On this edition of Your Call, we're discussing the Oakland Unified School District’s plan to permanently close or merge up to 16 schools. Almost all of these schools serve students of color.
At 5pm tonight, the Oakland school board will hold a special zoom meeting to vote on the plan, which has caused outrage among parents, teachers and students who have attended rallies and staged walkouts. Two Westlake Middle School staffers are on a hunger strike.
District officials say the closures are necessary because of financial struggles caused by dropping enrollment. Opponents say this is another example of divestment in Black and brown students and question why the plan is being voted on with so little time for community input.
Guests:
Jill Tucker, education reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle
Mike Hutchinson, Oakland Unified School District Board of Education director for District 5
Stefanie Parrott, parent of a 3rd grader at Prescott Elementary, which is one of the OUSD schools up for closure at the end of this year
Web Resources:
San Francisco Chronicle: These 16 Oakland schools could close or merge in the next two years under fast-track proposal
San Francisco Chronicle: Oakland families and officials rally against school closures ahead of board vote
The Oaklandside: OUSD plan to close and merge schools is met with overwhelming opposition
San Francisco Chronicle: ‘This is until death’: Oakland teachers’ hunger strike tests district resolve on school closings
