Every week, ‘Good News of the Week’ features a curation of positive headlines from San Diego, delivered straight to your inbox. A blend of aggregated stories from San Diego’s most trusted news sources and original EDC-created content, GNOTW provides a comprehensive recap of the region’s best stories from the past week. GNOTW is sponsored by Manpower.
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For the week of January 3, 2025, here’s what we’re reading:
EDC designates San Diego’s top computing, engineering, business programs
In 2024, together with industry, EDC recognized 28 Verified Programs best preparing students for careers in computing, engineering, and business. As part of our Advancing San Diego initiative, local companies are invited to host fully-funded summer interns from these programs.
Rain or shine, Good News of the Week hit your inbox every Friday afternoon this year, offering a fresh dose of positivity as you headed off into each weekend. Sifting through the noise, EDC delivers more than 45 editions annually filled with San Diego stories worth celebrating. Below, we round up the top stories of 2024–and look forward to curating more Good News with you in 2025.
See what San Diego accomplished in Good News of the Year:
Growing and planting roots in San Diego
In 2024, on-trend with San Diego’s global reputation, the region welcomed newcomers and celebrated the growth of locals in life sciences, technology, and more. Some highlights include:
Year after year, San Diego proves to be a birthplace of innovation and R&D that catches the eyes–and investments–of firms around the world. Here are some of our region’s standout acquisitions and IPOs in 2024:
Bristol Myers Squibb acquires RayzeBio for striking $4.1B
Ranked a #5 ecosystem for venture capital in the U.S., San Diego startups secured more than $4.37 billion in the first three quarters, up $270 million from 2023, with more to come by year’s end. Top raises include:
San Diego is home to renowned educational institutions, community colleges, and training programs preparing our future workforce. Couple that with the #1 inflow of college-educated residents in the nation and we’re a force to be reckoned with. Education wins from 2024 include:
Boasting acclaimed research institutions, brilliant researchers, and life-changing companies, San Diego ranked among the top 10 innovation clusters worldwide. See the region’s top headlines in innovation:
Once considered a sleepy beach town in the shadow of our California peer metros, it’s now impossible to deny the region’s standing on the global stage. In 2024, wins include:
Home to the largest concentration of military assets in the world, San Diego’s defense cluster is critical to advancing the nation’s security priorities. In 2024, U.S. defense spending boosted San Diego’s GRP by 12.2 percent and the cluster supported 373,519 jobs. Local industry announcements include:
San Diego was proudly named the greenest city in the U.S.—and our employers and anchor institutions made the investments to back it up. Top ‘green’ wins include:
SDG&E awards $1M in grants to local environmental organizations
San Diego Foundation, San Diego Community Power, Calpine award more than $1.2M in clean energy project grants
Ranked the #2 premier destination in the U.S. by Condé Nast, San Diego’s pride in sports, travel, and entertainment outshines even the region’s sunny weather. Fandom in 2024:
Pandas return to the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance
San Diego’s good news is EDC’s good news. With and through our investors, our year in review includes support to 138 local companies, more than $96 million in new international sales growth since 2015 through WTCSD programs, 28 new Verified Programs of Talent, and much more.
To fill talent gaps, regional employers vet training curriculum aligned to industry needs
Together with more than 80 industry representatives, San Diego Regional EDC is proud to announce Advancing San Diego’s newest Verified Programs of 2024: 28 education programs from 15 different institutions that are best preparing students for jobs in computing, engineering, and business.
These programs earned a three-year verification status through a rigorous evaluation process led byAdvancing San Diego, the flagship program of EDC’s Talent Initiatives, which serves to double the production of skilled workers in San Diego while prioritizing historically underrepresented populations in the innovation economy.
San Diego and the nation are grappling with a critical talent supply and demand challenge. Since 2017, San Diego County has experienced a 1.3 percent decline in its working-age population even as jobs have increased by 3.1 percent, intensifying competition for skilled talent. Additionally, 83,000 more jobs now require a bachelor’s degree than in 2016, underscoring the growing demand for advanced training and education alongside skill-based hiring practices.
At the same time, demographic shifts are reshaping the future workforce. More than 70 percent of San Diego’s K-12 students are people of color, a group that has historically faced systemic barriers to accessing high-wage, high-demand careers. These changes present an opportunity—and an imperative—to invest in training programs that equip local, diverse populations for the region’s most in-demand careers. By expanding access to quality post-secondary education and training, the region can build an inclusive talent pipeline that supports both economic growth and equity in San Diego’s innovation economy.
“The numbers are clear; the region cannot fill its talent gaps unless we open doors for more San Diegans. Our Advancing San Diego work is part of the solution—connecting industry to vetted local education programs that they might not yet be recruiting from. This new roster, which includes universities, community colleges, adult schools, and more, offers employers a go-to for sourcing qualified and diverse talent, and arms training programs with the boots-on-the-ground intel needed to shape the curricula of the future,” said Taylor Dunne, Director of Talent Initiatives at San Diego Regional EDC.
How programs are verified
Employers met with and vetted applicants’ curriculum at EDC’s ‘Reaching Tomorrow’s Talent’ event on November 13, which brought together more than 150businesses, educational programs, and community organizations working to close talent gaps by aligning education with industry needs.
Status as a Verified Program indicates five critical elements:
Alignment of educational curriculum with industry requisites of necessary hard skills (ex: coding)
Alignment of educational curriculum with industry requisites of necessary soft skills (ex: problem solving)
Continuous engagement with industry
Ability to reach and serve a diverse student population
Proven history of collaboration along the education continuum and with critical community organizations
By participating in the process, local training programs get an inside look at the most critical skill expectations for students coming out of their programs and begin to explore how those expectations will change as technology and artificial intelligence evolve.
“Poway Adult School is excited be recognized as an Advancing San Diego Verified Program. We believe that further developing industry partnerships, encouraging reflection on learning objectives, and aligning with the needs of local industries will help set our students up for success as they enter the workforce,” said Kathleen Porter, Executive Director of Career Technical, Adult, and Alternative Education at Poway Unified School District.
“By equipping students with the skills needed to thrive, we help them transition successfully into the workforce. EDC’s Talent Demand data is an invaluable tool that allows us to align our programs with the skills students need to launch new careers,” said Elizabeth O’Shea-West, Principal at Vista Adult School.
The 28 programs verified in this round represent more than 79,500 students across San Diego and Imperial Counties, and join a roster of others across key industries including Healthcare, Business, and Life Sciences. Last done in 2020, 10 programs were re-verified while Advancing San Diego welcomed 18 newly verified programs.
hire summer interns at no cost
With the new designation comes the opportunity for students to take advantage of paid work-based learning experiences. In conjunction with the Border Region Talent Pipeline K-16 Collaborative, companies in San Diego and Imperial Counties are invited to apply by February 28, 2025 to host funded computing, engineering, and/or business interns for the summer of 2025, sourced exclusively from the Verified Programs roster. In 2024, 322 interns were placed at 104 local companies, up from 48 interns placed in 2023, and creating an invaluable bridge between education and industry in high-growth, high-wage fields. Learn more and complete the interest form here.
“I was drawn to this internship program because of my commitment to social mobility and reducing socioeconomic gaps. Companies have a pivotal role in building a more equitable future, especially by empowering the next generation of talent. My favorite part about working with the Advancing San Diego interns at ChakraTech has been their contagious enthusiasm and unwavering dedication to the work,” said Ravi Chawla, founder and CEO of ChakraTech, a 2024 summer intern host.
Learn more at advancingSD.org and explore Verified Programs for other industry clusters here.
Every week, ‘Good News of the Week’ features a curation of positive headlines from San Diego, delivered straight to your inbox. A blend of aggregated stories from San Diego’s most trusted news sources and original EDC-created content, GNOTW provides a comprehensive recap of the region’s best stories from the past week. GNOTW is sponsored by ACE Parking.
Get Good News of the Week in your inbox every Friday.→ Sign up
For the week of December 13, 2024, here’s what we’re reading:
EDC’s flagship talent program Advancing San Diego successfully placed more than 350 interns in fully funded programs in 2024. As we head into the new year, companies in San Diego and Imperial Counties are again invited to apply to host paid summer interns in computing, engineering, and/or business roles in 2025—at no cost. This program is led in partnership with the Border Region Talent Pipeline K-16 Collaborative.
To celebrate and inspire the efforts of regional employers, EDC’s new Inclusive Growth blog series will highlight San Diego companies helping to drive progress on the 2030 Inclusive Growth goals.
Launched in 2018 and informed by a partnership with the Brookings Institution, the Inclusive Growth initiative sets 2030 goals for San Diego related to increasing: 1) the supply of talent, 2) quality small business jobs, and 3) newly thriving households. The goals inform San Diego’s economic priorities and make the business case for economic inclusion.
Regional talent demand remains high
To maintain economic competitiveness, the region needs 20,000 students per year completing post-secondary education within six years of graduating high school. These include certifications, career technical education, and college degrees. Progress toward the goal has increased incrementally since 2017 yet completions have shown signs of tapering; the region still falls short of the goal; and the local supply of talent continues to be a critical priority for San Diego employers.
Talent scarcity has become the new normal as hiring demand exceeds the supply of talent across industries. Compounding this challenge, student success is demographically uneven in the region. Despite making up 35 percent of the population, Hispanics and Latinos only account for 17 percent of residents over 25 years old with at least a bachelor’s degree. Critical to growing the local talent pool is creating more opportunities for Black and Latino students to succeed. Employer-led talent pipeline development efforts are critical to the future of San Diego’s economy and Booz Allen Hamilton is among those working toward a solution.
Employer-led solutions
Combining 110 years of strategic consulting expertise with the perspectives of diverse talent, Booz Allen leverages innovative solutions for its clients in defense, cybersecurity, healthcare, and energy. In the San Diego metro area, Booz Allen employs more than 1,200 people with a range of technical expertise contributing to the region’s reputation as a hub for innovation and a catalyst for groundbreaking ideas.
While San Diego has a highly educated workforce with a proportion of bachelor’s degree holders that is seven percent higher than the national average, Booz Allen is among many employers across San Diego still facing a talent scarcity challenge. A smaller talent pool makes competition for technical professionals more intense, especially as the presence of major tech companies has increased over time and local startups continue to flourish.
To help expand access and exposure to quality jobs in STEM, Booz Allen and the Booz Allen Foundation are deeply committed to supporting San Diego youth.
Here’s how the company is committing to Inclusive Growth:
For the past 10 years, Booz Allen has partnered with the USS Midway Museum to offer STEM education programming to elementary and middle school students in Southeast San Diego. This year, the Booz Allen Foundation is underwriting scholarships for 1,000 students, predominantly from Black and Latino communities.
Since 2023, the Booz Allen Foundation has provided resources to Southwest San Diego around Lincoln High School (LHS) and its surrounding community. Recognizing that schools are part of a larger ecosystem, the company supported not only LHS but also the elementary and middle schools that feed into it, along with local organizations like Girl Scouts of San Diego and MANA de San Diego with a focus on youth exposure to STEM. Last year, the Foundation supported LHS’s engineering program including its inaugural FIRST robotics team. With this support, the robotics team made the regional robotics competition, earning a spot at the FIRST international championship in Houston. For many participants, this was their first time flying, staying in a hotel, and dining at a sit-down restaurant—a truly life-changing experience. Additionally, LHS students attended the San Diego State University College of Engineering Expo, where they connected with first-generation college students thriving in STEM fields, helping them envision their own future in these careers.
The company is also a strong supporter of the Elementary Institute of Science (EIS), a Southeast San Diego-based organization that has provided equitable access to STEM since the 1960s. EIS has partnered with the Booz Allen Foundation to take its mission to new heights. Together, they are developing new AI programming and teacher training to stay ahead of rapidly changing technology, providing stipends for internships to help talented students earn money while advancing their education and careers, funding scholarships for students to attend EIS STEM camps, facilitating volunteer days to support the community, among other efforts.
Lastly, the Booz Allen Foundation is proud to support Rady Children’s Hospital’s Medical Academy, which provides high school students with valuable learning opportunities in healthcare. Through its Equity Grant, the hospital is connecting students with Booz Allen employees to explore the fundamentals of artificial intelligence (AI) and its emerging applications in healthcare. This initiative empowers students to gain exposure to cutting-edge technology, expanding their career possibilities in both healthcare and AI, and preparing them for success in these high-demand fields.
Join the movement
Progress on EDC’s 2030 Inclusive Growth goals is only achievable with and through the region’s employers who must be committed to scaling innovative and intentional solutions in San Diego. Companies like Booz Allen are helping to collectively pave the way toward a more inclusive regional economy.
Endorse the goals, and be part of the change San Diego’s economy demands
Every week, ‘Good News of the Week’ features a curation of positive headlines from San Diego, delivered straight to your inbox. A blend of aggregated stories from San Diego’s most trusted news sources and original EDC-created content, GNOTW provides a comprehensive recap of the region’s best stories from the past week. GNOTW is sponsored by ACE Parking.
Get Good News of the Week in your inbox every Friday.→ Sign up
For the week of December 6, 2024, here’s what we’re reading:
Register by Dec. 13—University of San Diego Global Seminar
Case Study: Following WTCSD trade mission, SAN launches direct flight to Amsterdam
San Diego International Airport (SAN) has long been working to expand access to continental Europe, and during World Trade Center San Diego’s 2022 trade mission to the Netherlands, SAN leveraged the opportunity to communicate San Diego’s value proposition to KLM Royal Dutch Airlines. The result: A new direct flight between San Diego and Amsterdam, starting May 2025.
Every week, ‘Good News of the Week’ features a curation of positive headlines from San Diego, delivered straight to your inbox. A blend of aggregated stories from San Diego’s most trusted news sources and original EDC-created content, GNOTW provides a comprehensive recap of the region’s best stories from the past week. GNOTW is sponsored by ACE Parking.
Get Good News of the Week in your inbox every Friday.→ Sign up
For the week of November 22, 2024, here’s what we’re reading:
Case Study: EDC quantified economic impact of San Diego’s ship repair industry
EDC’s Research Bureau conducted an economic impact report for The Port of San Diego’s Ship Repair Association, quantifying the economic impact of the region’s ship building industry. Through Master Ship Repair and Agreement of Boat Repair surveying and other research, the report revealed that shipbuilding supports more than 15,000 jobs locally.
Every week, ‘Good News of the Week’ features a curation of positive headlines from San Diego, delivered straight to your inbox. A blend of aggregated stories from San Diego’s most trusted news sources and original EDC-created content, GNOTW provides a comprehensive recap of the region’s best stories from the past week. GNOTW is sponsored by ACE Parking.
Get Good News of the Week in your inbox every Friday.→ Sign up
For the week of November 15, 2024, here’s what we’re reading:
How EDC’s funded internships help businesses connect to talent
Every year, EDC’s Advancing San Diego partners with the Border Region Talent Pipeline K-16 Collaborative to invite companies to host summer interns at no cost. In summer 2024, the program placed 358 interns at 104 companies across San Diego and Imperial Counties, helping students gain career experience and connecting businesses to tomorrow’s talent.
Advancing San Diego: Bridging education and industry
EDC’s Advancing San Diego (ASD) internship program, run in partnership with the Border Region Talent Pipeline K-16 Collaborative and Imperial Valley EDC, has transformed how students across San Diego gain early career experience, while helping local businesses address talent needs. In summer 2024, the ASD program placed 358 interns at 104 companies across San Diego and Imperial Counties, creating an invaluable bridge between education and industry in high-growth, high-wage fields like engineering, computing, and business. That’s up from 48 interns placed in summer 2023. This program plays a crucial role in addressing regional talent shortages, helping local companies access vetted, diverse talent and offering students paid, hands-on learning opportunities in high-demand industries.
Summer 2024 by the numbers
*Priority populations include low-income individuals, first-generation college students, current community college students or community college transfers, veterans and active-duty military students, and students with disabilities
Addressing the talent gap with community impact
At the heart of ASD’s mission is a commitment to reaching under-resourced communities, ensuring that students from diverse backgrounds gain valuable career experience while helping local businesses address critical talent needs. Companies apply each year by early spring to host students from Advancing San Diego Verified Programs to be interns. These Verified Programs are selected based on industry-determined criteria, including industry engagement, diversity, equity, and inclusion, as well as curriculum that teaches the most in-demand skills in computing, engineering, and business. This approach ensures that students’ skills align with evolving workforce demands, enhancing the overall impact of the internship experience.
Once companies are selected, students from Verified Programs apply for their top five preferred positions. There are not enough positions for every student, so those who identify with the program’s priority populations get preferred access to available positions, with 73 percent of the interns identifying with one or more of the priority populations this past summer. Importantly, ASD provides financial support through the K-16 Collaborative, covering competitive intern wages and saving local companies more than $2 million in payroll costs, ensuring businesses can prioritize mentorship and on-the-job training over recruitment logistics.
Real-world experience and career advancement
Every year the ASD internship program provides students with valuable work experience directly linked to their academic pursuits, equipping them with practical skills and career confidence. At the same time, EDC’s program enables companies to benefit from student contributions, with a 17 percent conversion rate of interns into full-time employees in 2024. For employers, this means reduced time spent on recruitment and a pipeline of highly motivated, well-prepared candidates who bring immediate value.
“I was drawn to this internship program because of my commitment to social mobility and reducing socioeconomic gaps. Companies have a pivotal role in building a more equitable future, especially by empowering the next generation of talent. My favorite part about working with the Advancing San Diego interns at ChakraTech has been their contagious enthusiasm and unwavering dedication to the work.”
—Ravi Chawla, founder and CEO of ChakraTech; ASD summer intern host
Is your company interested in hosting summer interns in 2025?
In conjunction with the Border Region Talent Pipeline K-16 Collaborative, companies in San Diego and Imperial Counties are invited to apply to host funded computing, engineering, and/or business interns for the summer of 2025.
Internship applicants will be sourced through Advancing San Diego’s Verified Programs, ensuring they are learning the industry’s most in-demand skills. Intern host companies will have the chance to interview and select candidates from a pre-screened pool of students. This is a great opportunity for companies to strengthen and diversify talent pipelines and fill shortages for critical jobs. Read how Rady’s Children’s Hospital leveraged an Advancing San Diego paid internship program to help solve their talent shortages. Applications due February 28, 2025.
March 6—April 18:Work Site visit by Manpower, Employer of Record (EOR). Site visits for approved in-person and hybrid sites.
April 8, 8:30 a.m.: Company onboarding session*
April 21—May 9: Companies review and interview student applicants*
June 2—June 23: Students begin internships (flexible start date)
*Intern supervisors must be available these dates.
AVAILABLE TALENT Below are sample positions, considering student ability based on Verified Program criteria. Companies will be asked to alter these job descriptions to fit their unique company needs.
