other colleges throughout California and the nation.”
To learn more about how Catapult enhances education’s professional development programming, visit https://www.catapultlpd.com/.
To learn more about our partners visit:
The Los Angeles Regional Consortium
Association for Career and Technical Education
For media inquiries, contact: Dr. Kevin J. Fleming
CEO and Founder
info@catapultlpd.com
