Education

Charter School Will Not “Co-locate” at Prescott Elementary Next Year

Published

7 years ago

April 27, 2018

At a meeting this week with Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) Supt. Kyla Johnson-Trammell, parents and educators at Prescott Elementary School in West Oakland made clear they were determined to block the school district’s offer of three of their classrooms to a charter school.

“The Prescott Community is united in its opposition to the co-location of a charter school – especially the scandal-ridden American Indian Model School (AIMS), on our campus. Prescott School is for Prescott families, and that includes any AIMS families that want to transfer to our school,” according to a flyer distributed at the school.

The meeting had just started when Toni Cook, a board director at American Indian Model Schools, announced the charter school had not requested space at Prescott and would reject the district’s offer for the classrooms, out of respect for the school and its historic legacy.

“We would not ask for and not accept space at Prescott. This is an institution in the Black community, and we would never take it,” said Cook, who is a former Oakland school board member.

“We would never have asked for Prescott, knowing the history of how much the district has disrupted the school,” she said.

Now an annual cycle, the district offers space to charters to “co-locate” on public school campuses each spring, and the charters must decide by May 1 whether to accept or reject the space.

Besides Prescott, the district has offered space to charters at 25 other Oakland school sites. The district says the offers are required by state law, Prop. 39.

The school community is relieved the issue is resolved this year, but they know charters will be coming back for their school next year, according to Stephanie Parrott, a parent at the school.

“We don’t want the district to hide behind Prop. 39 anymore,” said Parrott. “No other district offers up classrooms the way OUSD does. We beg the district to look at what happens.
“When you put a school on the Prop. 39 list, it is devastating. We’re in a tizzy, and we don’t get anything done. We’re tired,” she said.

Prescott Elementary, located at 920 Campbell St. in West Oakland, has been around for a long time – 149 years at the same site. It is one of the top scoring elementary schools in Oakland and has one of the highest rates of Black student achievement in the city.

Supt. Johnson-Trammell said she would work with the school to increase its enrollment, which is the way not to be on the charter school offer list each year.

However, according to the parents and teachers, the district bureaucracy for years has undermined their efforts to recruit more families to come to the school.

They want the superintendent to do something about that, which she pledged to do.

Speakers give numerous examples of how the district has contributed to the school’s enrollment problems

The school has been renamed PLACE@Prescott Elementary School and is only called PLACE at the district’s enrollment office. Parents wanting to enroll at Prescott cannot find the name on the list.

The district removed the school’s two bilingual teachers, and the school has lost English Learner students.

In addition, staff at the enrollment office reportedly discourage families from attending Prescott. They try to persuade Asian and white parents they should not go to a predominately Black school, said veteran teacher Soraya Sajous-Brooks.

“What they’re doing is illegal. Segregation is illegal,” she said. “White families come to the enrollment office, and the staff says, ooh, that won’t work out for (you).”

Responding, Charles Wilson, executive director of Enrollment and Registration, said, “I take these allegations very seriously,” pledging to look into and resolve the issue.

Speakers asked Supt. Johnson-Trammell to support the school adding a sixth-grade at the K-5 school next year. They have 28 families that want to keep their fifth-graders at the school as part of transition to making Prescott a K-8 school.

The superintendent said it was too late to make the change for next year, but she would explore it for the following year.

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Art

A Prolific Painter: Artist and Advocate Lois Mailou Jones

Lois Mailou Jones was a prominent African American artist whose career spanned more than seven decades, from the Harlem Renaissance to the modern art movement. She was not only a prolific painter but also an influential educator, bridging cultural gaps and challenging stereotypes through her vibrant and diverse works.

Published

4 days ago

October 29, 2024

Oakland Post

Courtesy of National Archives, Washington, D.C.

By Tamara Shiloh

Her unique journey of self-expression, dedication to art, and advocacy for African American and African themes made her a crucial figure in the evolution of American art.

Jones was born on Nov. 3, 1905, in Boston. Raised in an intellectual and supportive family, she demonstrated an early interest in art, encouraged by her mother, who believed in the importance of creativity. Lois studied at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, where she faced racial challenges but persisted in pursuing her passion.

Her pursuit of higher education led her to the prestigious Design Art School, where she perfected her skills in textile design. Later, Jones attended Harvard University and received further training at the Académie Julian in Paris. This European experience greatly influenced her style and broadened her perspective on art.

Jones’s career began in textile design, creating works that were used by leading textile companies. However, her true passion was painting. During the Harlem Renaissance, she moved away from textile design to focus on fine art, exploring themes that reflected her heritage and the African diaspora.

Her early works were influenced by European Post-Impressionism, featuring landscapes and still life, but Jones’s style evolved over time. After spending time in Haiti, she was deeply inspired by Caribbean culture, and her palette became more vivid, her subject matter more symbolic. The influence of African and Caribbean culture is evident in her later works, where she used bright colors and geometric patterns to convey the spirit and stories of the people she encountered.

Her contributions to African American art were significant during a time when Black artists struggled for recognition. She often focused on themes of African heritage, pride, and unity, blending African illustrations and portraits with Western artistic techniques to create a unique visual language that celebrated Black culture.

She was also a dedicated educator. She began her teaching career at Palmer Memorial Institute in North Carolina and later became a professor at Howard University in Washington, D.C., where she taught for almost 50 years. Through her teaching, she influenced generations of young Black artists, encouraging them to explore and express their cultural heritage through art.

In the 1930s and 1940s, she worked to exhibit her work alongside other Black artists, helping to create a platform for voices that had long been excluded from mainstream galleries.

Recognition and Legacy

Jones achieved significant recognition throughout her lifetime, both in the United States and internationally. She exhibited her work across the globe, including in Paris, Africa, and the Caribbean.

Jones continued painting until her death in 1998, leaving behind a rich legacy of artistic achievements and contributions to art education. She broke boundaries by celebrating Black identity and heritage at a time when these themes were often marginalized.

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California Black Media

New California Law Will Protect Students During Extreme Weather

On Sept. 22, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill that will protect students from extreme weather conditions by requiring the California Department of Education to develop guidelines for school districts to implement during weather patterns harmful to student health. Authored by Sen. Melissa Hurtado (D-Sanger), “Yahushua’s Law” or Senate Bill 1248 addresses an extreme heat-related fatality in Lake Elsinore. During the summer of 2023, a student died after participating in physical education suffered extreme heat-related illness.

Published

4 days ago

October 29, 2024

Oakland Post

Yahushua Robinson

By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

On Sept. 22, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill that will protect students from extreme weather conditions by requiring the California Department of Education to develop guidelines for school districts to implement during weather patterns harmful to student health.

Authored by Sen. Melissa Hurtado (D-Sanger), “Yahushua’s Law” or Senate Bill 1248 addresses an extreme heat-related fatality in Lake Elsinore. During the summer of 2023, a student died after participating in physical education suffered extreme heat-related illness.

“No student should ever lose their life on campus to extreme weather when we can take steps to protect them by preparing statewide plans to minimize exposure to the most harmful elements of exposure,” Sen. Hurtado stated last Spring. “I commend the family of Yahushua Robinson, the twelve-year student who lost his life due to heat related illness during on-campus physical education, for lending their emotional strength and compassion for others in order to help ensure that no other student loses their life this way.”

Supporters of the legislation say the lack of uniform guidelines and protocols across schools and school districts in California intensifies the issue, creating an urgent need for safeguards to ensure student safety during extreme weather conditions.

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California Black Media

More Than 1.2 Million Youth Pre-Registered to Vote, Secretary of State Weber Announced

Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber announced on Sept. 26 that more than 1.2 million young people between the ages of 16 and 17-years-old have pre-registered to vote since the state launched the initiative in September 2016. The state program automatically activates voter registration for pre-registered youth when they turn 18 years of age.

Published

4 days ago

October 29, 2024

Oakland Post

California Secretary of State Dr. Shirley N. Weber. Photo Courtesy of ShirleyWeber.com.

By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

Weber, who has visited dozens of high schools across the state to promote voting initiatives, said that students are eager to vote and look forward to casting their first ballot, and “the numbers back them up.”

“Young Californians want to be engaged, active participants in our democracy and they can position themselves to do so by preregistering to vote,” said Weber.

Weber said that she is committed to encouraging young people to pre-register to vote, adding that she looks forward to partnering with the California Department of Education, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, school officials, and leaders of community-based organizations to expand this effort.

According to Weber’s office, approximately 42% of young voters are registered Democrats, while over 13% are registered Republicans. Another 35% of young voters registered as having “no party preference.”

For more information, Californians can visit the online pre-registration website at www.RegisterToVote.ca.gov. Registration is open to residents who are 16 or 17 and meet all the following criteria:

A United States citizen and a resident of California.
18 years old or older on Election Day.
Not currently serving a state or federal prison term for the conviction of a felony
Not currently found mentally incompetent to vote by a court.

More information about pre-registration for California youth can be found at sos.ca.gov/elections/pre-register-16-vote-18.

Upcoming key deadlines and dates for the November 5, 2024, General Election can be found at here.

Plus, visit http://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/statewide-elections/2024-primary/section-08-general-election-calendar.pdf to view a complete California General Election Calendar with more voting details and updates.