School Violence Intervention
and Prevention (VIP)
Program
Jenny Romero
Program Planner, School VIP Program
Department of Violence Prevention
Education Partnership Committee – May 6, 2024
Background
▪ In June 2020, the Oakland Unified School District's
Board of Directors approved the George Floyd
Resolution, which eliminatedthe OUSD Police
Department.
▪ In September 2020, the City of Oakland formed the
Reimagining Public Safety Task Force (RPSTF).
▪ Included in the RPSTF recommendations was a
school-based violence prevention strategy written by
then District 4 RPSTF Member, Brooklyn Williams.
▪ The strategy stemmed from her experience at
Dewey Academy implementing conflict resolution
and restorative justice practices in partnership with
community-based organizations specializing in
violence prevention.
Background
▪ In June of 2021, the Oakland City Council
approved the school-based violence prevention
strategy (along with other
RPSTF recommendations).
▪ In December of 2021, the Department of Violence
Prevention integrated the strategy into its
Request for Qualifications under the
name, “School Site Violence Intervention &
Prevention (VIP) Teams.”
▪ In the summer of 2022, selected local violence
prevention organizations were contracted to
provide VIP teams to 7 OUSD High Schools during
the 2022-2023 school year.
▪ Reduce incidents of violence
on campus, thus creating
safer school environments for
Oakland’s most vulnerable
students.
▪ Reduce incidents of
community violence that
directly impact students as
victims or perpetrators.
Program Goals
▪ Reduce experiences of
gender-based violence
among students.
▪ Promote healing among
students who are survivors of
gender-based violence.
Program Goals
▪ The School VIP Program places a team of three individuals – one violence interrupter, one life coach, and one gender-based violence specialist – in 4 comprehensive high schools and 3 continuation high schools in the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD).
▪ The School VIP Program was first implemented during the 2022-2023 School Year with 6 life coaches, 5 violence
interrupters, and 4 GBV specialists.
School VIP Teams
School VIP Teams
Violence interrupter: Identifies
potential student conflicts, conducts
safety assessments, supports de-
escalation, proactively mediates
conflicts, intervenes to prevent
retaliation following conflicts, refers
youth to needed services, and trains
staff of signs and symptoms of
violence.
Life coach: Provides case
management to students who
have caused or been victims of
violence in order to help them
reduce high-risk behaviors,
improve functioning, increase
motivation, and address
unhealthy beliefs.
Gender-based violence
specialist: Delivers
workshops for students to
address dating violence,
stalking, sexual harassment,
sexual assault, and
commercial sexual
exploitation, provides
service referrals and general
support for impacted
students, and delivers staff
trainings.
• Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth (RJOY) is funded to deliver restorative justice programming at Castlemont High School and Rudsdale Continuation School.
• RJOY coordinates healing events, activities, and peer groups to change norms around violence in schools and the surrounding community.
• RJOY also conducts restorative justice circles to prevent and respond to critical incidents, including loss of a student to violence.
Community Healing
Service Metrics
During the 2022-2023 School Year:
• 127 students across all sites received 2,966 hours of life coaching services.
• Violence interrupters held 158 mediation conversations. • GBV specialists provided short-term case management and external service referrals to 172 students.
Preliminary Impact Data
• 2021-2022 School Year: 679 suspensions for physical violence in all OUSD high schools.
• 2022-2023 School Year: 608 suspensions for physical violence in OUSD high schools (10% reduction).
• Urban Institute is completing an impact evaluationof the School VIP Program, and initial results will be available in August 2024.
High school Life coaches VIs GBV specialists
Castlemont 1 0.5 0.5
Dewey 1 0.5 0.5
Fremont 1 1 1
McClymonds 1 1 0.5
Oakland 1 0.5 0.5
Ralph J. Bunche 0 1 0.5
Rudsdale 1 0.5 0.5
2022-2023 School Year - $2.4M / Year
Starting Jan 2024 - $3M / Year
High school Life coaches VIs GBV specialists
Castlemont 1 2 1
Dewey 1 1 1
Fremont 1 1 1
McClymonds 1 1 1
Oakland 1 1 1
Ralph J. Bunche 0 1 1
Rudsdale 1 1 1
• $2.7 million of the annual $3 million cost comes from Measure Z ($300,000 is from a federal grant).
• The School VIP Program is a priority initiative for Mayor Sheng Thao and is supported by the Mayor's Chief of Education and Community Safety, Brooklyn Williams
• The DVP funds one full-time program planner and one full-time program analyst who are dedicated to coordinating program implementation and managing grants with funded
organizations.
City of Oakland Investment
Funded Agencies
Thank You