In Oakland’s brave new world of open enrollment the most important thing you can do for your child is not joining the PTA and helping on the playground; it’s making sure you find the best school for them. Every family has a right to apply to basically any school in Oakland, charter or district, and…
The Worst OUSD Board in 25 Years and How it Can Get Better
Last night a young Black child came to the OUSD Board meeting to proudly sing a song that they learned in Spanish. Their family was beaming, but the child was upset. She wasn’t shy. She was upset. She didn’t want to sing. Clutching her mother, head in her chest she was silent. And what upset…
The Oakland Education Week in Review 10/28-11/4
All the Oakland Ed news fit to link, this week a great look from KQED at Black families in Oakland taking action, more on the budget and state takeover possibility, an editorial calls for bold change, a look at a Waldorf public school, youth voice, the need for a deeper equity lens from the state,…
The Oakland Education Week in Review 10/21-10/28
All the Oakland education news that is fit to link, this week–Black parents take the lead on policy changes and propose answers to the challenges they are facing, more on the OUSD budget, a look at Measure AA, school tours are starting, how Prop 13 distorts property taxes, a look at some local races and…
What’s Really Wrong with Closing Schools and How the “Opportunity Ticket” Fixes It
Closing schools balances the district’s budget woes on the backs of the already most underserved parents. The reality of closings is that it does nothing for those parents who have been dis-served and will be displaced. Typically, they attend an equally low-performing school that is further away and/or less familiar. And while the district may…