AI program part of comprehensive workforce development strategy
El Camino College is offering a new degree and certificate programs to prepare its students for a rapidly transforming economy, President Dr. Brenda Thames announced during her 7th Annual State of the College address Friday, on November 14.
The new degree will be for Artificial Intelligence. ECC is one of just eight California community colleges selected to participate in the National Applied Artificial Intelligence Consortium’s Mentorship Program.
The AI initiative represents the centerpiece of El Camino’s broader strategy to create “clear, defined pathways to jobs in some of the fastest-growing industries in the South Bay,” Thames told attendees, who included South Bay industry leaders and ECC Foundation supporters.
According to the World Economic Forum’s 2025 Future of Jobs Report cited by Thames, AI will impact 92 million jobs while simultaneously creating 170 million new positions — a net gain that mirrors previous technological revolutions.
“Think computers, cellphones, and the explosion of the internet,” Thames said. “All of these shifts in the workplace created new jobs, new skills, and new opportunities.”
The World Economic Forum projects that by 2030, the workforce will be “well on our way to being AI natives,” Thames noted.
El Camino is already integrating AI into existing programs, particularly in cybersecurity — the most popular program in its Computer Information Systems department. Students use AI to build cybersecurity toolkits, analyze digital forensics, and understand AI’s role in the information security environment.
Blue Economy opportunities
In addition to AI programs, Thames outlined ambitious initiatives in the “Blue Economy” — sustainable ocean resource development. El Camino students are deploying underwater drones through the college’s robotics program to map underwater dump sites that threaten the ocean’s food chain and expose humans to toxic substances.
These robotic drones can dive to 1,000 feet and will soon have industrial arms that students will be certified to operate, positioning them for jobs in the emerging ocean robotics industry. According to the Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation’s Blue Economy Report, this sector’s value will double over the next decade, reaching a projected global value of $3 trillion by 2030.
El Camino recently secured a $12 million performance-based contract from the U.S. Navy as part of efforts to develop California’s maritime and defense industrial base. The college is a member of the California Shipbuilding Ecosystems Alliance (CalSEA), a consortium working to expand shipbuilding supply chain capability and capacity.
El Camino is the only college in California with a dedicated robotics program, Thames noted.
Data science and manufacturing initiatives
The college is in the second year of implementing a $597,000 National Science Foundation grant to build a data science program, offering professional development for faculty, and producing a curriculum. The grant pays for partnerships to area high school partners and local companies and data science professionals.
“Skilled computer scientists and analysts are in high demand due to the growing use of data in virtually all aspects of life,” Thames said.
El Camino has secured two Industry Driven Regional Collaborative grants — one to develop a certificate program in Applied Artificial Intelligence for Advanced Manufacturing, and another supporting an eight-week multitrack STEM pre-apprenticeship program in engineering technology, machine tool technology, artificial intelligence, and climate and green technologies.
“According to the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation, manufacturing currently employs over 420,000 workers in the Los Angeles basin, with average wages higher than the combined average of all industries. Real wages in manufacturing grew 13.4 percent over the past decade,” Thames said.
Healthcare and biotechnology
The college is also addressing healthcare workforce needs through a new Sterile Processing Technician Certificate program developed in partnership with Torrance Memorial Medical Center. According to the American Hospital Association’s 2025 Environmental Scan, demand for sterile processing technicians is expected to grow five percent by 2033.
In biotechnology, El Camino offers an Associate of Science degree and two certificates of achievement, preparing students for entry-level positions in an industry employing more than 82,000 people in California with an average salary of $111,000, according to the Biocom California 2024 Life Science Economic Impact Report.
Internships
Through a collaboration with NexusEdge, five El Camino students recently received internship offers from Google — representing 11 percent of the 45 positions offered statewide.
Last summer, El Camino launched Intern South Bay in partnership with the South Bay Workforce Investment Board. The partnership paid, eight-week internships for 17 students in legal services, media, communications, journalism, education, and film production.
Aerospace and defense partnerships
El Camino’s partnerships with Northrop Grumman and SpaceX have led to development of the Space and Cyber Talent Development Center. Last fall, the El Camino staff attended NASA’s STEM Workforce Summit at Kennedy Space Center.
Aerospace and defense industries pay 41 percent more in wages and benefits than the national average, with four out of five aerospace workers residing in Southern California, according to the Los Angeles Regional Consortium. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 10-year industry growth exceeding 30 percent, with jobs expected to grow six percent between 2022-2032.
“Career paths in guided missile and space vehicle propulsion and parts manufacturing grew an incredible 702 percent between 2017 and 2022,” Thames said.
Thames emphasized that the college’s initiatives reflect close collaboration with industry partners, including apprenticeships, internships, and mentoring.
“El Camino College will continue to anticipate, and collaborate with South Bay employers to ensure we are developing programs that address their needs,” Thames assured her audience.
[Editor’s note: This story was generated by Claude AI (Anthropic) from a transcript of El Camino College President Brenda Thames’ 2025 State of the College address, delivered Friday, November 14 at El Camino. The story was edited by Easy Reader editor Kevin Cody.] ER
