University Now
Initiative:
Planning for a Thriving
Higher Education
Ecosystem
Community Engagement Session
Source: Pew Research Center
Need for Higher Education
Chula Vista is committed to creating a University-Innovation District to meet the high demand for a quality, accessible four-year education within the City and across the State and to address inequities in higher education that are prevalent in communities of color. 2,500,000
State Education Deficit
Deficit of 1 million bachelor’s
degree holders by 2030
Deficit of 1.5 million skilled
workers by 2025
Chula Vista is the only
city in California with a
population over 200k that
does not have a four-year
nonprofit or state
university
Site Location
The City-owned 383 acres of University-
Innovation District Property is located at the
terminus of Eastlake Parkway at the Hunte
Parkway intersection, south of Millenia. The
University-Innovation District is conveniently
located:
● Within a walkable pedestrian paradise
near the Otay Ranch Town Center, Millenia
and other dining and retail options.
● 0.5 miles to the SR-125 which the City and
SANDAG are working to remove tolls from.
● Accessible public transit options with
quick access to the BRT event 15-minutes.
● 2 miles from the Olympic Training Center.
● 7 miles from the US-Mexico border.
The university property is surrounded by
community amenities such as miles of trails
and greenbelts. 160 acres of open space and
the lower Otay Reservoir.
Expanding the Ecosystem of Higher Education
● Southwestern College
○ 2-year degrees
○ Certificates
○ Workforce Education (stackable certificates)
○ New potential to offer limited baccalaureate degree(s) ○ Binational pathways (AB-91)
○ University Partners
Current higher education ecosystem
Expanding the Ecosystem of Higher Education
HOW
DO WE
EXPAND?
Academic
programming will
drive university
expansion into
South County
efforts
Academic Program Planning
A rich ecosystem of higher
education that includes local and
binational pathways to a robust
offering of certificate, 2-year,
4-year, and graduate degrees in
South County.
A skilled workforce ready for the
quality job opportunities of the
future.
● Industry-Driven
● Mapping future workforce > degree needs >
universities with academic program expansion
opportunities due to impaction
● Oversee the work:
UNI Committee
● Outcome / Deliverables
Academic
Program Planning
UNI Committee:
Strengthening
Transfer Pathways
● Identify resources/support needed to strengthen
priority programs identified
● Consider ability to offer baccalaureate degree and
resources/support needed if a priority program is
appropriately identified
● (new addition) partner with university faculty
through academic senate or priority programs
Faculty Research Workgroup:
Study Deliverables
A vetted list of
university programs
for expansion mapped
to specific opportunity
(i.e. city land, SWC
university center, etc.)
Final report with
recommendations to
Joint University Task
Force, City Council,
and SWC Governing
Board
Legislative White Paper
with recommendations
to support university
expansion submitted to
legislative delegation
1 2 3
Workforce & Academic
Program Needs
Assessment Research
● Methodology for mapping workforce > degrees needed > to university programming
● Recommended short-list of universities for targeted outreach and recruitment into higher education ecosystem
● Recommended strengthened or new pathways for transfer ● Not limited to undergraduate degrees (graduate,
extension/industry certificate programs, etc)
● Inclusive of binational workforce and educational needs Other considerations
The San Diego Regional Policy & Innovation Center (PIC) is a partnership between The San Diego Foundation, the County of San Diego, and the world’s leading think tank – The Brookings Institution – to conduct research and policy analysis and help solve the region’s biggest problems.
UNI: Priority Sectors | Priority Jobs | Priority Academic Programs
MISSION STATEMENT
By empowering our binational region's distinctive potential, we envision a vibrant ecosystem of innovation and higher education opportunities and collaboration. Our mission is to be a catalyst for diversified excellence in career-readiness and a driver of economic vitality and mobility, all while honoring our uniqueness and nurturing a thriving binational region.
Priority Sectors
(SDREDC)
Advanced
Manufacturing
Business Talent Healthcare Information and
Communication
Technologies
Life Sciences
Priority Jobs
(SDRPIC)
w/o local academic
program
Industrial
Engineers
Material
Engineers &
Scientists
Labor Relations
Specialists
Insurance
Underwriters
Clinical Lab
Technologists &
Technicians
Recreational
Therapists
Software
Assurance
Analysts &
Testers
Database
Administrators
Nuclear
Engineers
Food Scientists &
Technologists
Priority Academic
Programs (SDRPIC)
*unmet regional need
based on the National
Center for Education
Statistics crosswalk
Industrial
Engineering
Textile Science
Human Resource
Management /
Dispute Resolution
Actuarial Science
Cell/Cellular
Biology and
Histology
Therapeutic
Recreation/Recreat
ional Therapy
Informatics
Data
Modeling/Warehou
sing and Database
Administration
Nuclear
Engineering
Agriculture
Example
• UNI Committee Development
• Commencement of Research
Scope and Academic Degrees
Mapping
• UNI Committee
Kick-off Meeting
JUL
2023
AUG
2023
SEPT
2023
OCT
2023
NOV
2023
UNI: Where We Are and Where We Are Going?
NOV 2023
JAN 2024
FEB
2024
MAR-JUN
2024
JUN
2024
AUG
2024
• Regional Jobs and Education
Survey of Residents
• Future Workforce Needs
Survey to Businesses
• Conclusion of Research and
Academic Degrees Mapping
• Second UNI Committee
Meeting and Release of
Research Findings
• Third UNI Committee Meeting
• Development of Site
Assessment Tool Preparation
for Site Visits
• Fourth UNI Committee
Meeting
• Drafting of White Paper
• Compiling Surveys and
Analysis of Findings
• Community Engagement
Sessions
• Industry and Education
Community Listening
Sessions
• Site Visits to University
Campuses
• Final UNI
Committee
Meeting
• Release of the
White Paper
MISSION STATEMENT
By empowering our binational region's distinctive potential, we envision a vibrant ecosystem of innovation and higher education opportunities and collaboration. Our mission is to be a catalyst for diversified excellence in career-readiness and a driver of economic vitality and mobility, all while honoring our uniqueness and nurturing a thriving binational region.
Watch Live! Building our Future
QUESTIONS