cq9�ټ���

Purposefully creating California’s first public boarding school on a former shopping plaza site will transform a vacant lot, bringing opportunity to at-risk youth and creating a brighter future for a historically marginalized Los Angeles community.

The 1992 Los Angeles uprising, which began after a jury acquitted police officers in the brutal beating of Rodney King, resulted in a shopping plaza being burned to the ground at Vermont and Manchester Avenues in south Los Angeles.

Now, after standing vacant for 30 years, it is being transformed into the home of the (SEED LA), a college-preparatory, public boarding school focusing on career readiness for students to prepare them for careers in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) sectors, as well as transportation and infrastructure which are in demand in the area. This coming semester, the school will open its doors for the first time to welcome the founding cohort of SEED LA students.

Built through a public-private partnership, the 4.2-acre lot now represents a new and positive era for children in the neighborhood who can benefit from improved access and equity to advanced schooling opportunities. It also represents a source of pride and renewed hope for a man that worked with youth in that same neighborhood through programs offered by the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), including multiple years of the where local children were transported into nearby mountains for a weekend of exposure and education on what it takes to become an engineer and how to prepare for this career path.

Along with many others in NSBE, cq9�ټ���’ Vice President Jeffery Dingle worked throughout this neighborhood in the late 1980s and early 1990s, tutoring and mentoring Black students while finishing his civil engineering studies, beginning his career with the California Department of Transportation, and designing foundations for bridges being constructed along the I-110 Harbor Freeway, just east of SEED LA’s location. 

Jeffery’s barber shop of choice was in that mall that burned during the uprising. This is the neighborhood where Jeffery chose to begin a life of “lifting while climbing” as he worked with young men and women that looked like him and had similar life experiences but didn’t have access to the same opportunities that he had.

“With an annual infrastructure construction spend between $12B and $20B during the next 10 years and a projected regional labor shortage, it’s easy to see how this investment in the SEED School of LA County will help build a pipeline of professionals needed to meet the demand,” explains Williams.

“SEED LA will allow students to gain firsthand experience on infrastructure projects improving their lives, their communities, and producing the next generation of professionals,” he concluded.

As part of this overall economic renewal project, there will be 180 units of affordable housing, community-serving retail, a transportation-focused job training center, and a mobility hub. cq9�ټ��� is engaged in the planning of the station and transportation hub.

As the centerpiece of LA Metro’s larger Workforce Development Initiative (), establishing the SEED LA school on this neglected lot in south LA will help prepare young people for exciting careers in transportation and other STEM sectors.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell is excited about the future. “SEED LA isn’t just a school, it’s the manifestation of a shared commitment to investing in our community and preparing our young people for careers in STEM and transportation that will shape the future of LA County,” she says. “We’re committed to making sure SEED LA has the necessary financial resources to build this important infrastructure.”

At cq9�ټ���, we’re thrilled to play a small part in providing access to advanced education, creating a more equitable future for students while benefiting the broader community. to learn more about the SEED school movement and the new SEED LA School opening this September.