Research Brief
Our motto is “Revitalize California.” Entrepreneurship is the oxygen. We will spark a second 1849 – a new Gold Rush of builders, coders, engineers, and creators from every corner of America who come here not for a degree, but to build something real.
We will lead the world in innovation by 10x, 100x, 1000x or more!
In 2025, the average federal student loan balance sits around $39,000 per borrower, with total student debt over $1.6 trillion and rising again. Young Americans are told that if they do not buy a four-year degree, they are “nothing.” So they sign, borrow, and hope – and then walk into a job market that increasingly cares more about skills, portfolios, and shipping real products than framed diplomas.
Meanwhile, a parallel ecosystem has quietly proven that the story is upside-down: coding bootcamps, self-taught developers, and small scrappy startups. Independent reports show that many bootcamps place 70–80% of graduates into tech roles within months, with starting salaries competitive with or higher than traditional CS grads. The builders are already winning. The system just refuses to admit it.
Add to this one more fact: new and young firms create a disproportionate share of net new jobs in the U.S. economy. Yet our public dollars are tilted toward giant institutions and bureaucracies instead of the small teams and solo founders actually generating opportunity.
California has a choice: keep subsidizing debt, or fund the builders who will revitalize this state and this country.
In 1849, people crossed oceans and continents to get to California because this was where the future was being made. Wewant a second 1849 – not for gold in the ground, but for minds, code, companies, and communities. We will tell the entire country: “If you are self-taught, a bootcamp grad, a builder without degree's ready to work like hell and take risks – California wants you!”
Instead of judging people by how many years they sat in a lecture hall, we will judge them by what they can build. Instead of subsidizing institutions that lobby for more debt, we will invest directly in the people who want to start business's and create value. This is how California breathes new life into the American spirit – by becoming the most meritocratic, entrepreneurship-friendly, anti-gatekeeping state in the union.
Universities will still exist. People are free to attend them. But the days of a one-path, debt-first, degree-worshipping monopoly are over. The future belongs to those who can learn fast, build boldly, and ship real things. That is who we will fund!
Audit state spending on higher education subsidies, grants, and tax breaks. Carve out a significant share and redirect it into founder grants, micro-equity, and income-share style support for self-taught builders, bootcamp grads, and non-traditional founders building in California.
Create a statewide fund that backs early-stage, small-team startups started by Californians and Americans who move here to build – not corporations seeking more subsidies. Preference for self-taught, bootcamp, veteran, and blue-collar founders crossing into tech.
Develop a new state recognition system for bootcamps, online programs, and self-directed learning paths based on real outcomes: job placement, median income, and founder creation – not seat time.
Create a “Revitalize California Fast Lane” that simplifies licensing, permits, and compliance for small startups and solo founders, with clear one-stop digital workflows instead of a maze of agencies.
Link experienced engineers, entrepreneurs, and tradespeople with self-taught learners through structured apprenticeships that pay and build real portfolios, not just issue certificates.
For state tech and innovation contracts, require vendors to demonstrate they hire based on skill, portfolios, and performance – not automatic degree filters. Reward firms with high percentages of self-taught and bootcamp talent.
Offer targeted tax credits to California companies that hire and retain self-taught, bootcamp, veteran, and career-transition workers into high-skill roles, with public scorecards showing who is actually doing it.
Launch programs that help young Californians skip the traditional debt trap entirely: learn, build, and launch via bootcamps, apprenticeships, and founder grants instead of four years of loans.
Run a nationwide campaign inviting American builders to relocate to California: “Bring your laptop, your tools, your skills – not your tuition bill.” Priority support for those who commit to building and hiring here.
Publish live dashboards showing: number of startups launched, jobs created, founders backed, and estimated student debt avoided by choosing builder pathways over traditional degrees.
Revitalizing California is not a slogan; it is a build order. Shift money from institutions that produce debt to people who produce value. Invite the best builders from across America to come here and create. Make skill and courage matter more than pedigree. That is how California becomes the engine of America again.
Note: The data all point in the same direction – startup formation and non-traditional tech training are powerful job engines, while student debt remains a massive drag on household finances. California will be the first state to openly align its policies with that reality and build an ecosystem where self-taught builders lead the revival.