Labor

Refugee group helps employ women in need

When Rafiullah Amiri, who had immigrated to the United States from Afghanistan, noticed that many women within his immigrant community were confined to their homes—shocked by the culture difference and unable to speak the language of their host country—he had an idea: They could earn money cooking.

Childcare advocates push for Measure A on the Alameda County June ballot

On a bright Saturday morning, approximately 200 people gathered at the Boys and Girls Club in San Leandro in support of the campaign kick-off for Measure A: Alameda County’s Ballot Measure for Child Care and Early Education. Measure A will appear on the county’s June ballot in 2018. If passed, Measure A will enact a half-percent sales tax, which will generate approximately $140 million annually. The county will use the money to extend more childcare resources to low and middle-income…

Oakland High School pathway programs prepare students for college

Oakland High School is the first school within the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) to have all their students enrolled in what they call “wall to wall” college preparation programs. School staff implemented them in the hopes of achieving higher retention rates between 10th and 11th grade, and higher graduation rates. These college preparation programs include Advance Via Individual Determination (AVID), the Environmental Science Academy (ESA), Visual Arts and Academics Magnet Program (VAAMP), Project Lead the Way (PLW), and the…

Restore Oakland combines restorative justice and economics

Several Oakland organizations are uniting to bring economic growth to the city by opening a community advocacy and training center in a renovated building on International Boulevard, in the center of the Fruitvale community. Restore Oakland will provide community members with job preparation programs and offer services like a tenants’ rights clinic and a restaurant that will also be a work training site.

Oakland North’s 2017 year in review — our top stories

2017 brought a new group of student reporters to Oakland North from across the country and the globe. They covered a city in flux: a housing and homelessness crisis that shows no sign of abating, a school district facing millions in budget cuts, a citywide crackdown on warehouse spaces in the wake of the Ghost Ship fire, and local reactions to the new immigration and sanctuary city polices coming out of Washington under the new Donald Trump administration. But they also dug…

Oakland school district hosts high school fair

As Oaklanders approach the middle of the academic school year, both parents and middle school students are beginning to plan ahead by figuring out which high school will be the best fit for them next year. The Oakland Unified School District hosted a high school fair at Roosevelt Middle School on December 6, which attracted  approximately 30 parents and students. During the fair, they had the chance visit with different high schools’ representatives and get their questions answered. School representatives from…

The Town Kitchen offers job skills, second chances, to the formerly incarcerated

Fresh bread is baking in the oven. Feet shuffle swiftly along the kitchen floors. Chefs begin bagging and packing food to go. Two deliverers place big black boxes on carts to wheel to their vehicle. Inside each one are several neatly packaged white boxes filled with lunch orders. About seven people dance around the kitchen to assist them with the deliveries. Smooth 90’s R&B plays in the background while the staff works in unison. The chefs in this kitchen aren’t…