On Wednesday, December 7th, the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation (LADF) hosted its final 2022 STEM career panel at Dodger Stadium. Sponsored by Bank of America and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP), the experience was part of LADF’s College & Career Accelerator (CCA), an initiative designed to introduce high school students in underserved communities to college and career opportunities through panels, seminars, workshops, and college tours.

“So many of the young adults we serve lack knowledge of and access to careers in STEM fields,” said Nichol Whiteman, CEO of LADF. “With our College & Career Accelerator series, we are addressing inequities in education by exposing youth to opportunities to succeed beyond high school. This year alone, we awarded $340,000 in grants to nonprofits that provide college and career education and accessibility and launched our first-ever LADF scholarship through a $1 million investment to support 10 scholars annually with four-year support.”

In 2022, over 700 youth attended workshops and tours across Los Angeles as part of the CCA initiative. During these sessions, advisors covered a variety of topics including college readiness, financial aid, the importance of extracurricular activities, and how to select a college major.

The STEM Career panel introduced both the youth served by LADF grantees and participants in the Dodgers Dreamteam to various career opportunities and gave them the knowledge and tools to pursue a career in STEM. Panelists included Bank of America and Los Angeles Department of Water and Power representatives. The panel concluded with a Q&A from panel moderator and LADF COO Chaitali Gala Mehta.

“Bank of America is extremely proud to be supporters of the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation because we know their work transforms young lives through the power of sports,” said Jacky Holler, Senior Vice President, Leader on Loan Executive at Bank of America and LADF Advisory Committee member. “Throughout the 2022 season, Bank of America’s volunteers have participated in all of the College & Career Accelerator activities including the panels, seminars, workshops, and college tours. We’re honored to be one of the primary partners for the CCA programs.” 

The 2022 CCA series included four workshops hosted at venues including Dodger Stadium, Centennial High School, and the University of Southern California (USC) as well as two college tours at USC and El Camino Community College.

Currently, 50% of LA County students complete high school with the classes required to apply to a four-year college and only 33.5% of LA County residents have a bachelor's degree or higher. To address these inequities in education, LADF partnered with the USC College Advising Corps as a program service provider to arrange college workshops for the Dodgers Dreamteam and grantee youth. The presentations covered a wide variety of topics including college applications, financial aid, and making the transition to post-secondary education.

For more information on LADF and the College & Career Accelerator initiative, visit Dodgers.com/CCA.

To access photos from the event, please click here: Photo Credit: Los Angeles Dodgers/Josh Barber