A joint City of Chula Vista and Southwestern College-led task force in October released a research white paper outlining academic disciplines that could be established at the City’s University Innovation District to attract binational higher education partners.
The report also laid a path to further study a governance and financing structure for the district.
The research paper for the University Now Initiative culminates a year-long process funded by Chula Vista and state legislative dollars and builds upon efforts dating back to 1993 to expand higher education and workforce opportunities in South County.
The report, prepared by the San Diego Regional Policy & Innovation Center, took a multi-pronged approach that included conducting a workforce and academic needs assessment to identify nine academic disciplines that meet current and future workforce needs. These disciplines also reflect binational, regional and academic demands, and articulate with existing transfer programs at Southwestern College. The academic areas also feed into the California State University and University of California systems and university programs in Tijuana.
“This gives us a clear roadmap to create an effective institution of higher education in Chula Vista,” said Chula Vista Mayor John McCann in a press release. “It takes the research and efforts conducted over the decades for an outline to build a thriving higher education ecosystem in South County. With robust feedback and input from every area of our community, we can strengthen existing educational pathways and incubate ones that will serve our future workforce needs.”
The nine academic disciplines and associated programs identified were:
Health Sciences
Public Health
Education
Engineering
Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence
Public Administration & Public Policy
Conservation and Resource Studies
Marketing Analytics
Film & Media Arts
These academic areas were identified through focus groups and surveys conducted with regional employers from Orange County to Baja California and 1,000 San Diego County residents. All efforts were made in consultation with university partners and faculty research.
To read the full report, visit https://bit.ly/48xfEL5.
