Cal State Fullerton (CSUF) and the CEO Leadership Alliance of Orange County (CLAOC) are launching a multi-year collaboration designed to develop the workforce needed to advance the region’s innovation sectors.   

Leaders from CSUF and CLAOC signed a memorandum of understanding and announced details of the initiative on Wednesday. They said the new partnership will connect the 56 leading Orange County companies that make up the CEO Leadership Alliance of Orange County with emerging talent from three CSUF colleges: Business and Economics, Engineering and Computer Science, and Health and Human Development.

Together, Cal State Fullerton and CLAOC aim to solidify Orange County’s standing as a leading destination for high-growth careers and pave a career path for students .    

The partnership will provide students with meaningful career experiences earlier in their academic journey, making the pathways clearer, more connected and more responsive to students’ career goals and Orange County’s workforce needs.

“Student success is at the heart of this partnership. By working with the CEO Leadership Alliance of Orange County, we are creating clearer pathways from education to career through mentoring, applied learning opportunities and meaningful connections with industry leaders,” said President Ronald Rochon. “These experiences help our students build the skills, confidence and networks they need to thrive, while strengthening the talent and innovation that power Orange County’s future.”

The effort will focus on growing talent and knowledge in advanced manufacturing and robotics; cybersecurity; financial and professional services; biotech and health technologies; as well as drones and navigation.  

“Our collaboration with Cal State Fullerton is instrumental in our goal to retain top young talent in Orange County,” said Mark Percy, CEO and President, CEO Leadership Alliance Orange County. “The talent is here. Good jobs are here. We just need to make sure near-to-hire students are connected to regional employers and prepared for the jobs that those employers are seeking to fill. If we can solve this, our young people will stay here to grow their careers, fueling our local economy and helping communities thrive.”  

CLAOC and CSUF have collaborated on workforce readiness programming since 2021. To date, over 100 students have participated in four joint programs, including collaborations with 20 companies, including Edwards Lifesciences, Deloitte, EY, US Bank, Ingram Micro, KP, and Rady Children’s Health.  

This newly expanded partnership will offer a sequential pathway to support students as they build their careers while creating a pipeline for area companies to connect with talented Titans who have the requisite skills to advance innovation.  

In addition, the collaboration aims to expand the number of employer-informed applied learning experiences to help CSUF students prepare for high-wage jobs in Orange County. The program will simultaneously support businesses that rely on a strong and skilled talent pipeline to grow and compete globally.   

Through this partnership, CLAOC and CSUF focus areas include:  

  • Developing a Workforce Readiness and Career Development Continuum where career experiences begin in the first year of a student’s academic journey and include opportunities such as micro-internships, industry capstones and guest speakers.  
  • Piloting mentoring and leadership development programs for CSUF students and early-career alumni. 
  • Creating joint workforce programming in key Cal State Fullerton campus innovation spaces. Students and employers can collaborate on projects in two new campus innovation spaces: a 45,000 square-foot Innovation Hub and the new 20,000 square-foot Landmark Hall that is expected to open in 2027.  
  • Forming a joint Employer Advisory Council to understand the demands for entry-level competencies and workforce needs.  

 The partners plan to begin introducing joint programming as early as spring 2027.