SPARK: Supportive Pathways AI Resource Kit.

Access to tech and creative industry employment

South LA

Pilot or new project, program, or initiative (testing or implementing a new idea)

Los Angeles faces a growing digital divide that leaves foster youth, underserved residents, adults 50+, and people reentering society after incarceration without access to the tools needed to thrive in an AI-driven economy. Nearly 1 in 3 low-income households in L.A. lack reliable internet or devices, and 92% of jobs now require digital skills. Reentry populations face up to 5 times the unemployment rate of the general public, often due to outdated or missing tech skills. These gaps create barriers not only to employment but also to long-term financial stability and inclusion.
SPARK addresses this challenge with culturally responsive, AI-powered training and no-code toolkits tailored to those often left out of tech education. By combining hands-on learning, mentorship, and simple digital tools, we help people gain confidence, build wealth, and become leaders in the tech-powered world—not just participants.

SPARK (Supportive Pathways AI Resource Kit) is a mobile, AI-powered initiative that closes L.A.’s digital gap by bringing tech training to foster youth, reentry individuals, underserved residents, and adults 50+. This grant supports free workshops, self-paced micro-lessons, and no-code toolkits for using AI in jobs, small business, and daily life. SPARK offers a personalized AI-guided learning experience that adapts to each user’s pace and goals—something most programs don’t provide. For foster youth, it turns siloed services into one phone-friendly app, starting with a two-minute AI chat that builds a custom roadmap—budgeting, tenant rights, mental health—and links to housing, jobs, and help. A sex trafficking-safety track flags high-risk responses to live peer coaches. Adults 50+ and underserved residents get simplified AI tools and 1:1 coaching to build skills, confidence, and economic power. Participatns will be able to not only use the tools but create the tools as well.

If SPARK is successful, Los Angeles will become a model for digital equity, where foster youth, reentry individuals, underserved residents, and adults 50+ gain real access to AI tools that improve their lives. Foster youth will use an AI-powered app to find housing, jobs, and mental health support, reducing drop-off and vulnerability. Reentry and underserved adults will build confidence and skills to secure jobs or launch businesses. Adults 50+ will stay competitive and use AI to turn their experience into income. Long term, SPARK will expand citywide, adding multilingual support, integration with public agencies, and community partners—creating a sustainable, county-wide platform that makes digital inclusion a standard, not an exception.