In 2017, the Public Library Association (PLA) sponsored public library internships for fifty (50) high school juniors and seniors from diverse backgrounds across the country. The overarching goal of the Inclusive Internship Initiative was to introduce students from diverse backgrounds to careers in librarianship. The Los Angeles Public Library was one of thirty-five sites that piloted the Inclusive Internship Initiative in the summer of 2017. The Library received the grant funds in two installments of $7,650 in July and $2,550 in October 2017. 

After seeing the success of the PLA internship program, the Los Angeles Public Library created the Diversity and Inclusion Apprentice, DAIA, in 2018 to continue offering this internship opportunity to students exploring careers in librarianship.