Digital Promise has conducted preliminary research with the San Diego STEM Pathways Community Advisory Committee (CAC) members and key project personnel to gain a deeper understanding of the impact on cross-sector coalition-building processes and regional pathways design. The key findings from these interviews are presented in our latest report, Building Bridges: Cultivating Interconnectedness for STEM Pathways in San Diego.
The CAC is a coalition of 14 local and regional leaders working together to reimagine pathways to careers and prime the future generation of San Diego workers for success. Recognizing that lasting change comes from collective action, the CAC members have boldly embarked on a mission to overcome barriers and close ranks to ensure that San Diego students receive the support and resources needed to enter and thrive in well-paying STEM careers while meeting the growing demand for STEM talent in the San Diego region.
Building on an unwavering dedication to learners and a commitment to a greater San Diego, CAC members have convened monthly to engage in community-driven innovation and cross-sector conversations to build a collaborative regional infrastructure for the sustainable and systemic transformation of STEM pathways. At the core of this process is the belief that cross-sector collaboration and alignment are necessary to build strong regional pathways and to help all learners access and benefit from STEM-related opportunities.
By building genuine relationships, generating collective wisdom, and maintaining continued commitment, CAC members established principles and requirements they wanted to see in a sustainable regional collaboration and engaged in community-centered design. Then, members developed solution concept ideas aimed at iterating and aligning STEM pathways in the region. Inspired by the promise of community-driven innovation, they eagerly began working on their ideas in early 2025 to pilot them throughout the year.
Early findings indicated that overall, committee members expressed positive experiences with cross-sector collaboration both within the advisory committee and in their professional roles outside the CAC, despite understanding the challenges often associated with cross-sector collaboration.
“[We] really mapped out a process that is leading us towards our goal that is really manageable in, you know, in the fact that we meet for a few hours and then go in, live our lives and then come back. When we come back, we’re not starting from the beginning… I think it’s really well documented and really well structured.” – CAC Member
These emerging projects present a valuable opportunity for investment in the broader community and the region’s future, laying the groundwork for the regional framework needed to create systemic and sustainable change.
Members of the CAC will present their solution ideas to the community of San Diego to inspire deeper engagement across various sectors and move closer to selecting a local backbone organization to ensure the sustainability of this regional coalition.
This bold effort adds to a growing body of knowledge about regional pathway design that can be leveraged by other regions in California and other states anticipating worker shortages in other industries. These principles of collaboration and co-design offer a roadmap for other regions to follow as they pursue community-driven innovation and solutions.
“But you know I do think that this, if it works in San Diego, it has the potential to work anywhere. So I think this is a good jumping off point.” – CAC Member
To learn more, read the full report—Building Bridges: Cultivating Interconnectedness for STEM Pathways in San Diego. We value your support and interest in our work! To stay updated with our progress and learn how you can contribute to this transformative initiative, we invite you to sign up for our newsletter
Funding for this report was provided in part by the Youth Thriving Through Learning Fund (YTL).
