About Us
MVV and Team
Mission
Our mission is to make equitable life’s work practical and possible for all by co-creating innovative, inclusive learning, upskilling, and reskilling programs that prepare people for livable-wage employment. With deep respect for individuals experiencing disabilities, justice system involvement, or other social and economic challenges, we design pathways that expand opportunity and dignity. We are committed to transparency, stewardship, and accountability, ensuring that every solution we create is relevant, accessible, and impactful for communities at the edge.
Vision
We envision a world where every learner—including people with disabilities, those who have experienced incarceration, and others navigating social or economic barriers—and every organization committed to their growth has the tools, technology, and support to unlock limitless possibilities. By fostering a culture of possibility, we partner with education and community-based organizations to co-create engaging, relevant, and accessible learning experiences. Together, we ignite curiosity, build mastery, and transform lives through innovative technology, practical tools, and inclusive support that ensure every individual has the power to shape their life’s work and future.
Values
We are:
- Bold Explorers – We seek new ideas, embrace challenges, and push boundaries to discover better ways forward.
- Pragmatic and Outcomes-Oriented – We focus on solutions that deliver meaningful, measurable impact.
- Co-Creators and Partners – We work side-by-side with learners, organizations, and communities to achieve shared goals.
- Determined and Persistent – We persevere through obstacles with resilience and commitment.
- Respectful – We honor diverse perspectives, experiences, and contributions.
- Responsible Stewards – We manage resources with integrity, transparency, and accuracy, ensuring compliance and sustainability in everything we do.
- Creatively Principled – We innovate with imagination while holding ourselves to the highest ethical standards, never sacrificing quality for shortcuts.
We are guided by:
- Our belief in every person’s right to provide for their family
- Our knowledge that everyone’s path is different
- Praxis—creativity undergirded by theory and practice
- Our commitment to equity, inclusion, and access for all learners and communities
- Our dedication to transparency, integrity, and ethical stewardship in everything we do
- Our pursuit of continuous learning, adaptability, and improvement
- Our focus on measurable outcomes and high-quality, future-ready skills and content
- Our value for true partnership, collaboration, and co-creation with stakeholders
Team
We are educators, authors, project managers, and businesses collaborating to support upskilling and reskilling for livable wage jobs.
Vision
Kelly Cooper leads Livable Wage Jobs Work-based Learning and Apprenticeships. Previous roles include Vice Chancellor and CTO at West Hills Community College District, Computer Information Systems/Business faculty at West Valley College, Grants Project Director/Investigator, and adjunct Computer Science or Organizational Behavior faculty at community colleges and universities. Kelly’s writing, beyond grants, includes long ago books on XML, SVG, and a Cookies cookbook. Her current writing efforts include Work-based Learning Workbooks (Upskill Series) and in-progress Grants Strategy and Writing Tips. ORCID | LinkedIn
Veronika Focht works as co-author, book design lead, graphic designer, and technical editor for many of our books, all presentations, and our outreach content. She creates all layouts sets up books for publication and distribution. She serves as Principal Designer for 2 Degree Shift and Livable Wage Jobs. Veronika is also a cookie artist and graphic designer for shirts, wall hangings, and several other products.
Dara Ramos works as data analyst and project manager to support product development, CA Division of Apprenticeship Standards certifications, human resources operations, and data integrity. Dara also co-authored AP Seminar: Across CTE Pathways with Stacy Cabrera and developed the Canvas and Google Classroom instances for the book. Dara analyzes potential grant applications for fit and supports various administrative operations requests.
Ben coordinates Spanish translations, maintains data, tracks CA Division of Apprenticeship Standards site student data, and supports administrative work from data analysis to project research and labor market assessments for grant applications. Together, Ben and Dara coordinate administrative functions that support Pre-apprenticeships, and Apprenticeships to include the gamut of paperwork related to youth, parent, and school district permissions and state compliance requirements.
Stacy teaches AP Seminar and Research at Warren High School in Downey USD. She wrote AP Seminar: Across CTE Pathways Teacher and Student Editions. Stacy presented the project and book at Educating for Careers in 2023 and 2024. Stacy developed presentations and assessments for AP Seminar in collaboration with Dara and Veronika, as teacher support materials in Canvas and Google Classroom instances. Stacy’s main goal for students is learning how to analyze and interpret good writing and argumentation and create academic contributions of their own through active research designs and methodologies.
Denny Burzynski has a Master’s Degree in Mathematics from the California State University, Long Beach, and has taught mathematics at California and Nevada community colleges for 45 years. With some of his friends, Denny authored six college mathematics textbooks from basic arithmetic, elementary, and intermediate algebra, college algebra, to applied calculus. Denny presented at many mathematics conferences all over the country and served as president of both the California Mathematics Council Community Colleges and the Nevada Mathematical Association of Community Colleges.