Project Title
Mentorship: Bridging the AI Gap for an Evolving STEM Workforce for DoD STEM + NSF TIP
Project Leader
Name: Kevin Clark
Email: kevinclark@dakarfoundation.org
Job title: Executive Director, Steering Committee Member CJF Team Members
Name: Valorie Jones
Email: valorie@storyfile.com
Job title: CTO, StoryFile
Name: Munir Muhamud
Email: Munir@hartbeat.com
Job title: General Manager Hartbeat Studios
Title, Principal Investigator, and Lead Organization
• Digital Mentorship: Bridging the AI Gap for an Evolving STEM Workforce
• Kevin Clark, Executive Officer
• Dakar Foundation, a nonprofit corporation with 501 (C)(3) status. Dakar publishes transcribed notes from its board meetings.
Established in 1996, Dakar Foundation contributes to California public education by preparing at-risk youths in Los Angeles County for careers, often driven by AI and automation. Whereas AI can obstruct at-risk youths in their struggle merely to survive, Dakar harnesses the power of AI to mentor them (apprentices). For over 30 years, Dakar has helped young people 16 to 24 years old get the chance to live good lives. Without apprenticeship programs that nonprofits like Dakar offer, our vulnerable service population has significantly fewer opportunities to obtain viable, often digitally nuanced careers.
Dakar Foundation collaborates with the Los Angeles County Office of Education, LAUSD Black Student Achievement Plan, Los Angeles Regional Consortium (LARC) to help employers find skilled, talented workers from local and diverse underserved communities. Dakar also supports its own performing arts component. Partnering with Cal State University Entertainment Alliance (CSUEA), Dakar provides employers with qualified, talented workers.
Dakar Foundation is a longstanding member of the CSUEA Advisory Council for the entertainment arts comprising media spokespersons, leading studios, and independent companies. The council supports California State University in developing mutually beneficial industry partnerships among Dakar apprentices who meet and exceed our career development standards. Dakar has recently been added to Los Angeles nSync Network to collaborate with the Port of Los Angeles, LAX and the City and County of Los Angeles Economic Development Infrastructure Initiatives.
Region / Community-of-Practice
Los Angeles County, (88 Counties)
Workshop Approach and Topics
Goal 1. Examine the role of Greater Los Angeles in strengthening innovation ecosystems (stresses flow of technology and information among people, enterprises, and institutions is key to innovation, necessitating interactions between stakeholders to turn ideas into processes and products). Our history of hosting workshops provides unassailable evidence that collaborating through conversation to discover and define issues about intersecting STEAM, AI, and creative sectors within Greater Los Angeles would lead to positive outcomes translatable to the national conversation in the fall.
Goal 2. Support the continued competitiveness of U.S. industries involved in the creative sector, which are encountering disruption due to innovations in artificial intelligence (AI) and other emerging technologies:
• Establish collaborative networks: Encourage collaboration between creative industries, research institutions, and technology companies by establishing formal networks, partnerships, and innovation hubs.
• Seek Funding and grants: Provide funding and grants specifically aimed at supporting collaborative projects between the creative sector and applied R&D in science and engineering.
• Partner with industry-academia: Facilitate partnerships between universities, research institutions, and creative industries to support joint research projects, internships, and knowledge exchange programs.
• Train and educate professionals in the creative sector with essential skills and knowledge in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEAM). Moreover, provide scientists and engineers with opportunities to explore creative processes, design thinking, and storytelling techniques.
• Encourage policy support: Implement policies that incentivize collaboration, innovation, and investment in the creative sector and applied R&D.
Goal 3. Develop novel strategies to expand and diversify the STEAM workforce by engaging practical applications at the intersection of technology, innovation, and creativity:
1. Improving sustainability, relevance, and impact of innovation in the innovation ecosystems in Greater Los Angeles through integration of the study, reception, production, and preservation of culture.
2. Supporting translational research in the humanities and arts, applying their knowledge to evolve working methods that address societal and economic challenges, enable technology discovery and deployment, and preserve, sustain, and enhance the fields themselves.
3. Broadening participation in applied STEAM research to include creative industries and cultural organizations. Address varied resources; develop mutual benefit frameworks; develop support cross-disciplinary skills; and offer impact evidence on diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEAM.
4. Strengthening U.S. creative industry participation in collaborative technology research with academia, non-profit, and other industries to sustain and enhance global competitiveness in the sector.
5. Supporting new, innovative forms of entrepreneurship with culture specific models.
Dakar abides by providing a safe, harassment-free workshop environment; a method for recording and resolving complaints; and a plan for disseminating this information. (Dakar policies are consonant with Chapter XI.A.1.g of NSF Proposals and Awards Policies and Procedures Guide.)
Deliverables. If awarded funding, the Dakar workshop, upon having hosted the workshop, will provide deliverables to the California Jobs First phase 2 of the Catalyst Grant Implementation
6. A draft set of notes and attendee list immediately at workshop completion to support planning for the national convening.
7. Participants’ session proposals for the national convening.
8. An after-action-review report to be released to the public, a video recording, and a Vlog.
9. An opt-in list of participants and contact information for further communications.
Dakar will implement a mechanism to generate session proposals for Department of Defense national outreach. The workshop activities will provide topic and idea data for session proposals.
Organizing Committee
• PI (Principal Investigator). Kevin Clark will assume this role. He will spearhead the workshop to ensure workshop success through overall planning and execution. Using his relevant experience, Clark will use his research and leadership skills to bring experts together through his role as an elected steering committee member of California Jobs First, and as an ambassador of the Mayor of LA’s 5-Year Workforce Strategy for the City of Los Angeles.
• Collaborative Faculty. They will confer their diverse backgrounds, including different research areas or interdisciplinary fields, on the workshop. Collaborative faculty will develop workshop content and lead specific discussion sessions.
• External Speakers/Participants. Dakar will approach recognized leaders in STEAM, AI, science, and Opportunity Youth, and Workforce Development Boards.
• Department Administrative Staff. Administrative staff members will help with logistics. Handling workshop administrative tasks, they will: (1) coordinate logistics (venue, travel arrangements, etc.); (2) manage communication with participants; and (3) handle budget and financial matters.
• Reviewers and Evaluators. Although not part of the core team, external reviewers will evaluate the workshop proposal during the grant application process. Their expertise will vet the quality and relevance of proposed workshops. Their responsibilities include assessing the proposal’s merit and providing feedback for improvement.
• Participants. Workshop participants include scholars, researchers, practitioners, and opportunity Youth. They attend sessions, participate in them, and promote the workshop’s success. Participants participate in sessions; (2) network with other attendees; and (3) apply workshop insights.
Participants
Dakar will host up to 200 participants, including STEAM experts, community nonprofit representatives, human resources experts, pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship technicians, Opportunity Youth and the seven Los Angeles County workforce development boards. Dakar will contact all participants by telephone, in-person visits, or email. Dakar will also conduct outreach to Opportunity Youth, who have no means of communication. Assembling people of immense vocational and cultural diversity promotes livelier conversations and creativity. Dakar will invite Department of Defense representatives and NSF as observers/participants to be part of the network connected by Frame i.o
Venue, Date, and Logistics
HartBeat Studio LA the first Friday of every month. For a one hour lunch and learn distributed via Dakar Over The Top Network distributed on Roku TV, Amazon Fire Tv, Samsung TV, and Youtube Live. Workshop attendees will participate in person an online. The agenda will be divided into two tracks: community and skills. The first track will gather disparate groups to discuss core issues in AI and education. This will help participants identify and collaborate on solutions. The second track will provide an introduction to AI skills and applications for both job seekers and job hirers.
Policy & Community
Challenges in AI Ethics: How to ensure AI is fair, balanced and accessible to all.
Speaker: Jay Tucker, Director UCLA MEMES, https://www.anderson.ucla.edu/about/centers/center-for-management-ofenterprise-in-media-entertainment-and-sports/tucker
Fostering Mentorship: What makes a good mentor? How can technology empower existing mentors to reach a wider audience?
Speakers: Jeffrey Thompson, Professor, USC Annenberg, Los Angeles County Workforce Dev. Board, SVP Oracle https://www.linkedin.com/in/jthompsonusc143/
AI in Government: How leaders can utilize AI to connect with constituents with resources. Speakers: LAEDC, California Jobs First (5) Industry Table Leads.
AI Education: How can AI facilitate counselors, teachers and students? Explore the role of traditional schools, non-traditional apprentice programs and continuing education.
Speakers: Anna Marie Piersimoni, Cal State Northridge, New Direction In Media
Panel: Entertainment Industry: How is AI affecting contracts/unions?
Speakers: Union representatives, actors, VFX artists and engineers. What lessons can we learn from previous technology failures? For example, the computer graphics revolution of the1990s. How can actors, writers, film-makers leverage new technology while preserving their creative power and livelihood?
Skills & Applications
Public Tools for AI Productivity (USC Institute for Creative Technologies) Explain how to use generative AI and large language models to increase productivity.
AI for Digital DEI (Valorie Jones,StoryFile) https://www.linkedin.com/in/val-jones7100a38/ Interact with DEI experts and civil rights leaders through AI conversational video, featuring DoD historical interviews and civil rights leader such as Andrew Young. https://storyfile.com/gallery/andrew-young/
AI Classroom: AI in Film Production
Using AI tools for script writing, video production and post-production.
Diversity of Participation
Dakar would conduct outreach inviting potential attendees one at a time to attend a workshop that emphasizes AI’s ability to enlist their unique cultural identity. The possibility of better future work (and thus survival) would add fuel to our overtures. Opportunity Youth population, 16 to 24 years old, often copes with poverty, homelessness, the legal system, racism, discrimination, and an unusually oppressive lack of access to computer technology. These youths are among our key stakeholders. Other stakeholders include computer scientists, programmers, and human resources experts who must reconfigure policies that accommodate relentless technological innovations.
Outreachers would approach both genders, the LGBTQ, and ethnic caches throughout Greater Los Angeles. Dakar would also invite Los Angeles County pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship programs in digital media entertainment already employed in digitally nuanced jobs to share their unique perspective. Los Angeles County Office of Education, LAUSD, LARC, and CSUEA benefit from Dakar’s help, so Dakar would invite their workshop attendance and referrals to youth-attendees. Dakar will, of course, invite physically and mentally challenged Angelinos between 16 and 24. Dakar staff advertise the workshop online and on bulletin board postings.
Intellectual Merit
The rich, diverse culture of Greater Los Angeles can play a vital role in strengthening its innovative ecosystems vis-à-vis AI, STEAM and computer technology. Cultural diversity, heritage and creativity can contribute to STEAM and AI. Dakar’s proven Department of Labor and State of California Department of Division Standards pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship strategies have mentored young Angelinos to use their creativity productively. Given the chance, at-risk youths can create or amplify digital cultural platforms, inspiring STEAM research and innovation.
Awarded funding, made available to qualified youths, can finance education in the arts and thus nurture creativity and innovation that potentially benefit the next generation of STEAM professionals. Programs that integrate arts into STEAM curriculum, such as STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) initiatives, can help students develop interdisciplinary skills and perspectives. Science and creativity can work together each benefiting from what they do best and sharing their distinct kinds of expertise.
Broader Impact
10. The Dakar workshop will use conversations, survey handouts, expert explanations of success strategies to declare strategies for combining the creative sector of Greater Los Angeles with STEAM research, innovation, and/or workforce development.
11. Through workshop collaboration, Dakar will develop actionable strategies to leverage STEAM research, innovation, and workforce development by establishing ongoing communication among STEAM and AI experts with professional artists. Artist creativity will identify where STEAM and artistic sectors intersect, which would lead to actionable strategies that improve and leverage the skill and power of all stakeholders involved.
12. The Dakar workshops will specifically focus on engaging stakeholders whose professional work intersects with traditional skills and crafts often creative in nature. By bridging these seemingly disparate domains, stakeholders can unlock new opportunities for innovation and creativity. Through case studies, hands-on workshops, and expert-led discussions, participants will explore how emerging technologies can complement and enhance traditional artistry especially ethnic art from Greater Los Angeles leading to novel solutions and products.
Citations
13. Introduction A. Overview of Dakar Foundation's 20 year journey to build and design a creative tech apprenticeship program pipeline B. Purpose of the workshop to showcase new tools such as generative AI's impact on leveling the playing field for access and compositeness in economic/sustainable opportunities for people of color /opportunity youth in the new Hollywood career pathways.
II. Background A. History of the program B. Participants and demographics C. Goals and objectives, struggles to succeed, sustainability without support from academic institutions and industry. Grit and determination from entrepreneurship and OVERCOMING marginalization from government programs that overlooked grassroot efforts for opportunity youth constituency for 20 years of direct service.
14. Mentorship Best Practices A. Importance of mentorship in the program B. Strategies for effective mentorship C. Success stories of mentorship in the program. Silicon Beach/USC TO UCLA DIGITAL PATHWAY INITIATIVE STRATEGY UNDERGIRDING.
15. Alumni Showcase A. Screening of documentary featuring alumni, teachers, and mentors B. Testimonials from alumni about their experiences in the program C. Highlighting the successes of alumni in the creative tech industry
16. Evolution of the Creative Tech Industry A. Overview of the changes in the industry over the past 10 years B. Discussion on the migration of tools, hardware, and software C. Opportunities for apprentices to leverage new technologies in building portfolios
17. Addressing Workforce Silos A. Challenges faced by opportunity youth in Workforce B. Strategies for breaking through workforce silos C. How the program empowers underprivileged youth to succeed in the industry and in life.
18. Conclusion A. Recap of key takeaways from the workshop B. Call to action for supporting opportunity youth in the creative tech industry C. Next steps for the
program and its participants using AI tools, AGI Super Intelligence, Quantum.gov to become force-multipliers in braiding strategies such as open-source collaboration projects ASWF, and incubators and Accelerators backed by programs such; DOD MANPOWER, DOD DIVERSITY, DOL APPRENTICESHIP, SIGGRAPH as LAEDC California Jobs First , the Governors Department Of Apprentice Standards, Department of Rehabilitation, the DoD , UARC's , CSUEA , UCLA MEMES , SILO CLOUD , HBCF , MOBILE WORLD CONGRESS, LARC, SBWIB, LA COUNTY DTD, LA COUNTY EOC, LA EWDB , AME , LAUSD , AT&T , MICROSOFT BLACKBELT , CONAXION. , and The California Youth Opportunity Grant Alliance, Microsoft Black Philanthropy, Microsoft Black Belt, Jon Weisner
Amended Citations
19. Introduction A. Overview of Dakar Foundation's 20 year journey to build and design a creative tech apprenticeship program pipeline B. Purpose of the workshop to showcase new tools such as generative AI's impact on leveling the playing field for access and compositeness in economic/sustainable opportunities for people of color/opportunity youth in the new Hollywood career pathways.
20. Background A. History of the program B. Participants and demographics C. Goals and objectives, struggles to succeed, sustainability without support from academic institutions and industry. Grit and determination from entrepreneurship and overcoming marginalization from government programs that overlooked grassroot efforts for opportunity youth constituencies for 20 years of direct service.
21. Mentorship Best Practices A. Importance of mentorship in the program B. Strategies for effective mentorship C. Success stories of mentorship in the program. Silicon Beach/USC TO UCLA DIGITAL PATHWAY INITIATIVE STRATEGY UNDERGIRDING. BROWNBAG TV and Hamilton High Blog
