City Government
Shamann Walton, New School Board Member
Community members and elected officials attended the Swearing-In Ceremony on Tuesday for Shamann Walton, who was elected in November to the San Francisco Board of Education.
Walton seeks to close the achievement gap that marginalizes minority students within the district.
“I’m excited about coming up with innovative strategies help our students do well. I have some innovative ideas and strategies to do a better job of reaching minority students,” he said.
“I am humbled by the broad range of support received and happy to be a vessel of help and support to our students in the district,” he added.
A San Francisco native, Walton has been a leader in local public schools and youth-serving organizations for the past 17 years. He currently serves as the executive director of Young Community Developers, Inc. (YCD), a workforce development agency located in the Bayview-Hunters Point Community.
He serves on the Board of Directors for Parents for Public Schools and is very active with the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. Pi Chi Chapter in San Francisco. He is also a member of the San Francisco Latino Democratic Club, the San Francisco African American Democratic Club, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the American Society of Public Administrators, a 2013 LeaderSpring Fellow, and the Bayview Rotary Club.
He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from Morris Brown College and a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from San Francisco State University.
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Oakland Post: Week of November 26 – December 2, 2025
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of November 26 – December 2, 2025
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Oakland Post: Week of November 19 – 25, 2025
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of November 19 – 25, 2025
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IN MEMORIAM: William ‘Bill’ Patterson, 94
Bill devoted his life to public service and education. In 1971, he became the founding director for the Peralta Community College Foundation, he also became an administrator for Oakland Parks and Recreation overseeing 23 recreation centers, the Oakland Zoo, Children’s Fairyland, Lake Merritt, and the Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center.
William “Bill” Patterson, 94, of Little Rock, Arkansas, passed away peacefully on October 21, 2025, at his home in Oakland, CA. He was born on May 19, 1931, to Marie Childress Patterson and William Benjamin Patterson in Little Rock, Arkansas. He graduated from Dunbar High School and traveled to Oakland, California, in 1948. William Patterson graduated from San Francisco State University, earning both graduate and undergraduate degrees. He married Euradell “Dell” Patterson in 1961. Bill lovingly took care of his wife, Dell, until she died in 2020.
Bill devoted his life to public service and education. In 1971, he became the founding director for the Peralta Community College Foundation, he also became an administrator for Oakland Parks and Recreation overseeing 23 recreation centers, the Oakland Zoo, Children’s Fairyland, Lake Merritt, and the Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center.
He served on the boards of Oakland’s Urban Strategies Council, the Oakland Public Ethics Commission, and the Oakland Workforce Development Board.
He was a three-term president of the Oakland branch of the NAACP.
Bill was initiated in the Gamma Alpha chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity.
In 1997 Bill was appointed to the East Bay Utility District Board of Directors. William Patterson was the first African American Board President and served the board for 27 years.
Bill’s impact reached far beyond his various important and impactful positions.
Bill mentored politicians, athletes and young people. Among those he mentored and advised are legends Joe Morgan, Bill Russell, Frank Robinson, Curt Flood, and Lionel Wilson to name a few.
He is survived by his son, William David Patterson, and one sister, Sarah Ann Strickland, and a host of other family members and friends.
A celebration of life service will take place at Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center (Calvin Simmons Theater) on November 21, 2025, at 10 AM.
His services are being livestreamed at: https://www.facebook.com/events/1250167107131991/
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Euradell and William Patterson scholarship fund TBA.
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