Education
The Oakland Unified School District’s controversial proposal to close five elementary schools this fall, and more in coming years, follows a multi-year program of encouraging small small schools–subdividing bigger facilities into multiple smaller ones, each with fewer students and a more intimate climate. But funding and enrollment changes have pushed the district to what promises to be an emotional meeting and vote Wednesday night.
With a wag of her tail feather, Oakland East Bay Symphony violinist and stand-up comedian Dawn Harms wooed the crowd of elementary school students at Oakland Technical High School on October 20th as part of The Musical Time Machine performance by the Oakland East Bay Symphony’s annual Young People’s Concerts series, which is designed to engage children and teach them about music. The symphony offered six free shows at Oakland Tech and Allen Temple Baptist Church from October 20th – October 22nd.
Mayor Jean Quan, along with fifth graders from Martin Luther King and Lincoln Elementary schools, launched the kickoff of the The Bay Area Science Festival, scheduled for October 29th to November 6th. The festival will include hands-on activities, lecturers, exhibits, experiments, and games for students.
Dr. Brigid McCaw was diligently working her way through medical school while her sister was busy concealing a secret. Despite the summer heat in their Denver home, McCaw’s sister bundled up in high-necked layers. The bruises along her abdomen became difficult to conceal during pregnancy, but her own physician never questioned them. Immersed in her studies at the University of California, San Francisco almost 1,000 miles away, McCaw never even saw the black and blue marks.
The second annual East Bay Mini Maker Faire featured 150 makers, vendors, and performers showcasing unique and one of a kind products, crafts, and inventions at North Oakland’s Park Day School on Sunday.
More than 700 people filled the gymnasium at Laney College on Saturday for the Neighborhood Safety Summit, a day of discussions about crime and violence in Oakland hosted by Mayor Jean Quan, who presented a new crime reduction plan that she said will focus on the city’s most violent streets.
Although Oakland school board members have said they will not vote on school closures until Oct 26, scores of irritated speakers crowded Wednesday night’s meeting to plead for a second, third, and even fourth look at their schools before a final decision is made.
Lakeview students, parents and supporters walked to the farmers market to protest the proposed closure of five schools. Oakland superintendent Tony Smith recommended the school board approve the closures.
Personal and automated phone calls, advertisements on the sides of local buses, and a team of school nurses have been working to spread the word throughout the Oakland school system about a new requirement for seventh through 12th graders—a vaccine against whooping cough.