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InfoComm to Offer AV Education at Downey School District

InfoComm International, the trade association representing the commercial audiovisual industry in the United States and internationally, has signed an agreement with Downey Unified School District in Los Angeles County to offer foundational AV coursework.

Downey Unified School District’s high school students will have access to InfoComm’s online course Essentials of AV Technology and the Recognized AV Technologist Certificate Program exam. Students will also have access to the Certified Technology Specialist online prep course.

Downey Unified, located 12 miles south of downtown Los Angeles, serves about 22,500 students in grades K–12 and has an extensive adult education program. The district was recently named an exemplar district by P21 Partnership for 21st Century Learning, a recognition for schools who are preparing students for college, career and life by embedding critical 21st century competencies into the learning environment.

“We hope that students will learn about the audiovisual industry in general, as well as develop skills and competencies that are in high demand by local employers,” said June Bayha, CEO of Bayha Group, an educational partner for Downey Unified, in a statement. “Ultimately, we want to create courses that are pathways leading to high-wage, high-skill careers for all of our students.”

“Developing tomorrow’s AV workforce is a key focus for InfoComm and its foundation, the International Communications Industry Foundation (ICIF),” said Betsy Jaffe, executive director of ICIF and senior vice president of member services at InfoComm International, in a statement. “We’re mindful that California represents some of the largest AV markets in North America and the AV industry needs more professionals who can become the next generation of AV innovators.”

So far in 2016, InfoComm has built partnerships with Columbia College in Chicago, Valencia College in Orlando, Bogota public schools in Colombia and other learning institutions to bring AV education into the classroom.

For more information on the association’s workforce development, visit infocomm.org/icif.

About the Author

Richard Chang is associate editor of THE Journal. He can be reached at [email protected].

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