Oakland

Former School Board Member and Educator Sylvester Hodges, 78

Published

6 years ago

June 3, 2020

Sylvester Hodges, who died last week, was a parent activist and lifelong civil rights leader who became President of the Oakland School board and led the fight to stop the state from taking over the school district and its financial resources. Despite repeated attempts, the state was never to seize control until Hodges retired from the Board.

Besides serving on the Oakland Board of Education for 12 years, Hodges served as chair of the Paul Robeson Centennial Committee, working successfully to rename the school district administration building in Robeson’s memory. He worked as an administrator for the Cypress Mandela Training Center, training countless Black and Latino young people to overcome the barriers to enter positions in the construction trades. He also served on the board of the Oakland Emiliano Zapata Street Academy, a school he loved because of its unique approach to young people, and he was active in the affairs of McClymonds High School.

Hodges was born on April 30, 1942, and passed away on May 21. He was 78. One of six boys born in Montrose, Arkansas, to Chester and Maggie Hodges, he moved with his family from Arkansas to Oakland, California, in 1946. He attended Prescott Elementary, Lowell Junior High School, and McClymonds High School. He married Lola Ingram in 1965, and the couple had one son.

Hodges became a passionate reader while serving in the U.S. military. He was influenced by “The Autobiography of Malcolm X”.

Hodges became involved in electoral politics as a vehicle to advance the issues affecting African Americans, while he attended Merritt College in Oakland during the late 1960s.

He graduated from California State University, Hayward, (CSUH) in 1969, where he was named to the CSUH Sports Hall of Fame as Most Valuable Wrestler. He worked first for the Oakland Public Schools and then for the recreation department in San Mateo County. He developed an advocacy organization of one hundred East Oakland parents while his son was attending E. Morris Cox Elementary School.

Hodges ran for a seat on the school board and was defeated by the nationally prominent African American minister J. Alfred Smith. When Smith resigned from the board because his school board duties interfered with his church responsibilities, Hodges won the citywide election. Geoffrey Pete, the owner of Geoffrey’s Inner Circle (later Planet Soule) and a co-founder of both the Oakland Black Caucus and Niagara Movement Democratic Club, said of Hodges, “He was the most influential individual in terms of integrating the economic landscape in Oakland”

A major contribution was his successful strategy to prevent the takeover of the Oakland school district by the State of California in 1988.

While a powerful array of state politicians pressured the board to accept a $10 million loan which would have placed Oakland under the fiscal control of the state for 30 years, Hodges and his school board colleague Darlene Lawson argued that the takeover attempt seemed to be “ a power trip for the downtown business interests, who are mostly white.” So, Hodges and Lawson together arranged a form of financing called certificates of participation, which precluded the need for a state loan and prevented the takeover.

In the subsequent decade, Hodges, as chair of the Budget and Finance Committee of the board, led the district to achieve Standard & Poor’s highest bond rating. Because the district maintained local control for an additional 15 years after 1988, the African American majority was able to pursue such important initiatives as increased African American employment and contracting, the rejection of the racially insensitive Houghton Mifflin social studies textbooks, and the affirmation of African American language rights (known as the Ebonics debate). Soon after Hodges retired from the board, the district went into significant debt and was taken over by the State of California in 2003.

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Oakland Post: Week of March 18 – 24, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of March 18 – 24, 2026

Published

2 weeks ago

March 22, 2026

Oakland Post

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Advice

Financial Wellness and Mental Health: Managing Money Stress in College 

While everyone’s financial situation is unique, several common sources of stress have the potential to strain your financial health. These include financial and economic uncertainty, existing debts, unexpected expenses, and mental or physical health changes. Financial stress may differ from situation to situation, but understanding the factors contributing to yours may help you begin to craft a plan for your unique circumstances.

Published

2 weeks ago

March 17, 2026

Oakland Post

Sponsored by JPMorganChase

As a college student, managing financial responsibilities can be stressful.

If you’ve found yourself staying up late thinking about your finances or just feeling anxious overall about your financial future, you’re not alone. In one survey, 78% of college students who reported financial stress had negative impacts on their mental health, and 59% considered dropping out. While finances can impact overall stress, taking steps to manage your finances can support your mental, emotional and physical well-being.

When it comes to money, the sources of stress may look different for each student, but identifying the underlying causes and setting goals accordingly may help you feel more confident about your financial future.

Consider these strategies to help improve your financial wellness and reduce stress.

Understand what causes financial stress

2. Determine your financial priorities

Start by reflecting on your financial priorities. For students this often includes paying for school or paying off student loans, studying abroad, saving for spring break, building an emergency fund, paying down credit card debt or buying a car. Name the milestones that are most important to you, and plan accordingly.

3. Create a plan and stick to it

While setting actionable goals starts you on the journey to better financial health, it’s essential to craft a plan to follow through. Identifying and committing to a savings plan may give you a greater sense of control over your finances, which may help reduce your stress. Creating and sticking to a budget allows you to better track where your money is going so you may spend less and save more.

4. Pay down debt

Many students have some form of debt and want to make progress toward reducing their debt obligations. One option is the debt avalanche method, which focuses on paying off your debt with the highest interest rate first, then moving on to the debt with the next-highest interest rate. Another is the debt snowball method, which builds momentum by paying off your smallest debt balance, and then working your way up to the largest amounts.

5. Build your financial resilience

Some financial stress may be inevitable, but building financial resilience may allow you to overcome obstacles more easily. The more you learn about managing your money, for instance, the more prepared you’ll feel if the unexpected happens. Growing your emergency savings also may increase resilience since you’ll be more financially prepared to cover unexpected expenses or pay your living expenses.

6. Seek help and support

Many colleges have resources to help students experiencing financial stress, like financial literacy courses or funds that provide some assistance for students in need. Talk to your admissions counselor or advisor about your concerns, and they can direct you to sources of support. Your school’s counseling center can also be a great resource for mental health assistance if you’re struggling with financial stress.

The bottom line

Financial stress can affect college students’ health and wellbeing, but it doesn’t have to derail your dreams. Setting smart financial goals and developing simple plans to achieve them may help ease your stress. Revisit and adjust your plan as needed to ensure it continues to work for you, and seek additional support on campus as needed to help keep you on track.

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