Metro Board Chair and L.A. County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, Metro Board Member Jacquelyn Dupont-Walker and studends at the Girls Build L.A. forum. Photo: Luis Inzunza/Metro

The young women of our community face unthinkable challenges every day. In L.A. County, 30 percent of all girls live in poverty and for Los Angeles Unified School District students — the second largest in the country — it’s 80 percent. This is inextricably linked to educational attainment – 60 percent of women in poverty have a high school diploma or less.

To help encourage young girls around L.A. County to realize the benefits of a good education, Metro hosted a Girls Build L.A. forum. More than 50 high school girls from around L.A. County were invited to learn more about education and career opportunities available to them, not just at Metro but in transportation fields in general. Women with successful careers in transportation and government, such as Board Member Jacquelyn Dupont-Walker and Deputy CEO Stephanie Wiggins, were on hand to talk about their experiences and to offer words of wisdom.

Metro’s internship program offers undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate students an opportunity to gain practical work experience related to their academic field of study. Metro also sponsors the Transportation Careers Academy Programs (TCAP) at select high schools. The TCAP program provides “real world” industry learning environments for high school students interested in transportation careers.