Attachment A:
Annual Report of the Oakland Youth Commission
2023-2024
Table of Contents
I. Youth Commissioner Appointees 2 II. Letter from our Co-Chair 3
III. Youth Leadership Development 4
A. Internal Trainings
B. Commission Meetings
C. Commissioner Accolades
IV. Youth Voice in City Affairs 6
A. Adultism Training for COO Staff
B. Recast
C. Social Media Engagement
V. Policy Work 9
A. Youth Vote
B. Youth Housing
C. Digital Equity for Oakland
D. Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR)
VI. Looking Ahead 25
VII. Commissioner Reflections 27
I. Oakland Youth Commission Appointees
Name District Officer Roles Ad-hoc
committee(s)
Years
Served
Mia Hatfield 1 Co-Chair Restorative Justice 3
Sophia Hesseltine 1 Co-Chair Recast, YPAR 2
Haniel Kebede 1 Commissioner At-Large YPAR; Recast 1
Sarah Turley 1 D1 Commissioner YPAR 2
Olivia Richardson
Feldman
2 Organizing Officer YPAR 1
Ana Xu LI 2 Commissioner At-Large YPAR; Recast 1
Calupe Kafusi 3 D2 Commissioner CTE Hub; YPAR 1
Nathan YuHeng Li 3 Social Media Officer YPAR 2
Quincy Russell 3 D3 Commissioner CTE Hub; Adultism
Training Facilitator
2 Areli Chavez 4 Commissioner At-Large Youth Vote 1
Anokhi Meta 4 D4 Commissioner YPAR; Recast 1
Bryce Hunt 4 Social Media Officer CTE Hub; Restorative Justice
2 Katie Liang 5 Operations Officer Youth Vote; Digital Equity; Adultism
Training Facilitator
1 Steve Nguyen 5 Commissioner At-Large YPAR 1
Michelle Wong 5 Commissioner At-Large YPAR; Recast 1
Amber Johnson 6 Ethics Officer Youth Vote; Digital
Equity
1 Brian Morales 7 D7 Commissioner YPAR 2
I. Letter from Co-Chair of the Youth Commission
Dear City Council Members,
This marked our first full year transitioned away from COVID regulations, and we hit the ground running. We welcomed 10 new commissioners, increasing our BIPOC representation from 75% to 80% and OUSD representation from 52% to 70%. We also welcomed two new part-time staffers, Josephine Guzman and Sima Savdharia.
We started the term with our annual Fall weekend retreat orientation, learning a range of professional skills and building trust with each other that would carry throughout the year. Getting an ea rly start on this year’s projects, we held trainings on YPAR and Adultism. In the spring, we had a second retreat, giving us more time to bond, work on YPAR, and build relationships with our newest City Council members.
Our six ad-hoc committees focused o n Youth Vote, Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR) on Transitions to Adulthood after High School, Recast, Digital Equity, Adultism and Youth Empowerment education, and advancing the CTE Hub.
A significant highlight this year was increased engagement with public speaking on policy issues, with 14 commissioners speaking or submitting public comments, compared to only five (5) last year. We had a few mobilizations to the City Council, Board of Supervisors, and the State Capitol to meet with elected leaders and lawmakers.
Finally, the Youth Commission fortified our collaborative role with several Oakland City Departments (Oakland Fund for Children and Youth, Race and Equity, Wo rkforce Development, Transportation, Violence Prevention , Recast ) in addition to non -profit leaders (Youth Leadership Institute, Oakland Undivided). We co-hosted and participated in several City events, including the Commissioner Mixer, D5 OUSD Candidate Forum, Youth Listening Summit, City’s Earth Day of Service, and Oakland Love Life Day. We upheld our long -standing coalitions with Oakland Kids First, Californians for Justice, All City Council, AYPAL, and the CTE Hub.
In the coming year, we look forward to continuing this work to develop our skills and knowledge of local government and working to improve the lives of Oakland Youth.
Thank you,
Sophia Hesseltine
Co-Chair of the 2023-24 Youth Commission
Youth Leadership Development
A. Internal Trainings
The Oakland Youth Commission (OYC) is more than just a commission, it is also a leadership development program that provides training, mentorship, and thoughtful planning to integrate young people into government affairs typically designed for adult participation.
The OYC staff planned several workshops to expand OYC member knowledge and skills necessary for their effectiveness in their roles as commissioners. Our internal workshops have become an integral component of our programming and require a considerable time commitment from our commissioners outside of regular commission meetings. The trainings we covered throughout this year were:
• Local Government 101
• Campaign Building 101
• Robert’s Rules of Order
• Adultism and Youth Empowerment
• How to Write and Give Public Comment
• Restorative Justice 101
• Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR)
• Resume Writing and Building
Commissioners reflected on their growth due to their participation in OYC in an end of the year evaluation in which they reported gaining leadership skills in the following areas (percentage of youth commissioners who reported growth):
• Writing Public Comment – 94%
• Increased awareness of city issues and local politics. - 94% • Public Speaking – 81%
• Personal confidence in sharing your ideas – 81%
• Conducting Inclusive Community Outreach – 81%
• Resume writing – 75%
• Confidence speaking with city leaders, and elected officials – 63% • Restorative Justice Circles – 63%
• Survey Design – 63%
• Social Media Strategy and/or Content Creation – 44%
• Planning and facilitating meetings – 38%
• Focus Group Facilitation – 38%
• Participating in a campaign – 31%
• Event Planning – 25%
• Registering Voters – 19%
B. Commission Meetings
The OYC meets every 1st and 3rd Monday,
following the regular school calendar, from
September-June and takes a summer recess
in July and August. The OYC invited several
guest speakers from the City of Oakland
Departments and a few community
organizations to present and educate our
youth commissioners on city affairs.
One significant change this year was that lead
staff, Sara Tiras, set up a pre -meeting with
each presenter before they came to the
commission to plan a presentation that would be interactive, engaging, and accessible for youth to learn well and be able to share their ideas in a meaningful way. Upon reflection from the prior year, and through our adultism trainings, it was evident that many adults that would come to present were not used to or familiar with how to present and interact with youth. The presen tations would be difficult for our youth commissioners to pay attention to and learn from; and then when asked for ideas or feedback, they would have little to say. This was not because they didn’t have ideas, but because these presentations aren’t typical ly designed for youth audiences. This year's commission meetings were much stronger due to this pre -planning. City staff were very open and grateful for the suggested ideas, changes, and ways to adapt their presentations for youth audiences. OYC meetings included presentations and youth feedback sessions from the following:
• Oakland Love Life - Carina Lieu and Kev Choice
• Department of Transportation - Audrey Harris and Ruth Meza • Recast Program - Desralynn Cole
• Oakland Fund for Children and Youth - Robin Love
• Oakland Undivided - Patrick Messac and Georgia Savage • Department of Race and Equity - Amy Ferguson Yep
• Department of Violence Prevention - Dr. Holly Joshi
• Department of Workforce Development - Quinallison Dovey • Fire Department - Brianna Horton
• CalTrans, Vision 980 Project - Becky Frank, Laurel Sears, Randolph Bell • Cultural Strategist - Noel Ananya
• MACRO program - Elliot Jones
C. Youth Commissioner Accolades
Joining the youth commission is an honor and privilege. We strive to bring together a truly diverse group of youth who represent the best of Oakland, are willing to make the commitment, and show potential for being a great team leader. Being on the youth commission is yet another way for our Oakland you th to demonstrate their excellence and build their skill set and leadership potential that make them competitive in their pursuit of their goals post high school.
We have six seniors who just graduated high school this May 2024, and were accepted to prestigious Universities and recipients of many scholarships. We are proud of our OYC Graduates’ accolades:
• Amber Johnson, Graduated Oakland HS, Attending UC Berkeley • Ana Xu Li, Graduated Oakland Tech HS, Attending UC Berkeley ▪ Scholarships: Oakland Promise, Kristi Yamaguchi, PG&E Meena, Fiat Lux ▪ Honors: State Seal of Biliteracy
• Brian Morales, Graduated Madison Park Academy, Attending UC Berkeley ▪ Scholarships: Oakland Promise
▪ Honors: State Seal of Biliteracy
• Sarah Turley, Graduated Oakland Tech HS, Attending UC Santa Barbara ▪ Scholarships: Oakland Promise
• Anokhi Mehta, Graduated Head Royce, Attending Barnard University • Sophia Hesseltine, Graduated College Prep, Attending New York University IV. Youth Voice in City Affairs
In addition to giving youth f eedback and input during youth commission meetings, the Youth Commission had a few other opportunities to speak to the community and have youth voice included in city affairs.
A. Leading Youth Empowerment and Adultism Trainings in the Community In 2023, OYC youth members and staff worked together to develop training on Adultism and Youth Empowerment. This year we offered our second annual training for city employees and had about 25 employees participated in the training session.
This year two new youth commissioners stepped up to facilitate the training: Katie Liang (D5) and Quincy Russell (D3) along with OYC Staff, Sara Tiras. Youth presenters facilitated the discussion among participants to think about, or think back on, their perspectives as young people through conversations about times they were made to feel marginalized by adults as youth as well as times they felt empowered as young people and the difference between those experiences. The training included a breakdown of power, oppression,
intersectionality, and used Hart’s Ladder of Youth Empowerment as a guide. The final component of the training provided participants with a list of ways to incorporate youth perspective in their work as adults and city employees.
OYC’s second presentation was at the All City Council’s Conference for OUSD Middle School Students on March 5 at Mills at Northeastern University campus. We had over 10 middle schoolers in attendance.
We hope to continue to offer the Adultism and Youth Empowerment training annually to city employees with the goal of promoting and broadening meaningful and empowering forms of youth engagement in all city departments. We also plan to continue to present at other youth conferences such as All City Council’s Student Union whenever possible.
Youth Commissioner, Mia Hatfield (left), facilitates our adultism and youth empowerment training to OUSD Middle School students at the ACC Conference on March 5, 2024.
B. ReCAST Youth Board
ReCAST, which stands for Resiliency in Communities After Stress and Trauma, is a Federal grant program which funds youth -led projects in Oakland that address community trauma. Youth across Oakland are part of the youth -granting board to review grant proposals which are all centered on improving community health, safety, strength, and healing trauma. The mini grants awarded to Oakland Youth (ages 13-23) are up to $5,000 each.
Desralynn Cole, Head of the Recast Program in Oakland, came to present to the Yout h Commission in November 2023. Our youth commissioners were interested in the program and decided to make Recast one of our projects for the year, and four of our commissioners applied and joined the youth board. Ana Xu Li, Anokhi Metha, Michelle Wong, and Sophia Hesseltine were part of the cohort that designed the grant application and grading rubric to decide which programs would receive grants. They learned about the importance of youth philanthropy and received hands-on experience with the grant- making process. The majority of meetings were online , and the final meeting was in - person where they looked at the applications of potential contenders by analyzing their strengths and weaknesses. The Youth Board made their final recommendations for grantees and the mini grants are in the process of being awarded.
Youth commissioners were among some of the most active and consistent members of the ReCAST Youth Board, and there is interest in continuing this partnership for years to come. It seemed to be a natur al fit for youth commissioners to collaborate with city programs, learn about philanthropy and the grant process, and use their leadership to empower other Oakland youth.
C. Social Media Engagement
Social Media serves as a cornerstone for engaging with Oakla nd youth and the broader community. At the outset of the term, we established specific social media objectives, with two commissioners taking the lead in creating content for our Instagram page in collaboration with our staff. By the end of the term, we successfully gained approximately 350 new followers. Throughout the program year, spanning from September to June, we maintained an active presence by posting 58 times, averaging twice a week. Additionally, we regularly shared content from our community part ners approximately three times a week, ensuring our platform remained a valuable resource for Oakland youth, offering news and opportunities.
A highlight of our social media efforts was the launch of our 'Get to Know Your Districts' social media campaign. This was aiming to educate Oaklanders about our city districts while highlighting their unique characteristics. One of our campaign highlights was when
the City of Oakland’s main page shared our post, making it our most viewed of the year with 1800 views. These monthly features included a regional map of the district, information about the city council member representing that area, and a compelling 'A Week in the Life of a Commissioner' video reel, showcasing a youth commissioner from the district. Our top 'Week in the Life of a Commissioner' post reached 567 unique accounts.
Additionally, we rely on social media to engage our audience with our ongoing efforts to advocate for the implementation of Oakland Youth Vote, Digital Equity in the State, sharing up dates and opportunities with Recast, CTE Hub, and our work within city government. We believe our increased enrollment and interest in joining the youth commission is also in part due to our increased social media visibility and engagement.
V. Policy Work
A. Oakland Youth Vote
Oakland Youth Commissioners pose alongside other Youth Vote Coalition members at Fremont High School after the District 5 Candidate Forum was held.
The Youth Commission continues to be an active member of the Oakland Youth Vote Coalition. As part of the Youth Vote ad-hoc committee, Areli Chavez, Amber Johnson and Katie Liang worked together with youth members of other organizations such as Oakland Kids First, AYPAL, OUSD’s All City Council, and Californians for Justice to push for the proper implementation of Measure QQ and give power to Oakland youth. The coalition continued to engage youth through voter education and registration.
District 5’s Special Election Candidate Forum
On Thursday, October 12th, 2023, the Oakland Youth Coalition hosted and organized a student-led Candidate Forum for the District 5 Special School Board Election at Fremont High School. At the time, the two candidates for the District 5 OUSD School Board Director, Sasha Rtizie -Hernandez and Jorge Lerma, were both present. The candidates were asked questions about how they would represent students in District 5 if voted into office. Afterward, a mock election was held. Members o f the audience, which consisted of a majority of youth (around 150), cast a mock ballot. Results came out roughly 2 weeks later from the mock election with most votes leaning towards Sasha Rtizie -Hernandez:
67.1% for District 5 OUSD School Board Director vs. Jorge Lerma: 32.9%.
Jorge Lerma won the election by a few hundred votes, with a very low turnout in general.
While this didn’t line up with our mock vote, we congratulated Director Lerma and expressed our hope to be able to collaborate. The election results indicated to us what a significant impact youth vote may have in the future considering the close margin between candidates. We are excited and hopeful about youth voters being able to influence the priorities of future school board candidates.
The Candidate Forum was covered by The Oaklandside , Great School Voices , Bay City News, and Oakland North.
Mobilization to the Board of Supervisors and City Council
Youth Vote Coalition members celebrate outside the Alameda County Board of Supervisors building in downtown Oakland, on March 26, 2024.
On Tuesday March 26, 20 youth members from the Youth Vote Coalition (including youth commissioners: Haniel Kebede, Sophia Hesseltine , Sarah Turley, and Katie Liang along with OYC alumni Francesca Berlow and all three OYC staff) were part of a mobilization to
the Board of Supervisors to stand up for the implementation of Measure QQ. For several months, county residents had been calling in and attacking the youth vote on baseless claims of illegality, financial stress, and adultist and racist notions of youth incompetence.
These residents claimed to be a part of a right -wing election fraud organization. While it appeared to be the same pe ople giving comment regularly, we were concerned by the misinformation being spread and the lack of progress being made on the implementation of OYV.
All of our youth gave public comment and were addressed by several Supervisors afterwards who reaffirmed their commitment to implementation and thanked us for the civic leadership that we displayed.
On Thursday May 16, youth commissioners and staff along with other members of the coalition appeared before City Council’s Rules and Legislation Committee to urge the completion of an MOU between the City, County, and School Board as well as an implementation Ordinance. While we were disheartened to hear some disparaging public comments about youth made and we were pleased to witness several City Council members defend youth vote, and youth leadership in government affairs.
Youth Commissioners Mia Hatfield, Katie Liang, and
OUSD Student Director Vida Mendoza speak to the
Rules and Legislation Committee in City Council
Chambers on May 16, 2024 to advocate for the
completion of the MOU to advance the
implementation of Measure QQ.
Developing Civic Engagement Curriculum for
Oakland High Schools
As part of our work getting Oakland youth not
only the right to vote, but also ready to vote, we
worked on developing a civic engagement
curriculum to be used in Oakland high schools.
OYC Staff, Sara Tiras, took to lead on this project drawing from her 10 years of teaching experience. The curriculum was co -written with Oakland Kids First staff Domenichi Morris, and developed with youth and staff input from our coalition’s Core Leadership Committee.
Sara Tiras wrote four lessons for a one -week curriculum that could be adapted to meet the needs of any grade level or class in High School. The learning objectives for the four lessons are as follows: By the end of the week, students will be able to:
1) Identify what a school board does, the power they hold, and introduce students to who are the current directors and candidates running for election 2) Understand the history and context of the fight for Oakland Youth Vote 3) Articulate why youth voting is important locally and nationally as well as current political opportunities for undocumented youth
4) Get prepared to vote by registering in class and learning how voting procedures work (mail in ballots, polling locations, rank choice voting, etc) In April and May 2024 Sara Tiras and other members of the Coalition conducted a focus group of OUSD High School Social Studies Teachers from various schools and grade levels to test the curriculum in their classes and give us feedback and ideas for how it could be improved. We also got student feedback from over 100 students in Oakland schools.
Overall, the pilot curriculum was a major success. Students and teachers alike reported high engagement and learning from the four lessons. In the student survey at the end, when asked if the curriculum made them more informed and excited t o vote in the next election - 79% said yes, 20% are still undecided if they will vote, and less than 1% of eligible youth voters said no, they don’t plan to vote. Some students also reported:
“I got to see the student passion and why it's important to giv e students the ability to vote. It also showed me how much effort was put into making it possible for youth to vote.”
“I thought the simulation of being on the board and making decisions while listening to the opinions of the public was very useful. It helped me think of the situation from a point of view that I'm not used to and it contextualized some of the laws, systematic rules and more technical terms we'd used.”
“I thought the video of opposing people’s views was very interesting to see what the other side was trying to argue and if their argument holds up.”
The Teacher Focus Group met twice in total. Upon completion of the group, two Skyline teachers reflected on the curriculum:
"This curriculum was fantastic. It pulls the curtain of mystery back on the school board, voting and districts. One of the recurring themes I hear from students after graduating is "I never learned about taxes or voting." This curriculum opens up one of those to
students. Voting is one of our strongest powers as citizens and this helps support making sure every student who will eventually go into the polls has some idea of how and what to expect. I highly recommend this curriculum for all students!"
“This curriculum is engaging, varied, and very clearly written by and for educators. I love the amount of intention, nuance, and attention to student voice and engagement. I'm excited that such a historic moment is being rolled out in a thoughtful and intentional way.”
Teachers also shared some excellent ideas for how to further revise and refine the lessons to make them even stronger. We are currently going through the final round of revision before we publish the curriculum and make it available for free at www.OaklandYouthVote.org this July 2024. We have already met with OUSD District leaders and are planning to offer several Professional Development trainings, some paid through the Office of Equity, to OUSD high school teachers who are interested in using this curriculum in the Fall. We are excited to not only have worked hard to get youth the right to vote, but also to get meaningful engaging civic education into Oakland Schools to energize and mobilize Oakland youth to be lifelong voters.
The Oaklandside recently featured this article updating the public on our organizing efforts and the development of this curriculum featuring interviews with our District 5 Commissioner and Staff, Sara Tiras, on June 21, 2024.
B. Housing for Transitional Aged Youth
The Youth Commission continues its commitment to advocating for homeless and housing insecure youth and young adults.
Youth Homelessness Task Force
In April 2022, the Youth Commission and Youth Advisory Board advocated to City Council for the need to create a Youth Homelessness Task Force to study the particular affects and needs of youth who are experiencing homelessness. Over the next year, we continued to meet to organize and determi ne who could oversee the Taskforce. It was determined it made the most sense for the Youth Homelessness Task Force to come into realization through the County’s Continuum of Care (COC) and the creation of a Youth Committee. Unfortunately, after several attempts to recruit new youth commissioners to hold positions on the committee, the date and time selected were determined to be during high school hours making it impossible for youth commissioners to join. The time conflict couldn’t be adjusted due to a spo nsoring agency who was overseeing the management of the COC was based in Atlanta along with the scheduling needs of many other people on the committee. The Youth Commission felt it was ok to step back at this
stage and were pleased that several of our partners who worked on the TaskForce would be able to join the COC and continue the work.
Career Technical Education (CTE) TAY Hub Coalition
Youth Commissioners Quincy Russell (Left) and Bryce Hunt (Right) join architects with Designing Spaces Designing Justice to creatively imagine what the CTE Hub housing complex design could include.
The OYC continued to be an active member of the CTE TAY Hub, a housing complex initiative where transitional age youth who are housing insecure can live and receive a variety of resources to help them through the pivotal transition from youth to adulthood.
The housing campus will provide college and career counseling, mental health services, and a variety of other wrap around services. The Youth Commission continues to work with the CTE TAY Hub coalition of over 25 organizations to plan the design of this housing project and advocate for continued investment and funding in seeing this project to fruition. We had three youth commissioners work with this coalition, Bryce Hunt, Calupe Kaufusi, and Quincy Russell. Their focus included three aspects of planning this year:
• Public comment to emphasize the impact the CTE Hub will have and reinforce support from the OUSD School Board to continue the work for the Hub. Commissioner Bryce Hunt spoke out in support of the hub and talked about the impact it would have specifically on disconnected youth of color.
• Meeting with architects to brainstorm and plan potential design layouts for the CTE Hub and consider the various services the Hub will provide. • Conducted research and outreach to legal organizations aimed at securing legal support for future residents of the CTE Hub.
Our work with the CTE Tay Hub was the focus of Oakland North’s feature story on the Oakland Yo uth Commission on October 11, 2023. We have been a m ember of the Coalition for almost three years and plan t continue to stay involved t see it through to completion.
Youth Commissioner, Bryce Hunt, speaks to OUSD School Board to advocate for the continued investment in the CTE TAY Hub on April 29, 2024
C. Digital Equity Campaign
Overview of the Middle Mile Broadband Initiative
This year, the OYC took on a brand -new campaig n and partnered with #Oakland Undivided, a local non -profit organization, to advocate for digital equity in Oakland and the State of CA through the passage of the Middle Mile Broadband initiative. This initiative would bring millions of dollars of investment in new high speed fiber broadband infrastructure into East Oakland, and specifically to our most marginalized and least connected communities in the city.
According to Oakland Undivided, “the middle mile is linked to the backbone of the internet, ensuring whole communities and regions can connect. Without a robust middle mile, last mile connections - those to homes, businesses, schools, libraries, clinics, etc. -
range from impossible to impossibly expensive. There are myriad projects across the State already underway making use of this critical resource.” If the MMBI is completed as planned, California’s MMBI will be a future -proof network supporting connectivity in every part of the State, in all kinds of communities - urban, rural, and tribal - for decades to come. Today, 1 in 5 Californians do not have fast, reliable, and affordable connectivity. The remaining pieces of the MMBI are critical to changing that reality.
After our efforts to push for this project, Governor Newsom proposed a 2 billion investment in the state budget towards completing the MMBI. However, in t he past month he suddenly withdrew the proposal after news of the budget deficits were coming to light.
October 25 Delegation to Sacramento - Fix the Maps
On October 25, 2023, commissioners Mia
Hatfield, Amber Johnson, Katie Liang and
staff Sima Savdharia (pictured left) and
Sara Tiras joined #Oakland Undivided on a
delegation to Sacramento to visit the
California Public Utilities Commission. We
were there to advocate in general for
digital equity and to invest in the building
of new quality broadband infrastructure
in communities that need it most,
including East Oakland. The Public
Utilities Commission uses broadband
maps to justify where resources will be
allocated how ever the maps being
generated and used in the process were
clearly faulty.
Despite race and income being the best predictor of (1) whether you have access to internet, (2) how reliable it is, and (3) how much it costs, the State has generated maps that a re demonstrably inaccurate and systematically serve and benefit wealthy, demonstrably served communities while woefully underrepresenting need in the highest poverty, least connected communities this funding is intended to serve.
Three commissioners spoke during public comment and gave powerful testimony about the importance of reliable high-speed internet in their ability to complete homework and
stay connected to modern day technology and services. The commission was especially moved by the comment from our District 5 representative who lives on International Blvd along the proposed Middle Mile.
Various news outlets covered the days action, here is a video from KCRA, a local news station in Sacramento.
E-Comment: January 25 and January 26o
On January 8 , 2024 , Directors Patrick Messac and Georgia Savage from # Oakland Undivided came to present to the full commission on the work to get Governor Newsome to invest in East Oakland and the push to fix the maps in determining the funding allocations for the MMBI. We followed up on January 22 with a writing workshop on writing public comment, and the full commission voted to support and submit their public comments to the Middle Mile Advisory Council and the State Broadband Council to advocate for digital equity and investing in Oakland. Their public comments were read aloud during these meetings and once again were the only youth voices included in this critical decision-making process that will affect younger generations to come. We played the recordings of these meetings at one of our Youth Commission Meetings so we could celebrate our full commission participating in writing and submitting public comment and they could hear the impact of their words.
April 20 Delegation to Sacramento for Digital Equity
Youth Commissioners and Staff
gather at the State Capitol on
April 20, 2024 , for a day of
advocacy for Digital Equity with
#Oakland Undivided and other
state partners.
This Spring, five youth
commissioners Amber
Johnson, Katie Liang, Bryce
Hunt, Sophia Hesseltine, and
Calupe Kafusi and 2 OYC Staff
members Sara Tiras and
Josephine Guzman went on
another delegation back to
Sacramento with partners
across the state from the Bay
Area, Fresno and LA to
advocate for digital equity. We broke up into small groups to meet with lawmakers and
introduce them to the Governor's proposed investment in MMBI and new legislation from Assemblywoman Mia Bonta on digital discrimination.
Assemblymember Mia Bonta's new bill , AB 2239, adds a definition of "digital discrimination of access" to the California Civil Rights code that includes a disparate impact and intent as actionable. If AB 2239 passes, California will become the first state in the nation to define digital discrimination as internet service providers' business practices that have a differential impact on consumers based on their income level, race, ethnicity, color, religion, or national origin, and create pathways to remedy it.
We joined together to give comments and watch the Committee on Communications and Conveyance at the Capitol discuss AB2239 which passed and was moved forward to the Judiciary Committee. Our day of action was covered in various media outlets, and our commissioners were p ictured and quoted in the following article by El Timpano, a local news agency that “informs, engages, and amplifies the voices of Latino and Mayan immigrants of Oakland and the wider Bay Area.”
D. Youth Participatory Action Research Project - Transitions to Adulthood
Youth commissioners work on designing our survey questions (left) in March and conducting the survey at one of our four focus schools, Oakland Tech High School (right), in April 2024.
Background and Origin of the Project
In 2021-22 OYC was granted 100K from City Council to conduct a YPAR project that would review the city’s funding of youth programs and identify gaps and opportunities for
investment, the scope of project was very broad. Soon after, Staff Carina Lieu left her position and a few months later, Sara Tiras came in as the new Interim Manager.
In Winter 2023, the Mayor’s Office and Oakland Thrives conducted a fiscal mapping audit of City resources for youth accomplishing much of the original OYC project proposal so the project was paused again to reconsider the focus of this project and how to move forward without duplicating their research . Additionally, the City’s Contracts and Compliance Division was backlogged for up to six months and no new contracts would be able to go through so the Youth Commissioners would not be able to start this project until the following term.
By Spring 2023, Robin Love joined as the new Director for Children and Youth Services .
Ms. Love was able to work with staff and the Youth Commission to determine how best to implement a YPAR project with a more realistic scope and still give youth the training, leadership development, and opportunity to make recommendations to City leaders on youth issues. The Youth Commission decided that folding in the YPAR project as part of OFCY’s Strategic Plan would be a natural and meaningful partnership and the YPAR project was officially launched in January 2024.
Goals
We had three main goals for this project:
1. Train youth commissioners in the principles and methods of Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR);
2. Provide youth leadership development through the process of data collection and presenting findings, and the o pportunity to make informed recommendations to City leaders; and
3. Provide youth commissioners and POC youth commissioners the opportunity to have a voice in OFCY’s Strategic Plan and shape future directions and priorities for the City.
Selecting a Topic
In order to determine the focus of our research, we started by looking at the ten (10) Priorities of OFCY. Youth commissioners then voted on which one would be their two choices to focus on. Transitions to Adulthood was the top choice. OFCY has two key areas of focus within Transitions to Adulthood:
1. For Youth in Secondary Schools
2. For Disconnected Youth Not in School
Originally OYC was most interested in focusing on disconnected youth, but after considering the outreach methods and timeline of our project they decided to focus on youth in school so they could lead the data collection outreach in their schools and with
their peers. F ocusing on youth outside of school would be a much more challenging population to reach and might end of being more staff and adult led effort.
In February, OYC drafted the guiding research question:
“How are Oakland Youth experiencing the transition f rom School to Adulthood, post - pandemic?”
Survey
OYC spent a few sessions designing the survey to assess the needs of high schoolers as they transition to adulthood. OYC members asked them about job opportunities, career counseling, and how much their school aided them in their decision as to what to do after high school. OYC members spent a couple of meetings deliberating over the questions and revising them to become clear, accessible, and distinct.
Inclusive Community Outreach
After the survey was finalized, we built off the knowledge presented to us from Department of Race and Equity’s presentation to develop an inclusive community outreach plan. OYC settled on launching the school at four campuses that represent the regional span of Oakland and would be sure to draw responses from target demographic populations: African American, Latinx, Immigrant and First -generation students, low - income students. These four schools were also chos en because we had youth commissioners attending these schools so they could take the lead on the survey outreach and wouldn’t need to reply on staff.
The four schools selected were:
1) Mcclymonds High School
2) Madison Park Academy
3) Oakland High School
4) Oakland Technical High School.
We decided to compensate survey participants with a $20 gift card to increase the level of interest and compensate youth for their time and energy in crafting thoughtful responses.
We did classroom presentations on all four (4) campuses and collected 150 responses.
The participant data indicated that we successfully reached the diverse range of Oakland youth we wanted to hear from.
The demographic details of the survey participants are as follows:
Racial Identity
34% African American
33% Latinx
17% Asian American Pacific Islander
13% White
1% Native American
1% More than one race
Gender Identity
50% Women
47% Men
3% Transgender or Non-Binary
Grade
12th grade – 60%
11th grade – 40%
Survey Findings
• 25% of survey respondents stated that their school does not offer job fairs. Of these survey respondents, 79% of survey respondents want their school to hold a job fair. • A third of survey respondents are not hopeful about finding an enjoyable career that aligns with their interests.
• A third of survey respondents are not hopeful they can get a job that pays a living wage or a financially secure wage after high school.
• 37% percent of survey respondents are very hopeful they will find a career that will be financi ally stable after high school graduation. However, of these survey respondents, only 10% are Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders, 59% identify as men, and 24% identify as women survey respondents who are very hopeful about being financially secure after high school graduation.
• Survey respondents of color are less connected to their school career office in comparison to White survey respondents.
• 90% of survey respondents have been exposed to internship opportunities. However, only 70% of survey respondents have participated in an internship. • Eight out of ten survey respondents agree that students benefit from having job access opportunities throughout the year.
• One in every three (3) survey respondents do not know if there is a career office at their school. Of these respondents, 31% would like a career office in their school. • Survey respondents overwhelmingly agree that job and internship access is important.
• Forty-one percent of survey respondents agree that the same resources are available for all students. Of these survey respondents, 56 % identify as men and 25% identify as women.
Youth Commissioners Steve Nguyen,
Sophia Hesseltine, and Michelle Wong
work on analyzing our preliminary
findings from Phase 1 of the research.
May 2024.
Focus Groups
After we received enough
quantitative data, we began
gathering qualitative data through
focus groups. We wanted to hear
about the individual experiences of
youth in a setting that allowed
them to tell us as much as possible,
so we set up groups at their sc hools and read from a set of questions we had curated a couple weeks earlier. These focus groups were held at each of the same schools, except Madison Park, and got deeper insights responses from the participants.
Focus Group Findings
Oakland High School
• Focus group participants face challenges when entering adulthood, including financial concerns and lack of support when facing “real life” problems.
Participants named fears of feeling “stuck” after high school and college without the proper support to navigate these challenges.
• Focus group participants identify feeling unprepared with life skills that would be helpful in navigating post-high school or college challenges. Participants name lack of resources and classes in high schools that can support the ir transition into adulthood.
Oakland Technical High School
• Focus Group participants expressed frustration with limited opportunities in tech programs at their school, leaving them feeling as if resources are not equitably distributed among Oakland high schools. Participants also expressed not having trusted adult allies in their high school that can support and prepare them for post-high school transitions.
McClymond’s High School
• Focus group participants shared that schools are not properly set up to support students transitions into adulthood. Participants say that there is a heavy emphasis on seniors when all students in all high school grades should be engaged when creating and preparing students for adulthood. Additionally, participants say that a greater importance on life skills should be placed across Oakland schools.
Preliminary Recommendations
• College and career counselors should create a sign-in system for everyone who visits, compile data of who doesn’t visit, and reach out to those who are not being engaged by the end of 2026.
• City council can reach out to companies interested in hosting com munity job fairs in addition or instead of school job fairs by the end of 2026. • OYC should conduct more research for AAPI students to find out more about resource disparities by 2026 (both groups outlined this recommendation). • OFYC should launch an outreach campaign to inform school decision-makers of their students’ desire for job resources by the end of 2025. • City Council should allocate more funding for community -based internships to increase internship opportunities across all industries and provide eas y access to these opportunities by the end of 2026.
• City Council should partner with more community -based programs and invest more into job fairs at every school within the OUSD district to increase accessibility to students by 2026.
• The Workforce Develo pment Division can provide more access to part -time jobs that are aligned with students’ interests by 2030. • OFYC can invest more funding in community programs and schools to increase life skills classes or courses for students by 2026.
VI. Looking Ahead
Some of our work has wrapped for the term and some of our long-term commitments will roll over into the next term. As is every year, the new commission will vote to approve our ad-hoc committees and core projects for the next term in September 2024.
At the end of this term, the OYC had a much larger retention of youth commissioners with only four commissioners stepping down, compared to the last several years in which we have had ten (10) or more. Additionally, we received over 50 applications from Oakland youth and interviewed 25 applicants. We will be submitting our recommendations to the Mayor for the new appointments in the coming weeks.
The Youth Commission’s work with the Oakland Youth Vote Coalition will certainly continue as we approach our first ever election in which youth will be voting! We will be focused on getting our pilot Civic Engagement curriculum into Oakland schools and getting the word out to the community, so our youth are registered, informed and excited to vote! Our staff, Sara Tiras, will be leading several Professional Development trainings for Oakland teachers who want to use the civic engagement curriculum she wrote. We hosted a OY C fundraiser with the Oakland Ballers on Sunday August 18 and will host another youth-led Candidate Forum for OUSD School Board Districts 1, 3, 5, and 7 on October 22, 2024 at Fremont High School Although this is our 4th Youth-Led Candidate Forum, it will be our first one in which students will not be casting a "mock vote" because they will officially get to cast their ballots in the School Board election!
We will likely continue our long -term partnership with the CTE Hub Coalition and make sure our youth commissioners are involved in giving input on the design and planning for the Hub’s services and see this innovative and exciting project through to completion.
The Youth Commission wil l move into Phase 2 and 3 of our Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR) project analyzing Oakland youth’s transitions to adulthood post high school. We will continue to collect data, analyze our findings, and develop our recommendations to city departm ents and leaders. We plan to share our recommendations in the Spring of 2025.
VII. Youth Commissioner Reflections
We conclude our report with reflections from each commissioner on what they have learned and how they have grown from their time serving as a youth commissioner.
Commissioner Mia Hatfield Sophia Hesseltine
Role Co-Chair Co-Chair
Committees Restorative Justice, Adultism Recast, YPAR, Digital Equity
What did you learn
from being on the
OYC?
I learned a lot about how the
commission works. But in particular
how to plan and execute the
meetings. I also learned a lot about
how to be a good co-chair, for
example communication skills and
facilitation skills, as well for the
youth commission meetings.
This year, I learned a lot about the inner
workings of government. Whether
writing public comments or designing
focus groups, we put a lot of thought
into what voices are typically left out of
the conversation and found ways to
include them. While the government has
its limitations, OYC has helped me trust
the government a lot more and inspired
me to pursue a career in it.
How did you grow
as a leader and
community
member?
I grew as a leader in so many ways,
but in particular this year being my
first as a co-chair for the youth
commission. I learned what it takes
to be a good and engaged leader for
the youth commission. I also learned
how to step up and step back for all
of the events that we did as youth
commission.
OYC gave me a lot of exposure to what’s
going on in Oakland and inspired me to
be more involved as a community
member. It’s helped me realize the
impact that my voice can have on a local
scale, and that change is possible if
enough of us speak up. I never realized
how much impact just speaking at a City
Council meeting can have, which is why
it’s so important to stay informed and
speak up about issues that matter to
you.
Commissioner Haniel Kebede Sarah Turley
Role Commissioner At-Large D1 Commissioner
Committees YPAR; Recast YPAR
What did you learn
from being on the
OYC?
I learned about the many issues in
Oakland and how they are
addressed/resolved by our local
government. I also learned how to
write public comments and to be
better at public speaking. Through
YPAR, I learned how to collect data,
create a survey, and facilitate a
focus group.
I learned how different kinds of local
government operate like the school
board, board of supervisors, city council,
and commissions. I also learned about
how Oakland deals with violence
prevention, freeway crossing design, and
digital equity. Personally, I also feel like
by learning about fellow commissioners
through circles and games it expanded
my perspective on Oakland because
there are many people I would have
otherwise never met in my school or
social circles.
How did you grow
as a leader and
community
member?
I became more confident to speak
up and share my ideas. I also gained
a lot of leadership skills like
facilitating interviews and writing
speeches/public comments. Overall,
I was able to learn more about the
issues in Oakland and how to
advocate for their resolution.
In OYC commissions meetings I think I
improved from last year by being more
active in participating with presenters.
Outside of meetings I was able to speak
on youth vote in front of the board of
supervisors and work with fellow
commissioners on getting survey
responses from students at my school
for YPAR. I think I also grew in my
confidence level of working with city
government related things like Robert's
rules, talking with officials, and public
comment writing. I also think I improved
more broadly on public speaking and
writing persuasively. As a community
member
Commissioner Olivia Richardson Feldman Ana Xu LI
Role Organizing Officer Commissioner At-Large
Committees YPAR YPAR; Recast
What did you learn
from being on the
OYC?
My entire perspective on city
officiating changed after just one
year on Oakland Youth Commission.
I learned so much about criminal
justice reform, restorative justice,
alternatives to police officers, giving
back to the community, resisting
gentrification and so much else
about the efforts there are to make
Oakland a better place for everyone.
Holly Joshi changed everything for
me and made me want to make that
a career for myself, as well as the Cal
Trans people trying to give the land
back to the people that were on it
before the construction of the 980
freeway. I learned so much about
the work that it takes to run a city,
and the incredible people who do
not do it for fame, but instead for
the people.
I learned about City programs such as
the Oakland Fund for Children and
MACRO, which gave me a new
perspective on responding to
emergencies that I hadn't previously
known about. I also didn't know of the
concept of public comments, but this
year, I was able to write a couple myself
and hear them read out loud. When it
comes to the YPAR project and
developing the survey, I really enjoyed
the discussions we had, which reminded
me how much the small details matter in
creating the atmosphere for the survey
people want to complete, such as how
questions are grouped and in what
order. Lastly, the visitors, such as
Oakland Undivided, introduced issues I
didn't know about, such as the
Broadband for All initiative.
How did you grow
as a leader and
community
member?
I grew so much as a leader and
community member by taking the
information I was provided at
meetings, actions, and training to
help other Oakland residents have
hope for the future of the city. If
there is one thing that I will forever
take with me from Oakland Youth
Commission, it is that there is so
much good in Oakland, and so many
dedicated people who are striving
for a better city. I was able to
combat some of my peers'
statements with other solutions that
I was learning about in Oakland
The Commission provided ample
leadership opportunities that extended
beyond the Commission itself. Although I
primarily engaged in the smaller
opportunities, it helped me
accommodate and feel comfortable
taking on more opportunities out of my
comfort zone. The meetings aided me in
becoming a much more aware
community member who could inform
others, such as my fellow students at
school. While helping organize various
projects like the YPAR surveys and focus
groups, I also found myself interacting
and checking on multiple people at
school I hadn't seen or talked to in a
Youth Commission, which also gave
them hope for the future of the city.
while as I started engaging some more
there, too.
Commissioner Calupe Kafusi Nathan YuHeng Li
Role D2 Commissioner Social Media Officer
Committees CTE Hub; YPAR YPAR
What did you learn
from being on the
OYC?
Being on the Youth Commission
really showed me what little
power youth have in the
community. Over the months of
being on the youth Commission
I've seen that everyone has
something to say. I gained
knowledge and new experiences
from being on the youth
Commission.
During my time with the Youth
Commission, I gained invaluable skills
that I learned from my peers and
from the staff on the commission. I
loved communicating with everyone
in order to collaborate on various city
related projects within the
commission and hearing everyone’s
input as well as perspectives.
Through my participation in YPAR,
executive committee, and co-
facilitating RJ circles, I was able to
expand my own view as a youth in
the city of Oakland and help to apply
what experiences I gained to the
community.
How did you grow
as a leader and
community
member?
When I joined the commission, I
had very little experience with
public speaking. Over time I was
kinda forced to speak in front of
others and speak professionally.
Being on the commission really
improved the public speaking
skills I had and now I feel
comfortable speaking in front of
others.
Commissioner Quincy Russell Brian Morales
Role D3 Commissioner D7 commissioner
Committees CTE Hub; Adultism Training
Facilitator
YPAR
What did you learn
from being on the
OYC?
While being a part of the youth
commission I learned a multitude of
different skills and insights, including
how to communicate my ideas, voice
those thoughts, and effectively take
feedback and apply in situations. One
example of me communicating my
ideas was with the CTE Hub where we
gave input on different resources we
should offer in the housing project.
Secondly, I had the opportunity to
give the annual report to city council,
facilitate the adultism training and
table at the youth climate summit, all
of which I was able to speak to city
leaders about how we could improve
our city.
While on the Youth Commission, I
learned a lot about city government and
the way things get done. I initially did
not know about all the different
departments that come together to
make up the city government and all
the different boards/commissions. The
guest presentations helped a lot with
opening my eyes to everything that is
going on inside city hall and across the
city. I also gained a lot of insight from
my fellow commissioners, as they
introduced me to new perspectives that
helped us make more informed
decisions. Not only this, but I also
learned a lot of skills that contributed to
my personal development.
How did you grow
as a leader and
community
member?
I was able to grow as a leader in my
confidence and my advocating in
support of people around me. First,
the annual report was huge for my
confidence as it allowed me to speak
in front of a large crowd and share
events and actions I care so deeply
for, something I wasn't able to do
before. Secondly, while in my talks
with students and people around the
city/ country I am now able to always
step up and call out something when
I find it hurting those affected.
Through my participation in our
commission meetings, committees,
actions, and training, I grew as a leader
in lots of ways. The main way I grew as
a leader was with the constant
empowerment to speak up for what we
believe is right. I now feel more
confident in my ability to speak up on
the issues my community faces than
before my participation on the youth
commission. The subjects we were
trained on and held training for were
also very eye-opening and empowering.
For example, the adultism training was
eye opening because it is something I
knew existed, but didn’t know if there
was a name for it or if something could
be done about it.
Commissioner Anokhi Meta Bryce Hunt
Role D4 Commissioner Social Media Officer
Committees YPAR; Recast CTE Hub; Restorative Justice
What did you learn
from being on the
OYC?
My experience on the Oakland
Youth Commission has given me so
much valuable knowledge. The
biggest way this commission has
benefitted me has been by providing
me with so much information about
the city. For every
commission/organization that
visited our meetings, I learned so
much more about the intricacies of
how a city works. The transportation
centers and Dr. Joshi in particular
taught me about how much goes
into making decisions within a city.
A major thing I learned during my time
on the commission is just how much
power we have as youth. It is often easy
to feel helpless and unable to make
change due to our age, but from the
many organizations and initiatives that
have reached out to us, it is evident that
youth are such a major part of
representing and advocating for people’s
experiences and struggles.
How did you grow
as a leader and
community
member?
I grew as a leader mostly through
being a member of our youth
participatory action research
program, where we sent out a
survey to assess need amongst high
schoolers in Oakland public schools
transitioning to adulthood. This
taught me how to lead a focus
group, how to effectively speak to
kids my own age, and how to
collaborate with others to formulate
a survey. I also grew as a leader
through our team bonding exercises,
where I felt more comfortable
speaking out and expressing my
ideas.
Being on the executive committee
definitely grew my leadership skills a lot.
I got a lot better at planning meetings,
delegating tasks, and facilitating. I also
got a lot more comfortable with
speaking to public officials, due to giving
public comments at the CTE TAY Hub,
and advocating for digital equity with
Oakland Undivided at the Capital.
Commissioner Katie Liang Steve Nguyen
Role Operations Officer Commissioner At-Large
Committees Youth Vote; Digital Equity;
Adultism Training Facilitator
YPAR
What did you learn
from being on the
OYC?
The Youth Commission has provided
me with deeper insights into local
city government and politics. Being
on the Oakland Youth Vote
Committee, I have gained a lot of
knowledge about MeasureQQ. I
have learned specifically about the
delays in the implementation, the
advocacy, and the impact this will
have on Oakland youth with
MeasureQQ. Additionally, the Youth
Commission has opened my
perspectives on issues in Oakland
that are impacting youth relating to
education, mental health, and
violence.
I’ve had the opportunity to learn a lot
the past few months and developed
perspective, knowledge, and insight on
city issues and local policy. I learn a lot
about using my voice to help represent
the needs of myself and of youths in my
community to other local city
departments and community
organizations. I’ve learned the
importance of using voices and
expressing stories of youths to represent
the urgency in issues that must be
addressed. I had hands-on opportunities
to work on designing surveys and
facilitating focus groups to better engage
with my community and represent the
diverse perspectives of Oakland youths.
How did you grow
as a leader and
community
member?
Over this term, as a leader, I have
taken on the role of Operations
Chair while assuming the role of
District 5 Representative. I have
been part of many actions to help
represent my district such as
Sacramento Digital Equality
Advocacy days, Oakland Youth Vote
Board of Supervisors Mobilizations,
and public comments to the City
Council. As a community member, I
have gotten to know other
commissioners better through fun
activities and co-lead a training on
Adultism for City of Oakland
employees.
I was able to grow as a leader and
community members being able to have
this amazing opportunity to work with
my talented peers and staff members
who come into every commission
meeting with passion, kindness, and a
desire to uplift the community and make
it a more positive place to live. I had
many opportunities to develop skills that
I would use in many other opportunities
and careers moving forward that would
allow me to become a more confident,
personal, and aware citizen, student, and
community member. This opportunity
allowed me to continue building my
desire to make my community a better
place.
Commissioner Michelle Wong Amber Johnson
Role Commissioner At-Large Ethics Officer
Committees YPAR; Recast Youth Vote; Digital Equity
What did you learn
from being on the
OYC?
OYC has provided me with many
amazing experiences from the
committees I have been involved
with and the opportunities given. I
was able to be directly involved with
the YPAR project of learning how to
create a well-designed survey,
presenting the survey, having people
take the survey, analyzing data, and
conducting focus groups. I learned
about youth philanthropy through
Recast which showed me its
importance and the process of
grant-making. In addition to
committees, I learned how to write
public comments and a resume.
Overall, I gained exposure to politics
and local government which has
helped my awareness on community
issues.
I definitely learned a lot while on the
commission, but I would say the most
memorable thing I learned was about
the violence prevention program in
Oakland & also digital discrimination. I
think I've been pretty woken up about
major issues that go on in Oakland
because a lot of them are a reality of
mine of some kind but learning that
there are so many efforts of reform to
Oakland was really insightful & made me
appreciate my city even more.
How did you grow
as a leader and
community
member?
I grew as a leader and community
member through my participation in
OYC through writing public
comments for digital equity. It felt
extremely empowering to be
providing public comment to
important issues and topics.
Additionally, the training hosted by
OYC helped me gain more
confidence in myself and
knowledge.
I was able to grow as a
leader/community member because I
was able to uplift the voices &
experiences of the people within my
community who are typically overlooked
& underrepresented in advocacy spaces.
In the commission meetings especially, I
was able to talk about my experiences in
our discussions which I feel is really
important because it diversifies people's
perspectives.