Pasadena City College’s Future of Work Conference Targets Sports Industry Boom During Centennial Year

Pasadena City College is leveraging Southern California’s flourishing sports landscape to spotlight workforce development opportunities during the College’s milestone centennial celebration this month.

The college’s sixth annual Future of Work Conference, scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 29, from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., will focus exclusively on sports and entertainment economics for the first time.

Angel City Football Club co-founder Julie Uhrman and Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation leader Stephen Cheung will headline the free half-day conference at 1570 E. Colorado Blvd.

“With the Dodgers in the World Series, women’s sports exploding across the landscape, and the 2028 Olympics on the horizon, there has never been a stronger time to talk about the role of sports and entertainment in the regional economy,” said Alex Boekelheide, PCC’s Executive Director of Public Affairs.

PCC graduates more than 4,000 students every year – skilled workers who enter the workforce directly or transfer to a four-year institution, according to Boekelheide. A recent analysis found that the college contributes nearly $680 million to the local economy, generating roughly 7,000 jobs for the West San Gabriel Valley.^[a]

“Since its founding in 1924, Pasadena City College has been a driving force in building the workforce of the San Gabriel Valley,” Boekelheide said. “It was after World War II, when American soldiers returned to college under the GI Bill, that the college energized the thriving economy that grew our region.”

At the Future of Work Conference, panelists will discuss the role of community colleges and other educational institutions in meeting the demands of this thriving economic engine, and about the unique contributions of institutions in Pasadena and the surrounding area to the Southern California sports industry.

“Through increased dialog, networking, and opportunity enhancement, our community partners and local institutions will experience greater collaboration in service of the area’s needs,” Boekelheide added.

For more about the Future of Work conference, visit https://pasadena.edu/community/economic-workforce-development/events.php.

Registration is free.