Sacramento - The California State Assembly Committee on Arts, Entertainment, Sports, Tourism and Internet Media today approved Assembly Bill 2471, which is known as the Digital Arts Studio Partnership and Workforce Program (DASP).  The measure authored by Assembly Member Betty Karnette (D – Long Beach) received bipartisan support. 

AB 2471 will educate and train students for careers in digital technology in the entertainment, manufacturing and communications services industries.  The bill creates a framework for a public and private partnership -- which will bring together teachers, computer scientists, artists and industry leaders together with government.

“California is a leader in digital arts and we need our education system to adequately prepare students for success in a digital age,” said Karnette.  “AB 2471 brings career technical training into the 21st century and provides a way to improve learning and teaching conditions for students and teachers of digital arts.”

AB 2471 has seven major goals, including:

•           Establishing a comprehensive approach to workforce development;
•           Organizing alliances between industry and the education sectors;
•           Developing a core curriculum among California’s educational institutions; and,
•           Providing for across-the-board teacher professional development and support.

AB 2471 is sponsored by the California Digital Arts Studio Partnership, and is supported by the entertainment, telecommunication, and arts communities.  There is no opposition. To avoid objections that have led to the veto of similar legislation, this proposal reflects negotiations with the Schwarzenegger administration (AB 252, Dymally).

“AB 2471 is written to specifically help prepare kids for fulfilling and enjoyable careers in digital industries of many types,” Karnette said.

AB 2471 seeks to enact a multi-pronged effort that requires the Office of the Governor, in consultation with the Division of Career Technical Education in the California Department of Education (CDE) and the Chancellor's Office of the California Community Colleges to administer DASP and specifies the tasks to be undertaken.