Community Needs
Assessment
2024 Report
OAKLAND FUND FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH
2024
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...... 3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ........ 4 INTRODUCTION ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................. 9 OAKLAND’S YOUTH POPULATION ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...................... 10 OAKLAND YOUTH BY AGE GROUPS ........................................................................................................................................................................................................... 10 RACE/ETHNICITY OF YOUTH POPULATION .................................................................................................................................................................................................. 11 NEWCOMER YOUTH .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 12 SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND GENDER IDENTITY OF YOUTH POPULATION ............................................................................................................................................................ 13 POVERTY IN OAKLAND ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 14 DISPARITIES IN POVERTY BY RACE/ETHNICITY .............................................................................................................................................................................................. 15 HOMELESSNESS IN OAKLAND ................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 16 SUMMARY IMPLICATIONS........................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 16 HEALTHY DEVELOPMENT OF YOUNG CHILDREN ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ . 17 OVERVIEW OF GOAL AREA ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 17 REVIEW OF QUANTITATIVE DATA.............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 18 SYSTEMS LANDSCAPE SCAN ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 27 SUMMARY IMPLICATIONS........................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 28 CHILDREN’S SUCCESS IN SCHOOL ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...................... 29 OVERVIEW OF GOAL AREA ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 29 REVIEW OF QUANTITATIVE DATA.............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 30 SYSTEMS LANDSCAPE SCAN ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 42 SUMMARY IMPLICATIONS........................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 44 YOUTH DEVELOPMENT AND VIOLENCE PREVENTION ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .......................... 46 OVERVIEW OF GOAL AREA ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 46 REVIEW OF QUANTITATIVE DATA.............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 47 SYSTEMS LANDSCAPE SCAN ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 60 SUMMARY IMPLICATIONS........................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 61 TRANSITIONS TO ADULTHOOD ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .......................... 62
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OVERVIEW OF GOAL AREA ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 62 REVIEW OF QUANTITATIVE DATA.............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 63 SYSTEMS LANDSCAPE SCAN ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 71 SUMMARY IMPLICATIONS........................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 72 SUMMARY OF COMMUNITY INPUT ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................... 73 CONCLUSION ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................... 80 APPENDIX A: COMMUNITY NEEDS ASSESSMENT METHODOLOGY AND APPROACH ................................ ................................ ................................ ................ 81 QUANTITATIVE DATA ANALYSIS ................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 82 LANDSCAPE SCAN AND KEY INFORMANT INTERVIEWS WITH SYSTEM PARTNERS .................................................................................................................................................. 82 COMMUNITY AND YOUTH INPUT .............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 83 GRANTEE INPUT .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 85 APPENDIX B: COMMUNITY INPUT SURVEY FINDINGS ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .......................... 86 METHODS ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 86 KEY PRIORITIES FOR OAKLAND CHILDREN, YOUTH AND FAMILIES .................................................................................................................................................................... 88 APPENDIX C: LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ........ 91 LIST OF FIGURES.................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 91 LIST OF TABLES ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 92
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The Community Needs Assessment is informed by the voices, priorities, and experiences of Oakland’s children, youth, families, community-based providers, department and agency leadership, and local philanthropy. The collective expertise and perspectives of these stakeholders is the foundation of this report and the guiding light for the development of the Oakland Fund for Children and Youth’s next strategic plan (2025–2028).
We want to extend special thanks to the Oakland-based, community-based organizations that serve children, youth, and families in Oakland tirelessly every day, and that have showed up to multiple input sessions, completed surveys, and distributed surveys and other input opportunities to children, youth, and families. Thank you for your service to Oakland.
The authors also want to give extra special thanks to Robin Love, Child and Youth Services Manager for the City of Oakland Human Services Department. Robin’s dedication to the children, youth, and families of Oakland, and her steadfast determination to advocate on their behalf, is a beacon of hope in the context of the City of Oakland’s difficult fiscal climate.
We also want to thank the OFCY Planning and Oversight Commission for hosting several community input sessions throughout the community and for their oversight of this work.
About the Oakland Fund for Children and Youth
The Kids First! Oakland Children’s Trust Fund was established by the voter-approved Kids First! Initiative in 1996. It required the City of Oakland to allocate 2.5 percent of its annual unrestricted General Purpose Fund revenue to provide services and
programming to support children and youth from birth to 21 years of age. In 2009, Oakland voters reauthorized the Oakland Children’s Fund (known as the Oakland Fund for Children and Youth, or OFCY) for the next 12 years (2009–2020) through Measure D, which required Oakland to designate three percent of its unrestricted General Purpose Fund revenues to continue these efforts. In 2020, the Oakland City Council reauthorized the Fund for a third 12-year period. OFCY is administered by the city’s Human Services Department.
Authorship
This report was prepared by Bright Research Group and authored by Kristina Bedrossian, Carrie Oliver, and Brightstar Ohlson, with additional editing support from Kristin Owyang Gage and Carol Lee. Development of the report was overseen by Robin Love, Child and Youth Services Manager for the City of Oakland Human Services Department. The City of Oakland funded the research and writing of this report.
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Oakland Fund for Children and Youth (OFCY) is a voter-approved program that funds services and programs for children and youth in Oakland.
Since its inception in 1996, OFCY has supported a range of initiatives, including early childhood care, after-school programs, youth development, and more.
This report, a Community Needs Assessment (CNA), analyzes the current state of children, youth, and families in Oakland. It highlights the challenges they face, including economic hardships, safety concerns, and social emotional and mental health issues. The CNA also focuses on racial equity, gathering disaggregated data to understand the needs of underserved communities. The CNA is anchored by the voices, experiences, preferences, and needs of youth, parents, caregivers, and community members who participated in several community input forums that were hosted to inform this report. A detailed description of the report’s methodology is provided in Appendix A.
The report’s findings will inform OFCY’s 2025–2028 strategic plan, which aims to address the four key goal areas of healthy development of young children, student success in school, youth development and violence prevention, and transitions to adulthood.
SUMMARY OF OAKLAND’S YOUTH DEMOGRAPHIC DATA
This report identified the following key trends related to the demographics of Oakland’s youth:
• There are 91,991 youth under the age of 19 in Oakland, representing 21.3% of Oakland’s total population.
• Approximately 8,165 youth are foreign born. The increase of newcomers in Oakland (especially Arabic and Mam-speaking populations) highlight the need for culturally responsive programs and bilingual staff.
• Since 2020, the number of young children (0–5) has
decreased by 6% and the number of older teenagers (15–
19) has increased by 9%.
• The racial/ethnic composition of youth has not changed much since 2020, with “other race” representing the
plurality of youth (27%), followed by White (18%) and two or more races (17%).
• Approximately one in five middle and high school youth identifies as lesbian, gay, bisexual, questioning, or a Chapter 510
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sexuality other than heterosexual. About 1% of youth identify as transgender. • One in four people experiencing poverty in Oakland is a youth under the age of 17. Latino and Black youth have disproportionately higher rates of poverty, both in relation to their proportion of the population and as compared to other racial/ethnic groups. • According to preliminary data from the 2024 Alameda County Point-In-Time (PIT) Count, 5,490 people are experiencing homelessness in Oakland, and two-thirds of those individuals are unsheltered. The last PIT count in 2022 revealed that there were 513 young adults (18-24) and 162 children (under 18) who were experiencing homelessness in Oakland.
GOAL AREA 1: HEALTHY DEVELOPMENT OF YOUNG CHILDREN
This report reveals the following key trends that inform OFCY’s strategic directions for its Healthy Development of Young Children goal area.
Preschool access & kindergarten readiness: A significant proportion (15%) of children in Oakland do not attend any preschool or childcare before kindergarten. There are racial disparities in terms of preschool access. Latino children are most likely to lack preschool experience, with almost half either being cared for by family/friends or not attending preschool. White children are disproportionately enrolled in private preschools.
Students who receive free/reduced lunch, newcomers, and English-language learners are less likely to have preschool experience, further demonstrating the impact of socioeconomic factors on access. Overall kindergarten readiness scores improved slightly since 2017, however, racial disparities persist. Latino and African American students are less likely to be “on track” (37% for each) in key development domains compared to their White (60%) and Asian (57%) peers.
New funding sources for early childcare and education: Measures C and AA generate significant funds for early childhood care and education, with a focus on increasing access to high quality preschool for low-income families and supporting young children’s readiness for kindergarten. Stakeholders see OFCY as a crucial partner in providing flexible funding for promising practices and culturally responsive programs, particularly for underserved communities.
Additionally, they advocate for more localized, neighborhood-focused initiatives to ensure accessibility and engagement for families with low participation rates.
Parental support: Parents generally report high confidence in their ability to support their children with language and cognitive development activities.
However, they struggle with supporting their children’s nutrition and sleep.
Parents from minority communities, especially Asian parents, reported few opportunities for their children to talk about their emotions. While expanding early childcare access is crucial, there is a recognition that families need additional support to fully benefit from these opportunities.
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GOAL AREA 2: CHILDREN’S SUCCESS IN SCHOOL
This report reveals the following key trends that inform OFCY’s future strategic directions for its Children’s Success in School goal area.
Change in student population: In the 2022–2023 school year, there were 49,032 students enrolled in Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) district-run and charter schools. A majority of students (70%) were enrolled in district-run schools. After a period of steady enrollment growth at charter schools from 2013 to 2019, the number of students enrolled in charter schools has declined from its high in 2019. Latino children have represented the largest population of students in district-run and charter schools over the last 10 years. Over the same time period, enrollment of African American children in OUSD district-run schools has declined from 30% to 20% of the student population.
Disparities in educational outcomes: Overall, only 50% of all third-grade students in Oakland are reading at or above a third-grade reading level. African American and Latino students in Oakland have lower rates of reading on grade level, lower performance on standardized tests, and higher rates of chronic absenteeism and suspension compared to their White and Asian peers. Since students returned to in-person school after the pandemic, chronic absenteeism has increased significantly to 61% of OUSD students. Students who receive free/reduced lunch consistently perform worse on standardized tests and have higher rates of chronic absenteeism. This underscores the impact of socioeconomic factors on educational outcomes.
New funding for school-based after-school programs (TK-6th): The State of California’s Expanded Learning Opportunities Program (ELO-P) is funding OUSD to guarantee access to free after-school programs for students in TK–sixth grades who are low-income, English learners, or foster youth. This influx of funding allows OFCY to consider reallocating some of its afterschool funding to support programming for older youth in Oakland.
Mental health is a growing concern: The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly increased mental health challenges among children, leading to a rise in absenteeism and behavioral issues. The State of California is responding with several initiatives, including the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI), which aims to transform Medi-Cal-funded behavioral health services for young people. CYBHI focuses on building capacity within schools to address mental health concerns, including training school staff to recognize early warning signs and providing access to services for children without formal diagnoses. This shift toward preventative care within schools is crucial for addressing the growing mental Attitudinal Healing Connection
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health crisis among young people. Alameda County Office of Education, Alameda County Health, and Oakland Unified School District are working diligently to roll out this program and these essential services to students in Oakland.
GOAL AREA 3: YOUTH DEVELOPMENT AND VIOLENCE PREVENTION
This report reveals the following key trends that inform OFCY’s strategic directions for its Youth Development and Violence Prevention goal area.
Focusing on Joy, Belonging, & Play: A resounding theme from community input sessions was the need to focus on providing young people with opportunities to experience joy, engage in play, and foster a sense of belonging. Families and youth want youth-friendly spaces and events that make Oakland a more family-friendly city and increase social cohesion.
There was a strong emphasis on providing opportunities for play, physical activity, arts, and creative expression to support youth well-being, socialization skills, and social-emotional development. Many parents and youth service providers shared concerns that schools and programs were too focused on ensuring youth academic success, and that young people needed more opportunities to participate in youthful play, make social connections, and improve their mental health.
Protective factors are crucial: Having a trusted adult to talk to, knowing where to get help, and being involved in school activities are all protective factors significantly correlated with better outcomes for young people. While there are positive trends in students having access to adults they can talk to and resources for help, disparities exist. This underscores the need for targeted efforts to ensure that all students have equitable access to support. In addition, many young people in Oakland, especially African American youth, are exposed to high rates of violence, homelessness, arrest, and other risk factors. These factors can significantly impact mental health and well-being, requiring a multipronged approach to address both protective factors and risk factors.
Oakland’s approach to violence prevention: The Department of Violence Prevention (DVP) focuses on high-risk individuals involved in violence, while OFCY prioritizes upstream strategies like youth development, family support, and school engagement to prevent violence before it occurs.
However, several stakeholders point to the need to create a more coordinated continuum of supports between these two city departments. Both agencies fund organizations involved in violence prevention. The departments and the community-based organizations that contract with them could benefit from leveraging and building upon each other’s strategies. As DVP works with youth who are group or gang involved and eligible for focused deterrence strategies, there is a need to increase support for upstream programs that keep young people safe and prevent further involvement in crime and violence.
Dimensions Dance Theater
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GOAL AREA 4: TRANSITIONS TO ADULTHOOD
This report reveals the following key trends that inform OFCY’s future strategic directions for its Transitions to Adulthood goal area.
Growing call for increased support for older youth: During community input sessions, the highest priority was for services that prepared young people for adulthood, offered paid employment opportunities or other financial subsidies, and supported youth financial literacy. Youth financial literacy and self-sufficiency skills were named as common challenges for young people who are preparing for adulthood. System and community stakeholders are advocating for ways to increase wages, incentives, or other forms of financial support for young people transitioning into adulthood. The movement for guaranteed income is gaining momentum, offering a potential solution to address economic challenges and create greater equity for this population.
Graduation rates and college readiness: While the overall graduation rate for OUSD is 74%, there are significant disparities among different racial/ethnic groups. Latino students have consistently lower graduation rates than the overall average, and Pacific Islander, African American, and Latino students have lower rates of meeting A–G requirements for college admission. Additionally, the proportion of high school students planning to attend and graduate from college has dropped.
Career pathways for youth: Various organizations, including Oakland Promise, the Oakland Office of Economic and
Workforce Development (OEWD), and the TAY-Hub, are
focused on providing support and resources for young people seeking technical degrees, alternative postsecondary pathways and entry into the workforce. There is a strong emphasis on creating a college-going culture and ensuring that all young people have access to opportunities for success.
Funding limitations and siloed systems: The city faces
challenges in funding innovative youth employment programs due to restrictive federal and state funding sources, such as Workforce Innovation Opportunities Act (WIOA) and Job
Corps. Additionally, there is a need to break down silos between education and employment systems to create a more seamless transition for young people.
The Crucible
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INTRODUCTION
Since its inception in 1996, OFCY has supported a variety of essential services and programs for Oakland’s children, youth, and families, with a particular focus on communities that experience disparate outcomes in Oakland. OFCY’s leadership and partnership with city agencies and departments, OUSD, and community-based organizations has led to the creation of many new initiatives, filled gaps in services, subsidized costs, and expanded programming in early childcare, after-school, summer care, youth development, youth workforce development, and more.
Since the last CNA was conducted in 2021, the fallout from the COVID- 19 pandemic has painted a clearer picture of needs and challenges in the city. Children, youth, and families in Oakland are struggling with learning loss, economic challenges, increases in community violence, rising housing costs, and mental health crises. At the same time, the City of Oakland is facing a structural deficit that is leading to significant cuts in city services and programs.
This CNA aims to illustrate the state of children, youth, and families in Oakland through a review of quantitative data and an analysis of community input from youth, families, and stakeholders. The CNA focuses on identifying changes to the data on youth and families since the last CNA was conducted three years ago. The CNA disaggregates data by race/ethnicity, poverty, and other factors to understand which communities are experiencing disproportionate outcomes. OFCY is focused on improving racial equity in the city and is in continuous partnership with the City of Oakland’s Department of Race and Equity. Accordingly, OFCY has adopted the following equity outcome as part of this CNA: to gather disaggregated data to understand current conditions and ensure that the OFCY program design is sufficiently informed by and calibrated to the needs of underserved populations and those who have historically not been served.
According to its enabling ordinance, OFCY is charged with pursuing four key goal areas: Healthy Development of Young Children, Children’s Success in School, Youth Development and Violence Prevention, and Transitions to Adulthood. This report organizes the data and community input by each OFCY goal area. The findings from this were used to inform OFCY’s 2025–2028 strategic plan.
For a detailed description of the methodology and approach that informed this report, please refer to Appendix A.
Bay Area Community Resources
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OAKLAND’S YOUTH POPULATION
OAKLAND YOUTH BY AGE GROUPS
In Oakland, there are about 91,991 youth who are 19 years old and under, which is a 2% increase from the youth population in 2020. The largest group of youth is under 5 years old (26%). Despite being the largest group, Oaklanders under the age of 5 are the only age group that has decreased in size since 2020, as shown in Figure 1. The number of 15-to-19-year-old youth has also increased since 2020, by 9%.
Figure 1.Oakland Youth by Age Groups, 2020 vs. 2022
Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey, Table DP05, 2020 5-Year Estimates and 2022 5-Year Estimates
26,431
21,502
22,226
19,758
24,792
22,459
23,264
21,476
Under 5 years old 5-9 years old 10-14 years old 15- 19 years old 2020 2022
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RACE/ETHNICITY OF YOUTH POPULATION
Oaklanders represent diverse cultures, races, and ethnicities. While available data is not disaggregated to fully show the range of cultures across Oakland, it does provide a glimpse into youth diversity. As seen in Figure 2, youth representation across racial identities has not changed much since 2020. The largest percentage of Oakland youth identify as “Other Race” (27%).
Figure 2. Oakland Youth by Racial Identity, 2020 vs. 2022 Please note that the charts below include data labels as reported in the census, and no categories have been eliminated.
Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey, Table B01001B-I, 2020 5-Year Estimates and 2022 5-Year Estimates 14%
2%
6%
16%
1%27%
17%
18%
Native Hawaiian
and Other Pacific
Islander
Hispanic/Latino
Asian
American
Indian and
Alaskan
Native
African American / Black White
Other Race
2022
14%
1%
7%
17%
1%28%
15%
18%
Other Race
Native Hawaiian
and Other Pacific
Islander
Hispanic/Latino
Asian
American Indian
and Alaskan
Native
African American / Black
White
Two or
More
Races 2020
Two or
More
Races
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NEWCOMER YOUTH
Oakland’s diversity is also shown through its growing population of newcomer youth. Foreign-born youth represent 8.9% of Oakland’s youth population. In 2022, there were approximately 8,165 foreign-born Oaklanders who were 19 years old and younger. Almost half of foreign-born youth (42%) were 15–19 years old. As seen in Figure 3, these older youth have made up most of the foreign-born youth over the last three years.
There was no publicly available data on the country of origin for newcomer youth.
Figure 3. Foreign-Born Youth by Age, 2020–2022
Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey, Table B05013, 2020 5-Year Estimates and 2021 5-Year Estimates
1,133
1,480 1,428
3,221
1,367
1,974
1,795
3,389
1,041
2,086
1,634
3,404
Under 5 years 5-9 years 10-14 years 15-19 years
2020 2021 2022
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SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND GENDER IDENTITY OF YOUTH POPULATION Data on the sexual orientation and gender identity of Oakland’s youth and young adults is limited. Many data sources do not offer the full spectrum of identities in the response choices. During the 2022–2023 school year, middle and high school students self-reported their sexual orientation and gender identity on the California Healthy Kids Survey (CHKS). As seen in Figure 4, a majority of middle school (71%) and high school students (73%) reported being heterosexual/straight.
Figure 4. OUSD Middle and High School Students’ Self-Reported Sexual Orientation, 2022–2023
Source: OUSD Middle School and High School Survey Participation, 2022–2023
In the 2021–2022 school year, about 1 in 100 high school students identified as transgender (1%) or were not sure if they were transgender (1%), as seen in Table 1. About 4 in 100 middle school students (4%) were unsure if they were transgender, as also shown in Table 1.
Table 1. OUSD Middle and High School Students’ Self-Reported Gender Identity, 2021–2022 Middle School High School
Male 48.8% 48.6%
Female 46.5% 47.1%
Not Sure If They Are Transgender 3.8% 1.2%
Transgender 0.0% 1.2%
Source: OUSD Middle School and High School Survey Participation, 2021–2022; OUSD Middle School and High School Survey Results, Demographics, 2021–2022. 6%
7%
2%
3%
71%
73%
8%
5%
9%
10%
3%
2%
Middle School
High School
Bisexual Gay , Lesbian or Bisexual Heterosexual / Straight Not Sure Did not respond Pansexual Something else
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POVERTY IN OAKLAND
In 2022, there were approximately 57,247 individuals in Oakland experiencing poverty, representing approximately 13.3% of Oakland’s total population. Youth under the age of 17 represented approximately 25% of people in Oakland living in poverty. An additional 5,045 transitional-age youth (18–24 years old) experienced poverty in Oakland. Since 2020, poverty status has decreased for all age groups except for those 65 and older, as seen in Figure 5.
Figure 5. Poverty Status by Age, 2020 vs. 2022
Source: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, Table B17001, 2020 5-Year Estimates and 2022 5-Year Estimates 5,792 5,812
3,474
1,883
5,933
9,534
7,451
5,763
6,422
5,282
2,682
4,867 4,520
3,439
1,739
5,045
8,542
7,043
5,461
6,336
6,113
4,142
5 years and
under
6-11 years 12-15 years 16-17 years 18-24 years 25-34 years 35-44 years 45-54 years 55-64 years 65-74 years 75 years and over
Number of People Experiencing Poverty in the
Past 12 Months
2020 2022
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DISPARITIES IN POVERTY BY RACE/ETHNICITY
Youth and adults who identify as African American / Black or Hispanic/Latino experience poverty at disproportionately higher rates than other racial/ethnic groups. While Latinos represent 16% of the overall youth population, they represent approximately 29% of all youth experiencing poverty. Similarly, while Black people represent 14% of the overall youth population, they represent approximately 26% of all youth experiencing poverty. Racial disparities in poverty rates remain relatively unchanged from 2020.
Figure 6. Poverty Status in the Past 12 Months by Age Group and Race/Ethnicity, 2022
Source: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, Table B1700B-I, 2022 5-Year Estimates
26%
25%
27%
29%
23%
8%
24%
18%
8%
8%
6%
3%
7%
11%
36%
5%
16%
14%
1%
3%
1%
1%
under 18
18-64
65 and older
African American/Black Hispanic/ Latino Other Race Two or More Races Asian White American Indian and Alaska Native Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
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HOMELESSNESS IN OAKLAND
Every two years, the US Department of Housing and Urban Development requires cities to conduct a point-in-time (PIT) count of individuals, youth, and families experiencing homelessness. Preliminary data from Alameda County’s 2024 PIT Count reveals that there are 5,490 people experiencing homelessness in Oakland, and two-thirds of those individuals are unsheltered.1 This represents a 10% increase in the number of people experiencing homelessness in Oakland since the last PIT count occurred in 2022. According to EveryOneHome’s 2024 PIT Count press release, this uptick “is significantly less than the trend from 2015 to 2022, when the city averaged 32 percent increases between each PIT count.”2 Detailed demographic breakdown of the 2024 data is yet to be released. The 2022 PIT Count data shows that there were 513 young adults (18-24) and 162 children (under 18) who were experiencing homelessness in Oakland.3 73% of the young adults experiencing homelessness in Oakland were unsheltered.
SUMMARY IMPLICATIONS
Highlights from this analysis of Oakland’s youth population include:
• There are 91,991 youth under the age of 19 in Oakland, representing 21.3% of Oakland’s total population.
• Approximately 8,165 youth are foreign born.
• Since 2020, the number of young children (0–5) has decreased by 6% and the number of older teenagers (15–19) has increased by 9%. • The racial/ethnic composition of youth has not changed much since 2020, with “other race” representing the plurality of youth (27%), followed by White (18%) and two or more races (17%).
• Approximately one in five middle and high school youth identifies as lesbian, gay, bisexual, questioning, or of a sexuality other than heterosexual. About 1% of youth identify as transgender. • One in four people experiencing poverty in Oakland is a youth under the age of 17. Latino and Black youth have disproportionately higher rates of poverty, both in relation to their proportion of the population and as compared to other racial/ethnic groups. • There are 5,490 people experiencing homelessness in Oakland in 2024, a 10% increase in the last two years. The previous PIT Count data shows that there were 513 young adults (18-24) and 162 children (under 18) who were experiencing homelessness in Oakland in 2022.
1 EveryOneHome January 2024 PIT Count, https://everyonehome.org/main/continuum-of-care/point-in-time-count-2024/ 2 EveryOneHome 2024 PIT Count Press Release, https://everyonehome.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/2024-PIT-Count-Press-Release_FINAL_v3.pdf 3 EveryOneHome 2022 PIT Count dashboards, https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/asr1451/viz/TableauAlamedaCounty- HDXandSurveyData/ExecSum?publish=yes
Through The Looking Glass
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HEALTHY DEVELOPMENT OF YOUNG CHILDREN
OVERVIEW OF GOAL AREA
According to Article XIII of the Oakland City Charter, the OFCY shall fund eligible services for children and youth in four key goal areas. The first goal area, referred to as Healthy Development of Young Children, reads as follows:
Support the healthy development of young children through preschool education, school readiness programs, physical and behavioral health services, parent education, and case management.
OFCY aims to support parents and caregivers in their ability to connect their children to preschool, prepare them for kindergarten, and access other services that support their overall family well-being. As a result, OFCY is reviewing trends in data related to:
• Preschool experience
• Kindergarten readiness
• Parents self-reports on key early childhood development domains
Approximately 16% of all OFCY funds supported this goal area in the last strategic plan through the two strategies listed in the table below. OFCY- funded programs in this goal area reached 1,654 youth and 2,973 parents/caregivers in the 2023–2024 fiscal year.
Table 2.Youth and Adult Participants in OFCY’s Healthy Development of Young Children Goal Area, 2023–2024 Strategy
Number of
Youth Served
(FY ’23/’24)
Percent of All Youth
Served by OFCY-
Funded Programs
(FY ’23/’24)
Number of
Adults Served
(FY ’23/’24)
Percent of All Adults
Served by OFCY-
Funded Programs
(FY ’23/’24)
Family Resource Centers and Parent Engagement 1,513 6% 2,872 97% Social-Emotional Well-Being in Early Childhood 141 1% 101 3% Total 1,654 7% 2,973 100%
Source: OFCY Overview—Fiscal Year 2023–2024 4
4 For more information on FY ’23–’24 OFCY-funded programs, please refer to https://www.ofcy.org/funding/funded-programs/.
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REVIEW OF QUANTITATIVE DATA
PRESCHOOL EXPERIENCE
Young children who access a quality preschool experience have increased rates of readiness for kindergarten. OUSD surveys incoming students with respect to their transitional kindergarten and kindergarten programs to understand what type of preschool experience they had prior to coming to school. According to this survey, in 2023, 15% of children did not attend any preschool or childcare before kindergarten—a slight decrease from 2017. As OUSD has expanded its transitional kindergarten program, the data shows a small increase in the proportion of kids who attend OUSD TK (from 18% in 2017 to 19% in 2023). On the other hand, there has been a decrease in the proportion of children attending Head Start (from 10% in 2017 to 3% in 2023).
Figure 7. Preschool Experience by Type of School, 2017 vs. 20235
Source: Oakland Unified Preschool Experience Study, 2017 and 2023
5 Note: The “Family/Neighbor/Friend” category was added in 2023 and is not available in the survey that was distributed in 2017. 21%
15%
18%
19%
22%
21%
9%
7%
10%
3%
3%
4% 17%
17%
15%
2017
2023
OUSD Preschool OUSD Transitional Kindergarten Private Preschool Other Preschool Oakland Head Start Family Childcare Home Family/Neighbor/Friend No Preschool
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In Oakland, there are racial disparities in access to preschool education. Almost half (47%) of Latino children did not attend preschool (22%) or were cared for by a family/neighbor/friend (25%) before kindergarten, the highest rate across all racial and ethnic groups in 2023, as seen in Figure 8. White children are most likely to attend private preschool (60%)—a trend that shows a significant margin of difference when compared to other groups.
Figure 8. Preschool Experience by Race/Ethnicity, 2023
Source: Oakland Unified Preschool Experience Study, 2023 18%
20%
18%
7%
17%
6%
20%
25%
18%
19%
12%
15%
9%
16%
6%
47%
17%
60%
13%
5%
6%
6%
3%
7%
5%
5%
2%
1%
2%
1%
9%
2%
2%
7%
5%
4%
14%
15%
25%
5%
26%
4%
12%
12%
22%
8%
19%
4%
African American/Black
Asian
Latino
Multiracial
Other
White
OUSD Preschool OUSD Transitional Kindergarten Private Preschool Other Preschool Oakland Head Start Family Childcare Home Family/Neighbor/Friend No Preschool
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Of the 2,603 incoming students surveyed in 2023, nearly 70% qualified for free/reduced lunch. Students who received free/reduced lunch were more likely to have no preschool experience (19%) or receive care from a family, friend, or neighbor (21%).
Figure 9. Preschool Experience by Free/Reduced Lunch, 2023
Source: Oakland Unified Preschool Experience Study, 2023 20%
3%
19%
17%
6%
59%
7%
7%
4% 4%
5%
21%
6%
19%
3%
Free/Reduced Lunch
Not Free/Reduced Lunch
OUSD Preschool OUSD Transitional Kindergarten Private Preschool Other Preschool Oakland Head Start Family Childcare Home Family/Friend/Neighbor No Preschool
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In 2023, 30% of Oakland newcomer children did not attend preschool, and another 34% were cared for by a family/friend/neighbor before going to kindergarten. Children who were English learners (but not newcomers) were almost twice as likely to not go to preschool or to have care from a family/friend/neighbor than children who were not newcomers or English learners. This data speaks to a significant lack of accessibility to formal day care or preschool supports for children who are newcomers or English learners.
Figure 10. Preschool Experience by Newcomer Status, 2023
Source: Oakland Unified Preschool Experience Study, 2023
13%
21%
12%
17%
21%
18%
2%
3%
32%
4%
6%
8%
1%
4%
2%
1%
6%
34%
23%
12%
30%
21%
10%
Newcomer
Not Newcomer/English Learner
Not Newcomer/Not English Learner
OUSD Preschool OUSD Transitional Kindergarten Private Preschool Other Preschool Oakland Head Start Family Childcare Home Family/Friend/Neighbor No Preschool
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When looking at the preferred language spoken at home, there is significant variability regarding the types of preschools or childcare supports that families access for their young children. Children who speak Mam at home were the least likely to go to any formal preschool or day care setting before kindergarten.
Figure 11. Preschool Experience by Language Spoken at Home, 2023 Source: Oakland Unified Preschool Experience Study, 2023 33%
29%
11%
4%
21%
18%
11%
29%
19%
10%
18%
29%
3%
7%
33%
2%
6%
6%
4%
8%
1%
7%
3%
3%
9%
2%
3%
12%
3%
6%
2%
25%
9%
12%
49%
24%
21%
19%
11%
10%
36%
23%
12%
Arabic
Cantonese
English
Mam (Guatemalan)
Spanish
Vietnamese
OUSD Preschool OUSD Transitional Kindergarten Private Preschool Other Preschool Oakland Head Start Family Childcare Home Family/Friend/Neighbor No Preschool
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KINDERGARTEN READINESS
OUSD uses the Early Development Instrument (EDI) to assess kindergarten students’ academic and social-emotional development. The EDI is a 15- item questionnaire completed by kindergarten teachers to assess each student in five domains: physical health and well-being; social competence; emotional maturity; language and cognitive development; and communication skills and general knowledge. Students are considered developmentally “on track” and “fully supported by Early Childhood Education (ECE) systems” if their score in each domain is in the top three- quarters of all scores.
In 2023, Latino and African American students were the least likely to be “on track” in all domains of the EDI. Although the gaps across racial groups were narrower in 2023 than in 2017, the racial disparities were still present, as shown in Table 3.
Table 3. Percentage of “On Track / Fully Supported” in All Domains in the Early Development Instrument, 2017–20236 2017 2020 2023
Percentage of “On Track / Fully
Supported”
Percentage of “On Track / Fully
Supported”
Percentage of “On Track / Fully
Supported”
African American 37% 36% 37%
Asian 51% 54% 57%
Latino 45% 35% 37%
Multiracial 52% 61% 58%
Other 41% 48% 39%
White 64% 60% 60%
Source: OUSD Early Development Instrument, 2017–2023
6 Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander youth are not represented in the table because the sample size was too small to be representative of the entire population. Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander youth represented 0.9% (n = 25), 0.9% (n = 24) and 0.5% (n = 12) of all sampled youth in 2017, 2020, and 2023, respectively.
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PARENT SELF-REPORT ON DEVELOPMENT DOMAINS
A separate tool used by OUSD, called the Childhood Experiences Questionnaire (CHEQ), allows parents to report on their child’s involvement in activities that are correlated with children’s health, well-being, education, and social outcomes. CHEQ is completed by parents at the start of the kindergarten school year and asks questions in five domains: language and cognition, nutrition and sleep, peer experiences, physical activity, and talking about emotions. This tool is used by system stakeholders to better understand the types of supports that can be provided to children and families to ensure kindergarten readiness and success in school.
For the “language and cognitive development” domain in the CHEQ, parents are asked to “summarize the amount of time per week children engage in activities such as reading, storytelling, conversations, pretend play, rhyming, drawing, painting, counting, sorting, and more.”7 White and multiracial parents were more likely to report involvement in “many” activities on a regular basis, compared to other groups.
Figure 12. Parents’ Self-Reports of Engaging Children in Activities Supporting Language Development, by Race/Ethnicity, 2023
Source: Parents’ Childhood Experiences Questionnaire—Language, 2023
7 CHEQ definitions, https://dashboards.ousd.org/views/EarlyDevelopmentalInstrument2023/ChildhoodExperiencesQuestionnaire?%3Aiid=1&%3Aembed=y#2. 82%
65%
71%
89%
70%
94%
79%
14%
21% 18%
9%
23%
5%
14%
4%
14% 11%
2%
7%
1%
7%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
African American Asian Latino Multiracial Other White Overall Many Some Few/No
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For the “nutrition and sleep” domain in the CHEQ, parents are asked to describe if children are eating breakfast regularly, eating a meal with family each day, and getting enough sleep. Parents across all racial/ethnic groups were far less confident in their children’s activities related to nutrition and sleep, when compared to language and cognition. Parents were far more likely to report “some” or “few/no” in this domain than in the “language and cognitive development” domain. This gap potentially shows the struggle that working parents have when it comes to supporting these types of activities at home.
Figure 13. Parents’ Self-Reports of Engaging Children in Activities Supporting Nutrition and Sleep, by Race/Ethnicity, 2023
Source: Parents’ Childhood Experiences Questionnaire—Nutrition and Sleep, 2023
3% 2% 4%
7%
4%
13%
6%
57%
36%
53%
73%
64%
76%
61%
40%
62%
42%
20%
32%
10%
33%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
African American Asian Latino Multiracial Other White Overall Many Some Few/No
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For the “talking about emotions” domain in the CHEQ, parents are asked how often children have had the chance to talk about different social experiences and emotions with their parent/caregiver. Asian parents were far less likely to report that their children had “many” opportunities to talk about their emotions and were far more likely to report that their children had “few/no” opportunities to talk about their emotions. African American and Latino families were also less likely than average to report “many” opportunities for their children to talk about their emotions. This data point highlights the community input received through this CNA process when it comes to the need for increased mental health supports and skills in the community (more on this below).
Data on the other two domains (physical activity and peer experiences) can be found on the OUSD website.
Figure 14. Parents’ Self-Reports of Engaging Children in Activities Supporting Talking about Emotions, by Race/Ethnicity, 2023
Source: Parents’ Childhood Experiences Questionnaire—Talking about Emotions, 2023
52%
34%
48%
70%
52%
73%
56%
36%
32%
39%
29% 31%
25%
33%
12%
34%
13%
1%
17%
2%
11%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
African American Asian Latino Multiracial Other White Overall Many Some Few/No
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SYSTEMS LANDSCAPE SCAN
The early childhood systems landscape has changed and expanded significantly since the last OFCY CNA in 2021, and it continues to do so. While it was approved by voters years ago, Measure C (Children’s Health and Child Care Initiative for Alameda County) and Measure AA (Oakland Children’s Initiative) had been challenged in court and were recently upheld by the courts in 2024 and 2022, respectively. Under Measure C, a new sales tax revenue source will generate $150 million annually for Alameda County. First 5 Alameda County will administer 80% of these funds to “enhance the access and quality of early care and education programming; improve compensation for participating early-care and education providers; enhance professional development programs and the eligibility and enrollment system for providers; [and] improve community spaces for children and families, such as parks, libraries, and family resource centers.”8
In addition, Measure AA will raise approximately $30 million annually for the City of Oakland, of which two-thirds will fund early-childcare education for Oakland’s young children. First 5 Alameda County will also serve as the Early Education Implementation Partner for these funds—focused on expanding ECE slots for three-years-olds and four-year-olds in high-need areas, with a focus on families who are low-income or qualify for free/reduced lunch or Head Start.
Expanding the number of free or affordable early-childcare slots is essential to supporting the healthy development of young children and their preparedness for kindergarten. However, many system stakeholders pointed to a gap in supportive services that wrap around these children and their families to ensure that they are accessing these opportunities and supporting their children’s learning at home. Several stakeholders shared that OFCY plays a unique and important role in supporting community-based, culturally competent services that strengthen and support families through a multigenerational framework. The community based organizations (CBOs) working in this field help build parent-child relationships, laying the groundwork for strong family bonds that will support children as they navigate school and experience the successes, joys, and challenges of growing up in Oakland.
System and community stakeholders shared a deep appreciation for family resource centers and parent support services that foster the cognitive development of young children. There is widespread agreement that this type of support helps prevent the future disparities in youth outcomes that the data in Oakland shows for many kids. Alameda County stakeholders shared that many federal and state funding sources come with restrictions that require them to fund evidence-based practices that are implemented with fidelity. These stakeholders felt that OFCY had a more flexible funding source that could implement promising practices that are culturally competent and responsive to the unique cultural needs of
8 Source: https://first5alameda.org/ballot-measures
Through The Looking Glass
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Oakland’s many diverse communities. These types of supports were seen as essential for supporting families that have low levels of trust in systems, especially African American communities and Mam-speaking communities.
Some community-based organizations shared that there was overlap in the types of services that OFCY funds through its two existing strategies (early childhood mental health consultation and family resource centers). Lastly, several stakeholders pointed to the need to develop more place- based, neighborhood-focused initiatives that ensure the accessibility of family support services and early childcare opportunities for families and communities that have low rates of participation in these types of services.
SUMMARY IMPLICATIONS
In its goal to support the healthy development of young children, OFCY aims to see families connect their young children to quality childcare and access age-appropriate cognitive development and mental health services that prepare children for kindergarten. Nearly one in three children in Oakland does not go to preschool or day care, or are cared for by a friend, family, or neighbor. This number is higher among low- income communities, newcomer or English-language-learner communities, and communities of color, especially Latino communities—where nearly half of children stay home or access informal supports. The county is significantly expanding the number of subsidized slots for early childcare and improving the quality of this education due to the new funding from Measure A and Measure CC.
Additional outreach and wraparound services—using a culturally competent lens—that help families connect to schools and services continues to be an area in need of additional funding and investment. Parents report that they need additional support when it comes to teaching their kids about their emotions, supporting their health and nutrition, and other areas of support that are associated with the five key domains of kindergarten readiness. In 2023, Latino and African American students were the least likely to be “on track” in all domains of kindergarten readiness—at only 37% each compared to White students (60%) and Asian students (57%). Specific targeted support in these communities is needed, as this type of preventative work can help change the course and improve future academic and social outcomes for children.
Oakland Parks, Recreation & Youth Development
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CHILDREN’S SUCCESS IN SCHOOL
OVERVIEW OF GOAL AREA
OFCY’s second goal area—referred to as Children’s Success in School—is defined in the City Charter as:
Help children and youth succeed in school and graduate high school through after-school academic support and college readiness programs, arts, music, sports, outdoor education, internships, work experience, parent education, and leadership development, including civic engagement, service-learning, and arts-expression.
OFCY’s Children’s Success in School goal area aims to provide a continuum of supports for school-age youth that enhances their success in school and in life, provides opportunities for enrichment and joy, and motivates them for success in the long run. As a result, OFCY is reviewing trends in data in the following key areas:
• School Enrollment
• Third-Grade Reading Levels
• SBAC Standardized Stores
• Chronic Absenteeism and Suspension
• After-School Program Participation
• Parents’ Satisfaction with After-School Programs
• Students Reporting Coming to Class Prepared
Approximately 37% of all OFCY funds supported this goal area in the last strategic plan through four key strategies, listed below in Table 4. OFCY- funded programs in this goal area reached 14,658 youth in the 2023–2024 fiscal year, or 58% of all youth served by OFCY programs in that year.
Table 4. Youth Participants in OFCY’s Children’s Success in School Goal Area, FY 2023–2024 Strategy Number of Youth Served
(FY ’23/’24)
Percent of All Youth Served by OFCY-
Funded Programs (FY ’23/’24)
Comprehensive School-Based After-School at Elementary School 6,415 25% Comprehensive School-Based After-School at Middle School 2,795 11% Middle School Engagement, Wellness, and Transitions 958 4% High School and Postsecondary Student Success 4,490 18% Total 14,658 58%
Source: OFCY Overview—Fiscal Year 2023–20249
9 For more information on FY ’23–’24 OFCY-funded programs, please refer to https://www.ofcy.org/funding/funded-programs/.
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REVIEW OF QUANTITATIVE DATA
ENROLLMENT IN OUSD SCHOOLS
In the 2022–2023 school year, there were 49,032 students enrolled in OUSD district-run and charter schools. A majority of students (70%) were enrolled in district-run schools. After a period of steady enrollment growth at charter schools from 2013 to 2019, the number of students enrolled in charter schools has declined from its high in 2019–2020 to 14,883 students in the 2022–2023 school year—representing a 12.4% decrease.
Figure 15.OUSD Enrollment by District-Run and Charter School Types, 2013–2023
Source: OUSD Official Enrollment Over Time, 2013–2023
36,689 37,096 37,124 36,814 37,096 36,524 36,154 35,489 34,428 34,149 13,786 14,629 14,517 15,658 16,070 16,867 16,991 16,678 15,626 14,883 0 10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
50,000
60,000
2013 - 14 2014 - 15 2015 - 16 2016 - 17 2017 - 18 2018 - 19 2019 - 20 2020 - 21 2021 - 22 2022 - 23 District-Run Charter
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When enrollment data is viewed by race, Latino children have represented the largest population of students in district-run and charter schools over the last 10 years. A higher proportion of Latinos are enrolled in charter schools than in district-run schools (58% v. 46%, respectively, in 2022– 2023), but there has been a steady increase in the proportion of students at district-run schools who are Latino.
In the last decade, enrollment of African American children in OUSD district-run schools has declined from 30% to 20% of the student population, with only 6,970 African American students enrolled in 2022–2023. Meanwhile, enrollment of African American children in charter schools had stayed relatively steady, at 20% of the student population, but has started to decline in the last two school years (to 18% in 2022–2023).
Figure 16. OUSD District-Run School Enrollment, 2013–2023
Source: OUSD Official Enrollment Over Time, 2013–2023
30% 29%
27% 26% 26% 24%
23% 22% 21% 20%
14% 14% 13% 14% 13% 13% 12% 12% 11% 10%
39% 40% 41% 41% 42% 42%
44% 44% 45% 46%
3% 3% 4% 4% 4% 4% 5% 6% 6%
7%
1% 1%
1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1%
11% 11% 11% 11% 11% 12% 11% 11%
2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18 2018-19 2019-20 2020-21 2021-22 2022-23 Latino
African
American
White
Multi-Ethnic
Pacific Islander
Asian
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Figure 17. OUSD Charter School Enrollment, 2013–2023
Source: OUSD Official Enrollment Over Time, 2013–2023
20% 19% 20% 20% 20% 20% 20% 20% 19% 18%
11% 11% 10% 10% 10% 10% 10% 10% 10% 10%
52% 53%
56% 56% 57% 56% 57% 57% 58% 58%
3% 3% 4% 4% 4% 4% 4% 4%
4% 5%
1% 1% 0% 0% 1% 1% 1% 1% 0% 0%
10% 9% 6% 6% 7% 7% 6% 6% 6% 6%
2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18 2018-19 2019-20 2020-21 2021-22 2022-23 Latino
African
American
White
Multi-Ethnic
Pacific Islander
Asian
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FREE/REDUCED LUNCH
Among OUSD students, 82% qualified for free/reduced lunch in the 2023–2024 school year.
READING LEVEL
In 2020, OUSD began to use the i-Ready test to assess reading and math skills in K-12th grade students. I-Ready compares students’ scores to state and national standards to determine if they are at grade level. When students’ scores are grade appropriate or above grade level, they are scored as “mid-above” or “early on.” Overall, 50% of all third-grade students in Oakland are reading at or above a third-grade reading level. African American and Latino children have consistently lower rates of reading at grade level in Oakland.
Figure 18. Percentage of Students Reading “Mid-Above” or “Early On” Third-Grade Reading Level, 2020–202310
Source: i-Ready Reading Diagnostic, Third Grade, 2020–2023
10 Native American and Pacific Islander youth are not represented in the figure because the sample sizes were too small to be representative of the entire population. Native American youth represented 0.2% (n = 17), 0.2% (n = 19), and 0.2% (n = 19) of sampled youth in 2020–2021, 2021–2022, and 2022–2023, respectively. Pacific Islander youth represented 0.8% (n = 61), 0.7% (n = 58), and 0.8% (n = 62) of sampled youth in 2020–2021, 2021–2022, and 2022-2023, respectively.
53% 51% 50%
45%
27%
39%
63%
66% 70%
36%
38%
35%
82% 80% 79%
86%
84%
81%
2020-21 2021-22 2022-23
Asian
Overall
African American
Latino
White
Multi-Ethnic
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SMARTER BALANCED ASSESSMENT
In 2014, California began using the Smarter Balanced Assessment (SBAC) for its state-mandated testing. The test is used to assess three specific areas: English/Language Arts/Literacy (ELA/Literacy); Mathematics; and Science (CAST).
African American and Latino youth met or exceeded the standard at the lowest rate across all three SBAC areas, as shown in Figure 19. In the 2021–2022 school year, African American students met and exceeded the ELA/Literacy standard (20%) and the Math standard (11%) at the lowest rate. Latino students met and exceeded the CAST standard at the lowest percentage (8%).
Figure 19. Percentage of OUSD Students Who Met or Exceeded the Standard on SBAC, 2021–202211
Source: SBAC Score Comparisons, 2021–2022
11 Filipino, Native American, and Pacific Islander youth are not represented in the figure because the sample sizes were too small to be representative of the entire population. Filipino youth represented 1% (n = 152), 1% (n = 150), and 1% (n = 77) of sampled youth for ELA, Math, and CAST, respectively. Native American youth represented 0.3% (n = 39), 0.3% (n = 39), and 0.3% (n = 22) of sampled youth for ELA, Math, and CAST, respectively. Pacific Islander youth represented 0.9% (n = 136), 0.9% (n = 135), and 1% (n = 70) of sampled youth for ELA, Math, and CAST, respectively. 35%
24% 20%
51% 54%
74%
26%
15% 11%
48% 43%
66%
20%
8% 11%
33% 33%
58%
Overall Latino African American Asian Multi-Ethnic White
ELA MATH CAST
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Children who received free/reduced lunch performed worse on the SBAC. In the 2021–2022 school year, they met or exceeded standards on ELA/Literacy (25%), Math (15%), and CAST (12%) at lower rates than their counterparts, as shown in Figure 20.
Figure 20. Percentage of OUSD Students Who Met or Exceeded the Standard on SBAC by Free/Reduced Lunch Status, 2021–2022
Source: SBAC Score Comparisons, 2021–2022
25%
15% 12%
49%
78%
48%
ELA/Literacy Math CAST
Free/ reduced lunch Not free/reduced lunch
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CHRONIC ABSENTEEISM
In OUSD, students who are chronically absent are those who miss 10% or more of school. During the 2019–2020 school year, when students transitioned from in-person to online learning because of COVID-19, the rate of chronic absences among all OUSD students was 17%, which was half of the previous year’s rate (32%). Since students returned to in-person school after the pandemic, chronic absenteeism has increased significantly to 61% of OUSD students, with Latino and African American students having disproportionately higher rates, as seen in Table 5.
Students who received free/reduced lunch also had higher rates of chronic absenteeism. During some school years, students who received free/reduced lunch were chronically absent almost twice as much as those who did not, as shown in Table 6.
Table 5. Chronic Absenteeism by Race/Ethnicity, 2018-202312 Source: OUSD Attendance Group Snapshot, 2018–2023
Table 6. Chronic Absenteeism by Free/Reduced Lunch Status, 2018–2024 2017–2018 2018–2019 2019–2020 2020–2021 2021–2022 2022–2023 2023–2024 Free/Reduced Lunch 17% 35% 21% 24% 52% 65% 35%
Not Free/Reduced Lunch 7% 24% 10% 7% 23% 43% 10%
Source: OUSD Attendance Group Snapshot, 2018–2023
12 Filipino, Native American, and Pacific Islander youth are not represented in this table because the sample sizes were too small to be representative. Filipino youth represented 0.8% ( n= 298), Native American youth represented 0.3% (n = 93), and Pacific Islander youth represented 1.1% (n = 391) of sampled youth. 2017–2018 2018–2019 2019–2020 2020–2021 2021–2022 2022–2023 Overall 15% 32% 17% 20% 45% 61%
African American 24% 44% 27% 32% 58% 71%
Asian 5% 16% 8% 8% 25% 36%
Latino 15% 34% 19% 22% 51% 67%
Multi-Ethnic 9% 23% 10% 9% 28% 52%
White 5% 17% 7% 5% 20% 48%
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SUSPENSIONS
African American students continue to be suspended in OUSD at disproportionate rates. The suspension rate of African American students is more than twice as high as the rate for all students, as seen in Table 7. Similar to the trend with chronic absenteeism, over the last three years, students who received free/reduced lunch were suspended at much greater rates than those who did not receive free/reduced lunch (4% vs 1%).
Table 7. Suspensions By Racial Group, 2019–202313
2019–2020 2021–2022 2022–2023
Overall 3% 3% 4%
African American 7% 8% 9%
Asian 1% 1% 1%
Latino 2% 2% 2%
Multi-Ethnic 1% 3% 3%
Pacific Islander 5% 5% 7%
White 1% 1% 2%
Source: Students Receiving Suspensions, by Year, 2019–2023
13 Filipino and Native American youth are not represented in this table because the sample sizes were too small to be representative of the entire population.
Filipino youth represented 0% (n = 1), 0.6% (n = 7), and 0.3% (n= 4) of sampled youth in 2019–2020, 2021–2022, and 2022–2023, respectively. Native American youth represented 0.7% (n = 8), 0.2% (n = 3), and 0.5% (n = 6) of sampled youth in 2019–2020, 2021–2022, and 2022–2023, respectively.
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COMING TO CLASS PREPARED
Despite these negative outcomes, a majority of students self-report that they feel prepared for school. Among middle school students, a majority of African American (51%) and Latino (54%) students reported coming to class prepared almost all the time or often in the past 30 days, as seen in Figure 21.
Figure 21. Percentage of Middle School Students Reporting Coming to Class Prepared Almost All the Time and Often During the Past 30 Days, by Race/Ethnicity14
Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, Middle School, 2021–2022
14 American Indigenous / Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander are not represented in this figure because the sample sizes were too small to be representative of the entire population. American Indigenous / Alaska Native youth represented 0.8% (n = 17), and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander youth represented 1.3% (n = 29), of sampled youth. The overall average is for all students across racial groups and since it's not a median calculation, the race-specific averages could be higher or lower than the overall average. 51%
51%
76%
54%
67%
85%
65%
55%
Overall
African American
Asian
Hispanic/ Latino
Two or more races
White
Middle Eastern or North African
Something Else
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Similarly, when looking at high school students, a majority of African American (55%) and Latino (59%) students reported being prepared for class in the past 30 days, as seen in Figure 22.
Figure 22. Percentage of High School Students Reporting Coming to Class Prepared Almost All the Time and Often During the Past 30 Days, by Race/Ethnicity15
Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, High School, 2021–2022
15 American Indigenous / Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander are not represented in this figure because the sample sizes were too small to be representative of the entire population. American Indigenous / Alaska Native youth represented 0.7% (n=17), and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander youth represented 1.4% (n=34) of sampled youth. The overall average is for all students across racial groups and since it's not a median calculation, the race-specific averages could be higher or lower than the overall average. 45%
55%
71%
57%
60%
59%
59%
47%
Overall
African American
Asian or Asian American
White
Mixed (two or more) races
Hispanic/Latino
Middle Eastern or North African
Something Else
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PARENTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF AFTER-SCHOOL PROGRAMS
In the 2022–2023 school year, about one-third of parents felt that their child learned skills that helped with their schoolwork in after-school programs (28%) and that the after-school program provided opportunities that their child wouldn’t otherwise have access to (31%).
Table 8. Parents Self-Reporting Their Child Learns Skills that Help with Their School Work in the School’s After-School Program, 2020–202316 2020–2021 2021–2022 2022–2023
Overall 25% 24% 28%
African American 31% 30% 39%
East Asian 31% 34% 36%
Hispanic/Latino 35% 28% 34%
Middle Eastern or North African 19% 16% 24%
South Asian 21% 29% 33%
Southeastern Asian 28% 35% 34%
Two or More Races 13% 19% 20%
White 8% 15% 13%
Source: California Schools Parent Survey Results by Question, 2020–2023
16 American Indigenous / Alaska Native, Filipino, and Pacific Islander youth are not represented in this table because the sample sizes were too small to be representative of the entire population. American Indigenous / Alaska Native youth represented 0.5% (n = 39), 0.6% (n = 40), and 0.8% (n = 49) of sampled youth in 2020–2021, 2021–2022, 2022–2023, respectively. Filipino youth represented 1.1% (n = 79), 1.0% (n = 62), and 0.8% (n = 51) of sampled youth in 2020–2021, 2021–2022, and 2022–2023, respectively. Pacific Islander youth represented 0.6% (n = 48), 0.7% (n = 45), and 0.5% (n = 33) of sampled youth in 2020–2021, 2021–2022, and 2022–2023, respectively.
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Table 9. Parents Self-Reporting That Their After-School Program Provides Opportunities for Their Child That They Wouldn't Otherwise Have Access To on the CHKS Parent Survey, 2020–202317
2020–2021 2021–2022 2022–2023
Overall 26% 26% 31%
African American 32% 33% 40%
East Asian 31% 33% 34%
Hispanic/Latino 31% 27% 33%
Middle Eastern or North African 25% 15% 20%
South Asian 22% 28% 33%
Southeastern Asian 26% 32% 33%
Two or More Races 18% 25% 29%
White 17% 24% 25%
Source: California Schools Parent Survey Results by Question, 2020–2023
After-school programs aim to provide parents with opportunities to learn more about what their child is learning in school and how they can provide academic support. In the 2022–2023 school year, almost one-fourth of parents (22%) felt that they knew more about what goes on during the school day because their child was in the school’s after-school program. A majority of parents felt that they were extremely or quite confident (70%) in their ability to support their child’s learning at home.18
17 American Indigenous / Alaska Native, Filipino, and Pacific Islander youth are not represented in this table because the sample sizes were too small to be representative of the entire population. American Indigenous / Alaska Native youth represented 0.5% (n = 39), 0.6% (n = 40), and 0.6% (n = 40) of sampled youth in 2020–2021, 2021–2022, and 2022-23, respectively. Filipino youth represented 1.1% (n = 79), 1% (n = 64), and 0.8% (n = 49) of sampled youth in 2020–2021, 2021–2022, and 2022–2023, respectively. Pacific Islander youth represented 0.6% (n = 48), 0.7% (n = 46), and 0.5% (n = 33) of sampled youth in 2020–2021, 2021–2022, and 2022–2023, respectively.
18 California Schools Parent Survey Results by Question, 2020–2023
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SYSTEMS LANDSCAPE SCAN
The OFCY-OUSD Afterschool Partnership is a long-standing public system partnership, in which OFCY provides matching funds to community-based agencies that OUSD has selected to operate after-school programs in Title 1 schools. OUSD’s after-school programs are primarily funded by the State of California’s Department of Education (CDE). CDE administers federal and state funds to Local Educational Agencies (LEAs)—such as OUSD—to support quality expanded learning programs before school, after school, and during the summer.
Since OFCY’s last CNA, CDE has created a
significant new funding source for after-
school programs for TK-6th grade students—
the Expanded Learning Opportunities
Program (ELO-P). ELO-P requires that any “unduplicated student” can access after-school and summer programs at no cost if they want it. An “unduplicated student” is a student enrolled in a school district or a charter school who is classified as an English learner, is eligible for free/reduced lunch, or is a foster youth. Over the years, CDE, OUSD, and other funders have increased their standards for the quality of after-school programs. As a result, the after-school industry has become increasingly professionalized, with certifications, standards, career tracks, improved salaries, and expectations of professional development and continuing education.
In addition to school-based after-school and summer programming, the City of Oakland Parks, Recreation & Youth Development department (OPRYD) also funds community-based after-school and summer programs at OPRYD sites. OPRYD programs are free for kids in the lowest-income brackets; however, OPRYD does have high demand from working families who do not qualify for free programming but still cannot afford the fee structure for OPYRD programs.
System partners, community leaders, and family members alike are concerned about the chronic absenteeism of OUSD students. As reported above, 61% of OUSD students are considered chronically absent. While this increased trend of absenteeism is seen across the country, OUSD’s outcomes on this indicator are far worse than the national average of 26%.19 Students’ lack of attendance at school exacerbates the learning loss and socialization challenges that young people experienced as a result of the remote learning environment that was created during the COVID-19 pandemic. A New York Times article on the topic reports, “The habit of daily attendance—and many families’ trust—was severed when schools
19 https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/03/29/us/chronic-absences.html “Expanded Learning means before school, after school, [or during] summer, or intersession learning programs that focus on developing the academic, social, emotional, and physical needs and interests of students through hands-on, engaging learning experiences.
It is the intent of the Legislature that Expanded Learning programs are student-centered, results driven, include
community partners, and complement, but do not replicate, learning activities in the regular school day and school year.” – CDE ELO-P Website
Refugee & Immigrant
Transitions
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shuttered in spring 2020. Even after schools reopened, things hardly snapped back to normal. Districts offered remote options, required Covid-19 quarantines and relaxed policies around attendance and grading.”20 Oakland system leaders and community members concur with this sentiment.
Some community members felt that going to school every day is no longer an essential part of every family’s daily routine. Other community members shared that it is less socially acceptable to send kids to school even when they are a little sick due to fears of spreading COVID or other illnesses; many parents also shared that their children had been sick much more frequently this year as their immune systems adjust to being exposed to other viruses and illnesses again. While absenteeism is seen across all income levels, in Oakland, the CBOs operating after-school programs attribute the lack of attendance at school to children working to earn income for their families or to take care of other family members.
In addition, youth experienced heightened mental health challenges due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and many resort to skipping school when they are feeling emotionally unwell.
The State of California is responding to the mental health crisis for students in school through the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI), a historic $5 billion investment meant to transform Medi-Cal-funded behavioral health services for young people. CYBHI is focused on four key strategies: 1) expanding and building the capacity of the behavioral health workforce; 2) scaling evidence-based and community-defined evidence practices to expand the infrastructure of the behavioral health ecosystem, with a focus on schools; 3) creating new Medi-Cal-covered benefits for families for school-linked behavioral health services; and 4) improving public awareness of behavioral health services through outreach and education campaigns as well as educational resources for parents, educators, and youth.
Alameda County’s Office of Education and Center for Healthy Schools and Communities are partnering to support schools as they expand the workforce of school-based behavioral health providers and learn to bill Medi-Cal for preventative behavioral health services and programs. Among the outcomes of this work, this shift means that more services will be provided to children who do not have a behavioral health diagnosis but do exhibit early warning indicators or signs of a potential mental illness or substance use disorder. In addition, a new professional classification of wellness coaches will allow CBOs to hire and train paraprofessionals to offer wellness supports to kids in schools and bill this expense to Medi-Cal.
20 https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/03/29/us/chronic-absences.html Bay Area Community Resources
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In addition, voters recently approved Proposition 1 (referred to as the Behavioral Health Services Act, or BHSA), a statewide initiative that aims to improve the behavioral health services system. Among other changes, BHSA reworks the longstanding Mental Health Services Act funding stream that counties receive to pay for prevention and early-intervention programs and services. As the state begins to plan implementation for BHSA, many Oakland-serving CBOs will experience significant decreases in the funding that they receive to provide prevention-focused behavioral health services in the community.
SUMMARY IMPLICATIONS
There are 49,032 students enrolled in OUSD district-run and charter schools, of which 82% qualify for free/reduced lunch. Latino children have represented the largest racial/ethnic population of students in district-run and charter schools over the last 10 years. In the last decade, enrollment of African American children in OUSD district-run schools has declined from 30% to 20% of the student population.
Academic outcomes for OUSD students are suffering in recent years due to consistent inequities in our systems that have become further exacerbated by the learning loss and mental health impacts associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall, 50% of all third-grade students in Oakland are reading at or above a third-grade reading level. African American and Latino children have consistently lower rates of reading at grade level. In academia, the third- grade reading indicator is linked with lifelong negative outcomes, including future unemployment, involvement in the criminal justice system, homelessness, and more.
Behavioral and mental health problems have also become exacerbated in recent years. Since students returned to in-person school after the pandemic, chronic absenteeism has increased significantly to 61% of OUSD students, with Latino and African American students having disproportionately higher rates, as seen in Table 5. Students who received free/reduced lunch also had higher rates of chronic absenteeism. In some school years, students who received free/reduced lunch were chronically absent almost twice as much as those who did not, as shown in Table 6.
System leaders in the state and county are working to address some of these challenges by significantly expanding the accessibility and quality of after-school programs and school-linked behavioral health services. The new ELO-P funding stream will cover the costs of after-school programming for students who are the lowest income in TK-6th grades. Meanwhile, many working families cannot afford the fee structure of the OPRYD programs. OPRYD reports a Safe Passages
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growing demand for free or subsidized after-school and summer programs from these families. In addition, there is a schism among after-school providers and system leadership around the role and goals of after-school providers. Some believe that after-school providers should scaffold classroom learning to improve students’ academic outcomes. Others believe that after-school providers should focus on creating enrichment, arts education, and joy-filled opportunities that attract students and are responsive to their interests. Still others believe that after-school programs— especially in the middle and high school years—should be focused on career exposure, soft skills, and other job-readiness skills.
In addition, the State of California’s Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative and the passage of Proposition 1 will significantly change the funding landscape and scope of behavioral health services that are available to youth. By some accounts, there will be an increase in supportive services to youth in schools, but these shifts will take time to materialize in terms of actual changes to programs and the associated outcomes for young people.
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YOUTH DEVELOPMENT AND VIOLENCE PREVENTION
OVERVIEW OF GOAL AREA
OFCY’s third goal area—referred to as Youth Development and Violence Prevention—is defined in the City Charter as:
Prevent and reduce violence, crime, and gang involvement among children and youth through case management, physical and behavioral health services, internships, work experience, outdoor education, and leadership development, including civic engagement, service-learning, and arts expression.
OFCY aims to reach low-income youth residing in equity zones through innovative youth development programming. As a result, OFCY is reviewing trends in data related to:
• Youth Self-Reported Protective Factors
• Youth Self-Reports on Mental Health and Trauma
• Involvement in Student Leadership and Extracurricular Activities • Involvement in the Criminal Justice System
• Unhoused Population
Approximately 31% of all OFCY funds supported this goal area in the last strategic plan through three key strategies, listed in the table below.
OFCY-funded programs in this goal area reached 7,304 youth in the 2023–2024 fiscal year, or 29% of all youth served by OFCY grantees.
Table 10. Youth Participants in OFCY’s Youth Development and Violence Prevention Goal Area, FY 2023–2024 Strategy Number of Youth Served
(FY ’23/’24)
Percent of All Youth Served
by OFCY-Funded Programs
(FY ’23/’24)
Youth Leadership and Development 6,042 24%
Summer Academic and Enrichment Programs 1,008 4%
Violence Prevention Programming 254 1%
Total 7,304 29%
Source: OFCY Overview—Fiscal Year 2023–2024 21
21 For more information on FY ’23–’24 OFCY-funded programs, please refer to https://www.ofcy.org/funding/funded-programs/.
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REVIEW OF QUANTITATIVE DATA
SELF-REPORTS ON PROTECTIVE FACTORS
There are several important protective factors that are correlated with positive youth development. These protective factors include having a trusting relationship with a caring adult, knowing where to go to solve problems, having positive relationships with peers in school, and others.
The California Healthy Kids Survey surveys students on several protective factors.
In the 2022–2023 school year, over half of all middle school students (66%) and almost half of high school students (49%) had an adult at their school whom they could talk to about their problems. Middle Eastern / North African high school students had the lowest reported rate of having an adult to talk to.
Figure 23. Middle and High School Students Self-Reporting Having an Adult at School Whom They Can Talk to about Problems Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, Middle School, 2022–2023; and California Healthy Kids Survey, High School, 2021–2022 66% 69% 69% 67%
48%
67%
72%
64%
49% 51%
61%
55% 58%
50%
39%
55%
Overall African American Asian Two or More Races White Hispanic or Latino Middle Eastern or North African
Native Hawaiian or
Pacific Islander
Middle School High School
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In the 2022–2023 school year, over half of middle school students (64%) and half of high school students (50%) reported knowing where to go for help with a problem. As shown in Figure 24, from the 2021–2022 to 2022–2023 school years, the proportion of White, Asian and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander middle school students who reported knowing where to go for help with a problem declined.
Figure 24. Middle School Students Self-Reporting Knowing Where to Go for Help with a Problem, 2021–2023
Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, Middle School, 2021–2023
59%
60% 60%
70%
61% 65%
53%
57% 57%
64%
67%
45%
60%
67%
42%
64%
73%
77%
Overall African American Asian Native Hawaiian or
Pacific Islander
Two or More
Races/Ethnicities
White Something Else Hispanic or Latino Middle Eastern or North African
2021-22 2022-23
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Among high school students, those who identified as Middle Eastern or North African had the largest decrease in reporting knowing where to go for help (-11%), as seen in Figure 25.
Figure 25. High School Students Self-Reporting Knowing Where to Go for Help with a Problem, 2021–2023
Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, High School, 2021–2023 40%
54%
43%
48%
54%
62%
51%
55%
57%
50%
54%
37%
55% 54% 55%
53% 53%
46%
Overall African American American
Indigenuous/Alaska
Native
Asian or Asian
American
Hispanic/Latino Native Hawaiian or
Pacific Islander
White Two or More Races Middle Eastern or
North African
2021-22 2022-23
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SELF-REPORTS ON MENTAL HEALTH AND TRAUMA
Trauma and other social conditions have a negative impact on mental health outcomes for youth that can increase their risk for involvement in violence, victimization, or gangs/groups.
In the 2022–2023 school year, middle (19%) and high school (17%) students reported an increase in suicidal ideation over the past year. From the 2021-2022 to 2022–2023 school years, there was an increase in suicide ideation among middle and high school students of all racial and ethnic groups except African American students (which stayed the same over the two-year period) and White students (which decreased from 14% to 9% over the two-year period), as seen in Figures 26 and 27.
Figure 26. Middle School Students Self-Reporting That They’ve Seriously Considered Attempting Suicide over the Past 12 Months
Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, Middle School, 2021–2023 16%
18%
15%
14% 13%
24%
14%
10%
19%
18%
25%
22%
17%
25%
9%
14%
Overall African American Asian Hispanic or Latino Pacific Islander Two or More Races White Middle Eastern or North African
2021-22 2022-23
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Figure 27. High-School Students Self-Reporting That They Seriously Considered Attempting Suicide over the Past 12 Months22
Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, High School, 2021–2023
22 American Indigenous / Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander are not represented in this figure because the sample sizes were too small to be representative of the entire population. American Indigenous / Alaska Native youth represented 0.7% (n = 20) and 0.4% (n = 15) of sampled youth in 2021–2022 and 2022–2023, respectively. Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander youth represented 1.2% (n = 36) and 0.8% (n = 32) of sampled youth in 2021–20-22 and 2022– 2023, respectively.
12% 12%
15%
10%
3%
18% 19%
17%
21%
17%
13%
5%
13%
26%
Overall African American Asian or Asian American Hispanic or Latino Middle Eastern or North African
White Two or More Races
2021-22 2022-23
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About a quarter (27%) of middle and high school students in OUSD reported that they had experienced the loss of a friend or family member to violence (2022-2023 data). As seen in Figure 28, African American students reported losing a loved one to violence at the highest rates (47%).23
Figure 28. Percentage of Middle and High School OUSD Students Who Experienced the Loss of a Friend of Family Member to Violence, 2022–2023
Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, Middle School, 2022–2023; and California Healthy Kids Survey, High School, 2022–2023
23 American Indigenous / Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander are not represented in this figure due to small sample sizes (n=24 and n=53, respectively)
47%
13%
26%
22%
12%
35%
29%
African American Asian Hispanic/Latino Middle
Eastern/North
African
White Two or more Did not answer
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When asked if students were able to get help from a professional counselor or therapist when needed, 13% of middle school students and 17% of high school students responded affirmatively. Among middle school students, African Americans had the lowest rate of reporting they could get help from a counselor or therapist when needed (8%). Among high schoolers, Middle Eastern or North African students had the lowest rate of reporting they could get help from a counselor or therapist when needed (7%).
Figure 29. Middle and High School Students Self-Reporting They Could Get Help from a Counselor or Therapist When Needed, 2022–2023 Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, Middle School, 2022–2023; and California Healthy Kids Survey, High School, 2022–2023 13%
8%
29%
21%
19%
13%
19%
17%
17%
22%
15%
10%
30%
29%
26%
7%
Overall
African American
Asian
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander
Two or More Races/Ethnicities
White
Hispanic or Latino
Middle Eastern or North African
High School Middle School
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In the 2022–2023 school year, over half of middle school (58%) and almost half of high school (46%) students reported that adults at their school helped them resolve conflicts through meditation or restorative justice practices. Among middle school students, Asian and Middle Eastern/North African students were most likely to report the use of mediation or restorative justice practices at their schools in the 2022–2023 school year, as seen in Figure 30. Among high schoolers, Hispanic/Latino and African American students were most likely to report the use of mediation or restorative justice practices at their schools in the 2022-2023 school year, as seen in Figure 31.
Figure 30. Percentage of Middle School Students Reporting Adults at their School Helping Students Resolve Conflicts through Mediation or Restorative Justice, by Race/Ethnicity, 2021–2023
Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, Middle School, 2021–2023
53%
54%
40%
50%
51%
56%
51%
69%
48%
41%
58%
58%
70%
57%
55%
57%
58%
51%
73%
Overall
African American
American Indigenuous/Alaska Native
Asian
Hispanic or Latino
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander
Two or More Races/Ethnicities
White
Something Else
Middle Eastern or North African
2022-23 2021-22
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Figure 31. Percentage of High School Students Reporting Adults at Their School Helping Students Resolve Conflicts through Mediation or Restorative Justice, by Race/Ethnicity, 2021–2023
Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, High School, 2021–2023
40%
33%
13%
37%
45%
66%
33%
27%
39%
40%
46%
48%
14%
45%
51%
42%
40%
39%
37%
Overall
African American
American Indigenuous/Alaska Native
Asian or Asian American
Hispanic/Latino
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander
Two or More Races
White
Something Else
Middle Eastern or North African
2022-23 2021-22
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HOMELESS YOUTH (MCKINNEY-VENTO)
In the 2021–2022 school year, 1,461 OUSD students were unhoused. As shown in Figure 32, two-thirds of those students were Latino.
Homelessness significantly increases the risk of young people becoming victims of violence, experiencing mental illness or substance abuse, being sexually trafficked, or joining groups/gangs. Please note this data reports only on youth who are enrolled in school. Additional data on youth who are unhoused can be found on p. 16 of this report.
Figure 32. Unhoused OUSD Students, by Race, 2021–2022
Source: McKinney-Vento Eligible Student Fact Sheet, 2021–2022
23%
3%
67%
2%
1% 1%
2%
Latino
Asian
African American
White
Multi-Ethnic
Native American
Pacific Islander
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INVOLVEMENT IN THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM
Across Alameda County and California, felony arrest rates were disproportionate across racial and ethnic groups. In 2020, the felony arrest rate for African American / Black youth who were 10–17 years old was over 21 times higher than that for White youth in Alameda County and over nine times higher than that for White youth in California, as seen in Figure 33. More recent data on youth involvement in the criminal justice system is not publicly available.
Figure 33. Juvenile Felony Arrest Rate, per 1,000, in Alameda County and California, 2020
Source: Kids Data
13.5 2.8
1.0 1.4
1.0 17.3
3.4 0.7
0.8 0.7
African American/ Black
Hispanic/ Latino
Other
White
Another Group
Alameda County California
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INVOLVEMENT IN STUDENT LEADERSHIP AND EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES Involvement in leadership and extracurricular activities is considered a protective factor associated with positive youth development. Forty-one percent of middle school students reported participating in student leadership and extracurricular activities in the 2021–2022 school year, and over half (55%) reported doing so in the 2022–2023 school year. Middle school students across most racial/ethnic groups reported an increase in participation in extracurricular activities. In the 2022–2023 school year, students who identified as Something Else, Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander, Asian, and African American reported participating in extracurricular activities at lower rates than the overall average, as seen in Figure
34. Figure 34. Middle School Students’ Self-Reports of Participating in Student Leadership or Extracurricular Activities at Least One Time during the School Year, 2021–2023
Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, Middle School, 2021–2023
41%
48%
36%
32%
48%
49%
53%
57%
33%
55%
51%
46%
59%
68%
46%
66%
58%
42%
Overall
African American
Asian
Hispanic or Latino
Middle Eastern or North African
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander
Two or More Races/Ethnicities
White
Something Else
2022-23 2021-22
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Participation trends among high school students were similar. Over one-third of high school students in 2021–2022 (38%) and over half in 2022– 2023 (57%) reported participating in student leadership and extracurricular activities. Students across all racial groups reported an increase in participation in extracurricular activities.
Figure 35. High School Students’ Self-Reports of Participating in Student Leadership or Extracurricular Activities at Least One time during the School Year, 2021–202324
Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, High School, 2021–2023
24 American Indigenous / Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander are not represented in this figure because the sample sizes were too small to be representative of the entire population. American Indigenous / Alaska Native youth represented 0.5% (n = 20) and 0.3% (n = 15) of sampled youth in 2021–2022 and 2022–2023, respectively. Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander youth represented 0.8% (n = 35) and 0.9% (n = 37) of sampled youth in 2021–2022 and 2022– 2023, respectively.
38%
44%
46%
34%
37%
45%
49%
57%
62%
65%
47%
58%
64%
72%
Overall
African American
Asian or Asian American
Hispanic/Latino
Middle Eastern or North African
Two or More Races
White
2022-23 2021-22
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SYSTEMS LANDSCAPE SCAN
The overarching goal of OFCY’s third goal area is to prevent and reduce violence, crime, and gang involvement among children and youth.
According to the National Institute for Criminal Justice Reform (NICJR), “The City of Oakland is one of the few jurisdictions in the country with dedicated and distinct funds focused separately in violence prevention / youth development (OFCY) and violence intervention (DVP).”25
The City of Oakland’s Department of Violence Prevention (DVP) is focused on working with the highest-risk people who are at the center of violence in Oakland, specifically shootings, homicides, and gender-based violence. DVP is charged with implementing Ceasefire; funding and offering
targeted case management and
life coaching for this target
population; and implementing
other innovative strategies,
including youth diversion and
community healing. Crime has
increased in Oakland since the
onset of the COVID-19 pandemic,
and while the most extreme forms of violence have started to decrease recently, there is a sustained elevated level of burglaries, robberies, car break-ins, and other quality of life issues in Oakland’s communities.
System leaders have identified a gap in the early intervention supports and services that reach youth who are at risk of involvement in crime and violence or have begun to commit crimes.
System leaders and experts in the field, including NICJR, point to the importance of DVP continuing to hold all immediate violence-reduction and intervention initiatives, while OFCY and other city funders can remain focused on funding upstream strategies like youth development, family support and family strengthening, school engagement, youth employment, etc. In addition, DVP and OFCY have overlap in the organizations that they fund for violence prevention and intervention work. Opportunities to combine or match funding streams or create a more coordinated continuum of supports between these two city departments could increase the impact of this work on youth in Oakland.
25 NICJR, Oakland Landscape Analysis: Violence Reduction Programs & Initiatives, May 2024. “Violence prevention refers to the elimination or
reduction of the underlying causes and risk factors
that lead to violence. Violence prevention efforts
are thus designed to prevent violence occurring in
the first place. Violence intervention efforts, on the
other hand, are designed to prevent the recurrence
of violence or intervene and prevent the imminent
act of violence.”
—NICJR Oakland Landscape Analysis, 2024
Student Program for Academic & Athletic
Transitioning
Communi t y N eeds As s es s ment 2024
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP :: 61
Alameda County Probation is the primary stakeholder working with youth who are on parole or probation. State-run youth prisons are in the process of being closed, which means that counties will have jurisdiction around all youth who are incarcerated. Local systems will now be charged with developing release and reentry plans that support youth well-being and ensure that they do not recidivate. Reentry services, wraparound supports, group homes or other housing, short-term therapeutic residential programs, and connections to careers and schools will be needed for this population.
SUMMARY IMPLICATIONS
Oakland’s youth experience high rates of violence
and trauma in the community. Many have family
members or friends who have died by violence,
experience homelessness, or have reported that
they have suicidal ideations. Fortunately, the
majority of OUSD students report that they have
access to essential protective factors like
relationships with caring adults, as well as
knowledge of where they could go to get help with
a problem.
Forty-one percent of middle school students
reported participating in student leadership and
extracurricular activities in the 2021–2022 school
year, and over half (55%) reported doing so in the
2022–2023 school year. Over one-third of high
school students in 2021–2022 (38%) and over half
in 2022–2023 (57%) reported participating in
student leadership and extracurricular activities.
The DVP remains focused on working with youth
who are at the center of violence. As DVP works
with youth who are group or gang involved and
eligible for focused deterrence strategies, there is a
need to increase support for early intervention programs that keep young people safe and prevent further involvement in crime and violence.
East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation
Communi t y N eeds As s es s ment 2024
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP :: 62
TRANSITIONS TO ADULTHOOD
OVERVIEW OF GOAL AREA
OFCY’s fourth goal area—referred to as Transitions to Adulthood—is defined in the City Charter as:
Help youth transition to productive adulthood through case management, physical and behavioral health services, hard-skills training and job placement in high-demand industries, internships, work experience, and leadership development, including civic engagement, service- learning, and arts expression.
OFCY aims to support career access and employment for youth in school and opportunity youth through case management, physical and behavioral health services, internships, job placements, career exposure, and summer jobs. As a result, OFCY is reviewing trends in data related to:
• Graduation Rate
• A–G Completion
• Opportunity Youth
• Students’ Self-Reported Perceptions of their Futures
• Employment Rate of Youth
Approximately 16% of all OFCY funds supported this goal area in the last strategic plan through the three strategies listed below. OFCY-funded programs in this goal area reached 6% of all OFCY-supported youth in the 2023–2024 fiscal year, as seen in Table 11.
Table 11. Youth Participants in OFCY’s “Transitions to Adulthood” Goal Area, FY 2023–2024 Strategy Number of Youth Served
(FY ’23/’24)
Percent of All Youth Served by OFCY-
Funded Programs (FY ’23/’24)
Career Access and Employment for Opportunity Youth 704 3% Career Access and Employment for Youth in School 531 2% Oakland Summer Youth Employment 317 1%
Total 1,552 6%
Source: OFCY Overview—Fiscal Year, 2023–202426
26 For more information on FY ’23–’24 OFCY-funded programs, please refer to https://www.ofcy.org/funding/funded-programs/.
Communi t y N eeds As s es s ment 2024
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP :: 63
REVIEW OF QUANTITATIVE DATA
GRADUATION RATE
The overall graduation rate is 74% for OUSD students. Over the last five years, the graduation rate of Latino students has been below the overall average graduate rate, as seen in Table 12.
Table 12. OUSD Graduation Rate by Race, 2017–2022
2017–2018 2018–2019 2019–2020 2020–2021 2021–2022
Overall 73% 72% 72% 72% 74%
African American 75% 75% 73% 76% 81%
Asian 88% 90% 89% 89% 91%
Filipino 90% 81% 82% 71% 90%
Latino 65% 61% 65% 63% 63%
Multi-Ethnic 67% 84% 85% 82% 90%
Pacific Islander 82% 78% 78% 72% 89%
White 80% 89% 85% 83% 91%
Source: OUSD Cohort Graduation and Dropout Rates, 2017–2022
Communi t y N eeds As s es s ment 2024
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP :: 64
A–G COMPLETION
When California youth meet the University of California / California State University entrance requirements upon graduation, they are considered A–G completers. Over the last three years, over half of OUSD high school graduates have met A–G completion requirements. As seen in Figure 36, Pacific Islander, African American, and Latino graduates have met A–G requirements at rates lower than the overall average rate of completion.
Figure 36. OUSD A–G Completion by Race/Ethnicity, 2021–2023
Source: OUSD A–G Completion—12th-Grade Graduates Only, 2020–2023 56%
42%
79%
63%
49%
75%
33%
83%
54%
45%
78%
67%
46%
67%
33%
77%
Overall
African American
Asian
Filipino
Latino
Multi-Ethnic
Pacific Islander
White
2022-23 2021-22
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 65
YOUTH DISCONNECTED FROM SCHOOL AND EMPLOYMENT
In 2022, there were 1,298 youth ages 16-19 who were disconnected from school and work in Oakland. The total number of Oakland youth ages 16-19 years old who are disconnected from school and work increased from 2020 to 2022, though the percentage has stayed relatively consistent at 7-8% 27
Figure 37. Number of Oakland Youth, 16–19 Years Old Who Are Disconnected from School and Work, 2020–202228
27 US Census Bureau American Community Survey, Table B14005, 2020 5-Year Estimates, 2021 5-Year Estimates, 2022 5-Year Estimates. 28 Youth who are disconnected from school and employment includes youth, ages 16-19, who are not in school and either unemployed or not in the workforce. 1184
1209
1298
500
600
700
800
900
1000
1100
1200
1300
1400
1500
1 2 32020 2021 2022
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 66 STUDENTS’ SELF-REPORTED PERCEPTIONS OF THEIR FUTURES
Elementary, middle and high school Oakland students provide insights into their hopes for transitioning into adulthood through questions on the CHKS Survey. A majority of OUSD students believe they will go to college and graduate from college. The proportion of students who believe they will go to college has dropped across all age groups since 2020–2021. Since 2020, the proportion of high school students who thought they would go to college and graduate from college has dropped from 83% to 66%.
Figure 38. Percentage of OUSD Students Self-Reporting They Believe They Will Go to College and Graduate from College, 2020–2023
Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, Elementary Survey Results, 2020–2023; California Healthy Kids Survey, Middle School, 2020–2023; and California Healthy Kids Survey, High School, 2020–2023
91% 87% 83%85%
64% 61%
85%
65% 66%
Elementary Middle High
2020-21 2021-22 2022-23
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 67 Students reported having support from adults at school and home to encourage their future success. As seen in Figure 39, a majority of students reported having adults at school who encourage them all or most of the time to work hard so they can be successful in college or their future job.
Figure 39. Percentage of OUSD Students Self-Reporting Adults at School Encouraging Them All or Most of the Time to Work Hard in School So They Can Be Successful in College or at the Job They Choose
Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, Elementary Survey Results, 2020–2023; California Healthy Kids Survey, Middle School, 2020–2023; and California Healthy Kids Survey, High School, 2020–2023
79% 80% 81%
75%
63% 63%
76%
61%
65%
Elementary Middle High
2020-21 2021-22 2022-23
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 68 In the 2021–2022 and 2022–2023 school years, about half of elementary students reported that their school talks to them about their future after high school (53% and 54%, respectively).29 As seen in Table 13, about half to two thirds of middle and high school students also had someone— inside and outside school—advising them and helping them think about their future. Similarly, as seen in Table 14, about half to three quarters of middle and high school students reported having an adult at home who believed in their success.
Table 13. Percentage of Middle and High School Students Self-Reporting Having Someone, In and Out of School, Who Advised Them and Helped Them Think About Their Future, Such as How to Get a Job, Job Training, or Going to College
2021–2022 2022–2023
Middle 57% 59%
High 67% 72%
Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, Middle School, 2020–2023; and California Healthy Kids Survey, High School, 2020–2023
Table 14. Percentage of Middle and High School Students Self-Reporting That There is a Parent or Some Other Adult Who Believes That They Will Be a Success
2021–2022 2022–2023
Middle 56% 65%
High 68% 77%
Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, Middle School, 2020–2023; and California Healthy Kids Survey, High School, 2020–2023
29 California Healthy Kids Survey, Elementary Survey Results, 2021–2023.
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 69 Almost half of middle (41%) and high school students (50%) reported planning to attend a four-year college after high school. As seen in Figure 40, the next-largest portion of students didn’t know what they planned to do after high school.
Figure 40. Percentage of OUSD Middle and High School Students Reporting a Plan for after High School
Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, Middle School, 2020–2023; and California Healthy Kids Survey, High School, 2020–2023
35%
1%
2%
3%
9%
2%
41%
7%
22%
1%
2%
2%
10%
3%
50%
11%
I don't know yet
Volunteer or do an internship
Travel for a while
Enter the military
Go to work
Attend a trade school or receive other job training
Go to a 4-year college/university
Go to a 2-year college
High Middle
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 70 Among high schoolers, Hispanic/Latino and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander students reported that they don’t know what they want to do after high school or want to work after high school at the highest rates compared to other ethnic groups. They also reported wanting to go to a four- year college or university at the lowest rates compared to other ethnic groups.
Table 15. High School Students Who Self-Reported Plans for after High School Go to a Two-
Year College
Go to a Four-Year
College/University
Attend a Trade
or Receive Other
Job Training
Go to
Work
Enter
the
Military
Travel
for a
While
Volunteer
or Do an
Internship
I Don’t
Know
Yet
Overall 11% 50% 3% 10% 2% 2% 1% 22%
African American 13% 56% 4% 7% 1% 2% 0% 16%
Asian 8% 70% 1% 3% 3% 1% 0% 17%
Hispanic or Latino 14% 37% 3% 15% 2% 2% 1% 26%
Native Hawaiian or
Pacific Islander
15% 30% 3% 12% 3% 6% 0% 30%
Middle Eastern or
North African
18% 47% 1% 9% 1% 3% 0% 21%
Two or More Races 8% 57% 4% 6% 3% 3% 1% 19%
White 4% 66% 2% 4% 1% 3% 1% 18%
Source: California Healthy Kids Survey, High School, 2020–2023
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 71
SYSTEMS LANDSCAPE SCAN
System stakeholders in this sector are seeking to
create greater alignment between the school district,
trade schools, community colleges, universities, and
employers so that there are clearer career pathways
for youth. Measure AA, the Oakland Children’s
Initiative, has set aside about one-third of its $30
million annual funding to support the creation of a
college-going culture. The Oakland Promise is
charged with implementing this effort by supporting
those seeking technical degrees, offering college
bonds, and increasing access to and awareness of
opportunities that can help make college affordable.
Meanwhile, the City of Oakland has been working to
develop the TAY-Hub—a new Career Technical
Education (CTE) hub at 1025 2nd Ave., to create
programs for youth who are interested in alternative
pathways to postsecondary success. “TAY-Hub will
provide in-depth support, wraparound services
(health, wellness, social, emotional, etc.), a technical education center with hands-on job training on real-
life equipment in several trades, a space for athletic
programs, a student-run cafe, and additional services
and support for OUSD students and family.”30
Oakland’s Economic & Workforce Development
Department (OEWD) is the local agency charged with creating and funding employment programs.
OEWD youth programs are primarily funded by more restrictive federal Workforce Innovation Opportunities Act (WIOA) funds and State Job Corps funds. WIOA dollars fund services for out-of-school youth who are 14–21 years old to receive wraparound support services with case management, support around employment and education planning, and skill building or training for summer or year-round jobs. The Job Corps program is new to OEWD; launched three years ago, this program aims to create pipelines into public sector jobs and green jobs for youth who are 16–30 years old. OFCY and OEWD do partner on a small summer jobs program that provides youth with career exposure and exploration
30 https://movementstrategy.org/tayhub/
First Place for Youth
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 72 opportunities. OEWD is in the process of kicking off its own strategic planning process and expects to be focused on deepening its racial equity approach, building out a sector-based pipeline strategy, eliminating silos among systems that educate and employ Oaklanders, and learning how new technologies (like artificial intelligence) are changing the employment landscape.
The State of California has also launched a new program called the California Opportunity Youth Apprenticeship (COYA) Grant. According to its website, “[COYA] is a new funding source to develop and test innovative practices to increase the participation of opportunity youth in pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship programs, and to demonstrate the impact of apprenticeship on employment and earnings outcomes for opportunity youth.”31 The State awarded $31 million to 51 grantees across the state in mid 2024, including a few organizations in Oakland and the Bay Area. A full grantees list can be found here.
Across the board, system and community stakeholders emphasized the need to find ways to increase wages, incentives, or other payments to transitional-age youth. In recent years, the movement for guaranteed income has grown and received significant investment—with more initiatives focused on providing a guaranteed income for an extended period to specific target populations.
SUMMARY IMPLICATIONS
While the demand for youth jobs and career pathways is high, there are few funding sources focused on meeting short-term employment needs for youth.
While system stakeholders build out a long-term strategy for creating career pathways, OFCY has an opportunity to provide increased funding and incentives to youth through program incentives or guaranteed income. OFCY also has an opportunity to expand the funding for summer jobs or other youth jobs that can be done on evenings or during weekends. The movement for guaranteed income is gaining momentum, offering a potential solution to address economic challenges and create greater equity for this population.
31 https://www.dir.ca.gov/DAS/Grants/California-Youth-Apprenticeship-Grant.html Youth Radio/YR Media
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SUMMARY OF COMMUNITY INPUT
As a part of this Community Needs
Assessment process, OFCY hosted a number of
opportunities to gather input from youth,
families, and community members about their
experiences, perspectives, and priorities for
OFCY. The following key themes emerged
from these input opportunities. To learn more
about the input opportunities and attendance
at these opportunities, please review the
approach and methodology described in
Appendix A.
Changes in Oakland’s Population
Community members highlighted the shifting
demographics in Oakland. Specifically, people
spoke to the sustained decrease in Oakland’s
Black population and an increase in the
population of newcomers. From 2000 to 2020,
the Black population in Oakland declined by
43%—the largest decrease in any city in
California during this period.32 Many
community members shared that OFCY should
consider allowing grantees to serve youth who
needed to move out of Oakland due to affordability or safety concerns. Community members also said that organizations needed to ensure that they were hiring and training bilingual staff who can work with Arabic-speaking and Mam-speaking populations as these populations continue to grow. The unique needs of Oakland’s considerable Mam-speaking population were highlighted as an area for more targeted support, especially because of the primarily oral nature of communication within this community.
32 UCLA Ralph J. Bunche Center for African American Studies, The State of Black California: Assessing 20 Years of Black Progress in the Golden State, April 2024.
Accessible here.
Lincoln Square Park Summer Nights
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 74 There was also a shared perception that youth homelessness in the region has increased and that there is insufficient investment and attention paid to this population, especially those who are transitional-age youth or disconnected.
Overall, many community members and organizations felt that OFCY excelled at supporting small culturally specific organizations in high-need areas. These organizations were able to meet the unique needs of the diverse niche communities in Oakland through community-responsive approaches.
Family Needs
Most families shared that housing insecurity was a leading challenge in managing their family’s needs. As inflation continues, the rising cost of food has also increased pressures on families. Families shared that in addition to services, they needed financial support for basic needs like housing, food, and other essential bills. Many community members also pointed to financial hardships as the primary driver of the increase in violence in Oakland in recent years. Community
members shared that they felt that the wealthy are
getting wealthier, and the poorer are getting poorer,
and this dynamic is driving gentrification, displacement, apathy, violence, and an overall sense of instability in lower income communities.
Aside from addressing these socioeconomic needs,
community members called for expanding culturally
specific parenting support groups, for both parents of
young children and parents of teenagers. With the
growing mental health crisis that teens are facing, the community is asking for support for families on how to
manage social media access, talk about feelings and
emotions, and access traditional and nontraditional
mental health support services, like therapists and life coaches. People pointed to a need to create programs
that offered mental health consultations to parents of
teenagers. They also said that there was high demand
for playgroups, parent workshops, and other
consultations that create strong intergenerational
family bonds.
Attitudinal Healing Connection
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 75 Many community members—especially those who work for youth-serving CBOs—felt that culture had shifted in such a way that school did not feel like a required or necessary component of a child’s daily schedule. Most attributed this to the COVID-19 pandemic, the decreased quality of education, and increased mental health struggles that have continued since the return to in-person learning. There is a reported need for family support services and workshops that help families understand the school-year schedule, academic benchmarks, and other social-emotional skills that they can work on with their children. Community members also highlighted the need to compensate families for participation in such programs through expanded cash incentives, meals, and childcare support.
Several community members also identified the need for Oakland to become a more child-friendly and family-friendly city. By aligning itself with this goal, Oakland could invest more fully in parks, playgrounds, events, and spaces that welcome and celebrate children, youth, and families.
Youth Experience in School
The most common concern about youth’s experience
in school was absenteeism and the learning loss
associated with it. Youth and community members
shared that young people often did not come to
school because they were working a formal or
informal job to support their families. The job
sometimes overlapped with school or required a late
at night schedule, making young people too tired to go
to school the next day. Another common explanation
for absenteeism was that youth had become
accustomed to communication via screens during the
pandemic and that in-person communication created
social anxiety for students.
Young people shared that their phones were a “safe
space” where they could go for additional information,
affirmations, comedic relief, or other supports. Some
community-based providers felt that phones needed
to be taken away from young people in schools or in
youth programs, while other providers felt that it was
trauma-informed to allow youth to use their phones
Bay Area Community Resources
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 76 freely and independently. Many youth and community members shared an interest in improving in-person socialization skills and communication skills.
Many community members raised concerns about literacy among young people and attributed negative literacy outcomes to the increasing influence of technology in young people’s lives. One provider shared, “Video has replaced reading; talk to text has replaced writing; next, will artificial intelligence replace critical thinking?” Some community members felt that the school district and other youth-supportive services were not adapting fast enough to the rapidly changing way that young people are learning and synthesizing information.
Overall, youth and community members felt that there should be additional support for young people during transition years—entering kindergarten, middle school, high school, or graduating from high school. Providing wraparound support and services, and even case management, were offered as solutions for young people at these transition moments.
Joy, Play, Arts, and Enrichment
A common theme raised by youth and community was
the importance of offering young people opportunities
for joy, play, arts, and enrichment, especially in after- school and summer settings. Many providers and system
funders shared the belief that arts and music activities can be used as a model of healing and expression, and
that they engage youth in prosocial spaces that can then layer on additional supports or connections as needed.
Many felt that supporting creative expression and
identification of oneself can promote positive social-
emotional development, which equips youth to be more
resilient with navigating life and its challenges.
Families and youth want youth-friendly spaces and
events that make Oakland a more family-friendly city,
and increase social cohesion and a sense of belonging.
Community members shared the sentiment “let kids be
kids.” These community members highlighted the need
for increased play, physical activity, and participation in sports. Eat.Learn.Play. and the Aspen Institute released a Bay Area Outreach & Recreation Program
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 77 report last year that centered youth experiences and interests in physical activity.33 The report shared a number of findings about youth experiences and preferences, including:
• “Access to quality parks is unevenly
distributed. Residents in Oakland
neighborhoods where people most identify
as a person of color have access to 66% less
park space per person than those in
predominantly White neighborhoods.”
• “Oakland lacks equitable access to
recreational sports league opportunities.
White children are three times more likely
than Latino/a youth and two times more
likely than Black and Asian kids to play on a
recreation center team.”
• “Youth want to try different sports and need
more sustainable opportunities. Oakland
youth identified 24 sports that at least 10%
of them said they want to try.”
• “Playing with friends is the No. 1 reason to
play sports. Youth told us that friendships
with peers and having fun are the main
reasons they play. Winning games ranked
seventh, and chasing college athletic
scholarships was 12th.”34
Violence Prevention, Mental Health, and Trauma
Many community members raised concerns about youth involvement in violence in the community. Younger children have become involved in violence in recent years. Communities feel that youth have a “survivalist” perspective, where young people are starting from a baseline lack of trust that makes them susceptible to involvement in community violence. Community members repeatedly shared that lack of financial stability was driving the uptick in violence in the community.
33 Aspen Institute Project Play, State of Play Oakland: Analysis and Recommendations, August 2022. Available here. 34 Ibid.
Bay Area Scores
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 78
Community members shared a number of ideas for addressing violence among youth, including:
• Invest in economic development programs, basic services, incentives, and other financial supports for youth and their families. • Ensure that staff at community-based organizations and city agencies have a trauma-informed perspective when working with youth. • Invest in health education programs that help young people develop healthy relationships with their peers, adult allies, and family. • Create wellness centers on school sites where discussion around mental health is normalized among youth. • Expand the network of culturally relevant mental health providers who are focused on serving youth. • Expand nontraditional mental health support services that rely on credible messengers, such as life coaching. • Develop strategies to address social media violence and cyberbullying. Youth need to know how and where to report it and need examples of positive uses of social media.
• Create peer-to-peer education or mentorship opportunities in which older youth support younger students who are navigating life.
Peer mentoring was also identified as a good opportunity for paid work for youth.
Youth Employment
When asked how the City of Oakland could improve equity outcomes for youth, many community members said that providing youth with paid work opportunities would be the most effective and useful equity strategy. Members of the Oakland Youth Commission highlighted the need and desire for youth to have increased opportunities for career exploration, hands-on exposure, job readiness skills, and other practical skills (e.g., budgeting, financial management, property ownership, purchasing or leasing vehicles, etc.). Youth wanted workshops in high school that helped them build and update résumés, search for jobs, understand their expenses, and manage their money. Many youth reported that the best way to prepare youth for adulthood is to help them develop life skills. They cautioned against being hyper-focused on ensuring that all young people go to a four-year university.
Many community members highlighted the need to integrate and promote career pathways into the trades, not just colleges and universities.
High school after-school programs could be focused on exposing youth to specific trades and start to help them develop plans after high school.
People lifted up examples of pre-apprentice career readiness programs that should be expanded and more thoroughly marketed in the community, including cosmetology trades classes and auto-mechanics classes at Laney College, the electrician and plumbing trades program at Cypress Mandela, etc. Some people lifted the need to develop programs that were targeted toward girls/women and newcomers, as these populations are underserved by traditional workforce development programs.
Many community members advocated for a guaranteed income program for transitional-age youth. As one community member said, “If youth were provided with a stipend upon graduating from high school that allowed them to explore options, what choices would young people make? What opportunities would be afforded to them?”
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 79 Rise East
Several community members highlighted the Oakland Rise
East initiative of Oakland Thrives. This 10-year initiative is on track to raise $100 million this year for targeted supports for Black children and families in the 40 x 40 blocks in East Oakland. Rise East is focused on five investment strategies that span the lifetime of children and families across multiple sectors of individual, family, and community success. The strategies include: 1) Learn and Grow; 2) Safe and
Connected; 3) Live and Thrive; 4) Work and Wealth; and 5) Health and Well-Being. Their goal is to build power in the community and create systems change. Many of the desired outcomes desired by Rise East were lifted up by the
community through this input process. On the other hand, several community members mentioned that this historic
investment in East Oakland meant that there were
significant resources being focused on the community in this neighborhood, and that there needed to be similar initiatives in other under-resourced communities in Oakland, especially West Oakland.
Grantee Needs
Many community-based providers that are OFCY grantees participated in the community input sessions. These organizations shared a number of challenges that they face while operating as grantees of OFCY and other City of Oakland agencies. These include:
• Workforce shortages are affecting the quality and volume of work across programs in all areas. Low pay contributes to this challenge. • Organizations need to do significant outreach to communities in order to get people into programs. The cost of outreach is not allowable in OFCY contracts.
• Many organizations would like to see OFCY facilitate data sharing agreements that allow them to have access to data on youth performance in school so that they may create more tailored support plans. • Organizations would like to increase the amount of compensation for youth and families who participate in programs. • Providers of after-school programs feel that performance-based pay structures that are linked to average daily attendance are creating too much volatility in their funding, leading to quality issues.
East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 80 • All providers shared that they would like to have more partnerships and collaborations with other organizations, especially those that are located in their neighborhood or help them reach specific newcomer communities that they serve. They feel that the City of Oakland could be a convener and a connector of organizations and further facilitate referrals, place-based programming, or other collaborations. • Many providers pointed to the difficulty of being a grantee of the City of Oakland right now due to the slow processing of contracts and payments.
CONCLUSION
This 2024 CNA identifies several trends in the data and experiences of children, youth, and families in Oakland. The voices, experiences, and preferences of young people and their communities will ground the strategic directions that OFCY develops for the next four years. There have been significant shifts in the funding landscape in the last three years due to the state’s focus on supporting schools and youth after the COVID-19 pandemic. Meanwhile, the City of Oakland is facing a historic structural deficit that is going to lead to drastic cuts in staffing and services in the city. Taken together, OFCY has an opportunity to refocus its efforts and be youth centered in the current climate.
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 81 APPENDIX A: COMMUNITY NEEDS ASSESSMENT METHODOLOGY AND APPROACH
OFCY commissioned Bright Research Group (BRG) to update the existing OFCY strategic plan for the 2025–2028 period. The first phase of strategic planning is to update the Community Needs Assessment (CNA). The goals of this process were to:
• Identify changes in indicators of health, well-being, and quality of life for children and youth within each of OFCY’s goal areas. • Identify disparities on the basis of race/ethnicity for each of these key indicators. • Generate stakeholder and community input from community-based organizations, youth-serving system partners, and community members regarding the needs of youth in Oakland, OFCY’s grantmaking approach, and OFCY’s role in supporting equitable outcomes for children and youth.
The Community Needs Assessment was designed to answer the following questions:
• How have the demographics of children and youth changed in the last three years? • At a population level, what has changed for Oakland’s children and youth since the last strategic plan was developed in 2021? How are children and youth faring on indicators of protective factors, education, and well-being within each of the goal areas OFCY aims to address?
• How, if at all, have racial disparities on key indicators of health, well-being, and quality of life changed since the last analysis of racial equity indicators in 2021?
• What are the needs of children and youth within each of the goal areas, and how can OFCY address those needs given its role and partnerships with other youth-serving anchor institutions in Oakland? How does grantmaking support those needs?
The table below lists the methods for updating the Community Needs Assessment. Data gathered from each of these methods were analyzed to identify key themes and implications for OFCY’s next strategic plan.
Quantitative Data Analysis System Partner Interviews Community and Youth Input Grantee Input • Assessment of
available and updated
data since 2021
• Quantitative analysis
of publicly available
data within each goal
area
• Interviews with anchor
institutions, OFCY partners,
decision-makers, and key
institutions vested in
Oakland children and
youth
• Review of recent research
• Two community webinars
• POC input meetings in
high-priority districts to
reach children, youth, and
families
• Collaboration with Oakland
Youth Commission and
integration of YPAR results
• Community survey
• Grantee input meeting
• Grantee surveys
• POC input meetings in
high-priority districts
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 82
QUANTITATIVE DATA ANALYSIS
For the CNA, BRG analyzed publicly available quantitative data from national, state, county, and city-level sources. Data was analyzed by racial and ethnic identity whenever possible to identify which groups are experiencing the greatest need within each goal area and to synthesize key trends when it comes to advancing racial equity for Oakland’s children and youth. Additional demographic factors—such as indicators for income level, like qualification for free/reduced lunch, or newcomer status—were also used to further understand the complexities of need among Oakland’s diverse communities.
The US Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS) data were analyzed for Oakland’s youth and adult population demographics. BRG also analyzed data from Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) public dashboards, which provided aggregated level data on student assessments, early childhood education, school attendance and discipline, enrollment, postsecondary readiness and school health, and culture and climate. Early childhood data were analyzed from the OUSD Preschool Experience Study and Early Development Instrument. Assessment data from the i-Ready Reading and Smarter Balanced Assessment were analyzed to measure student academic outcomes at OUSD. Data on A–G completion and graduation were analyzed to assess students’ college and career readiness in Oakland. Youth responses from the California Healthy Kids Survey (CHKS) were analyzed to measure how youth described their environment, wellness, and goals. Parents’ responses on the CHKS and the Childhood Experiences Questionnaire (CHEQ) data were also analyzed to assess parent and caregiver perceptions of their children’s needs and strengths.
Data Source Years
US Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates for 2020, 2021, 2022 OUSD Public Reports and Dashboards 2013–2023
California Healthy Kids Survey—Middle School and High School 2021–2022, 2022–2023 KidsData, Juvenile Felony Arrest Rate, by Race/Ethnicity 2020 OFCY Overview Data on Youth and Adult Participants Reached 2022–2023
LANDSCAPE SCAN AND KEY INFORMANT INTERVIEWS WITH SYSTEM PARTNERS OFCY partners with other city and county agencies and departments to strengthen the ecosystem of supports for children and youth and to support their equity goals. BRG conducted key informant interviews and met with system partners and leaders of agencies that serve Oakland’s children, youth, and families to better understand the priorities of other stakeholder investments in each of OFCY’s goal areas and to identify opportunities for OFCY to deepen its partnership with agencies working to address population level inequities in Oakland. The interviews took place virtually in April and May 2024.
The goal of the interviews was to scan the landscape of children, youth, and family services in Oakland and to identify key changes and trends in this landscape since OFCY completed its last CNA. The interviews and associated landscape scan were guided by the following questions:
• How can OFCY align with and support the efforts of anchor youth-serving institutions in Oakland to advance racial equity and strengthen supports for children and youth in Oakland?
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 83 • What is the role of OFCY within the ecosystem of funders, and what are the benefits and trade-offs of this role, particularly when it comes to advancing equity and measuring its impact?
• What gaps are there in the landscape, and what opportunities does OFCY have to fill them? • What feedback do system partners and agency leaders have for OFCY regarding its grantmaking strategy and approach to addressing the needs of children and youth?
Interviews and Meetings with System Partners and Funders
1. Oakland Department of Violence Prevention
2. OUSD Expanded Learning Programs
3. Mayor’s Office, Education and Community Safety
4. City Administrator’s Office
5. Oakland Parks, Recreation, and Youth Development
6. Oakland Department of Economic and Workforce Development
7. Alameda County Center for Healthy Schools and Communities
8. First 5 Alameda County
9. Oakland Thrives
10. Alameda County Probation Department
11. City Council Members
12. Zellerbach Family Foundation
13. Oakland Children’s Initiative
14. Head Start
COMMUNITY AND YOUTH INPUT
BRG developed a flyer for community and youth outreach opportunities and translated it into Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Mam (audio translation). OFCY distributed the translated flyers widely through multiple channels. Grantees were encouraged to invite community residents and/or current program participants to provide their input. The POC distributed the flyers to their own personal networks and to a targeted list of organizations in Oakland that serve youth. The City Council and the Mayor’s Office were also asked to distribute the flyers.
Virtual Community Webinars
BRG hosted two virtual community webinars to gain insight directly from Oakland residents on the strengths and needs of Oakland’s children and youth. The community webinars were focused on hearing from residents, community leaders, youth, and staff from nonprofit agencies. The webinars included breakout groups in which participants provided their feedback on the strengths and needs of Oakland’s children and youth, particularly those youth living in high-stress neighborhoods and those most impacted by social and economic inequities.
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 84 POC-Hosted Input Sessions
In May and June, the Public Oversight Commission (POC) hosted three of their meetings in community-based locations in Deep East Oakland, Fruitvale, and West Oakland. By hosting these POC input sessions in the community, OFCY aimed to ensure that communities from these neighborhoods were able to participate in the strategic planning process. The meetings were structured as input forums where youth and community members were invited to answer the guiding questions for the Community Needs Assessment process, as listed above.
Oakland Youth Commission
BRG attended a meeting of the Oakland Youth Commission on May 20, where a facilitated discussion was held with the Youth Commissioners on each of OFCY’s goal areas. Youth Commissioners provided input on the strengths, opportunities, aspirations, and results of each of OFCY’s goal areas.
In addition, the Oakland Youth Commission has engaged Youth Leadership Institute (YLI) to facilitate a youth participatory action research project on youth employment and career exposure. A subcommittee of OYC members are conducting the YPAR, which involves a survey to 150 Oakland youth. Data analysis will be completed later this summer. BRG reviewed preliminary findings from this YPAR project and used these to inform the strategic plan.
Community Input Survey
In order to increase community participation in the strategic planning process, BRG developed a community survey. The survey was distributed at community events, online, and was posted in newspapers. The survey was open from June – October 2024. The results were analyzed and are available as an appendix to the Strategic Plan.
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 85
GRANTEE INPUT
Grantees have important insights to offer regarding the needs of children and youth, what is changing for young people, and strategies they are implementing to advance racial equity through the services and supports they provide. The key methods include:
Grantee Meeting
OFCY and BRG hosted a half-day grantee meeting on April 19, 2024, to solicit grantee feedback and input on needs and strategies, foster relationships between OFCY grantees, and communicate OFCY’s vision and partnership approach. Seventy-four individuals who work for Oakland’s community-based organizations attended the meeting. BRG provided an overview of the strategic planning process, promoted additional input opportunities in which community members and youth could participate, and facilitated breakout groups by OFCY goal area to have focused discussions on strengths, opportunities, racial equity indicators, and grantmaking approaches in OFCY’s body of work.
Grantee Surveys
A survey was disseminated to current OFCY grantees to gather grantee perspectives and input in an anonymous setting. In total, 78 individuals completed the survey. The survey asked about the strengths and challenges of the programming in each goal area; feedback on the grantmaking structure; perceptions of youth participation and needs; and ideas on how OFCY could infuse a racial equity perspective into their grantmaking approach.
Input Forum Date # of Participants
Community Survey June – October 2024 310
Grantee Meeting April 19, 10:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. 74
Grantee Survey Administered in May 2024 78
POC Input Forum, Youth Employment Partnership (2300 International Blvd.) May 15, 6:00–9:00 p.m. 6 Oakland Youth Commission Input Forum May 20, 5:00–7:00 p.m. 15 Community Webinar June 4, 5:00–6:30 p.m. 16
POC Input Forum, Youth Uprising (8711 MacArthur Blvd.) June 5, 6:00–9:00 p.m. 19 POC Input Forum, West Oakland Senior Center (1724 Adeline St.) June 12, 6:00–9:00 p.m. 14 Community Webinar June 13, 12:00–1:30 p.m. 26
Total 558
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 86 APPENDIX B: COMMUNITY INPUT SURVEY FINDINGS
METHODS
The 2024 Community Input Survey was distributed online from May – October 2024. The survey was conducted using a convenience sampling method – it was promoted on social media platforms, in the Oaklandside and at in-person summer events across Oakland. Convenience sampling is considered a time-efficient method to gather a preliminary sense of community views, but it does not tend to produce representative or generalizable findings.
The 8-item survey comprised demographic multiple-choice questions and open-ended questions about the needs of Oakland’s youth and families.
Respondents completed the survey online in the language of their choice.
Survey Respondents
There were 310 respondents to the 2024 Community Input Survey. The zip codes with highest representation among respondents were 94601, 94621, and 94607, followed by 94605, 94603, and 94610.
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 87 The majority of questionnaires (65%) were completed in English and almost a fourth (24%) completed in Chinese. More than half of respondents (60%) identified as a parent or caregiver, as shown in the figure below. Other roles respondents identified as included grandparents, youth-serving professionals, and concerned community members.
Figure 41. Survey Respondents by Self-Identified Category
Of those respondents that reported their race/ethnicity, the largest proportion (29%) identified as Asian, shown in the figure below.35 Notably, the sample is not racially/ethnically representative of Oakland as a whole (i.e., there is a higher proportion of Asian respondents and lower proportion of Latino respondents relative to their respective representation in the city population).
Figure 42. Survey Respondents by Race/Ethnicity
35 Approximately 18% or 56 respondents elected not to disclose race/ethnicity. Respondents who identified as Native American represented less than 1% and are not included in this figure.
13%
60%
15% 12%
Youth (Under 21) Parent or Caregiver Staff at Youth-Serving Organization Other Asian, 29%
Bi-racial/ Multi-racial , 6%
Black , 15%
Latino , 17%
Middle Eastern/Arabic , 10%
White , 19%
Other , 2%
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 88 Half of respondents who reported their age were 36-50, as shown in the figure below.
Figure 43. Survey Respondents by Age Group
KEY PRIORITIES FOR OAKLAND CHILDREN, YOUTH AND FAMILIES Survey respondents expressed support for the key areas of programming funded by OFCY and the priorities generated through other community input received as part of the CNA. BRG used thematic analysis to examine people’s responses to open-ended questions.36 Below are some key findings that emerged.
Youth Safety and Transitions to Adulthood
Community members noted a need for programs that focused on promoting safety, physical activity and sense of community among youth.
• Recommendations included services and supports that
improve social emotional learning, well-being and social cohesion.
• There was a shared perception among many respondents
that Oakland had become less safe for young people as a result of rising rates of crime and violence, and that there is a need for safe outdoor spaces and youth programming.
• Survey respondents also mentioned a need for
programming supports that prepare youth transitioning to adulthood and increase their financial literacy.
36 Kiger ME, Varpio L. Thematic analysis of qualitative data: AMEE Guide No. 131. Medical Teacher, 42(8):846-854 11% 15%
51%
24%
Under 21 22-35 36-50 51-70
“Services that are difficult for people to access in Oakland [are] education program[s] that [are] focused on career development, teaching kids' financial literacy at a basic level [and] youth programs that encourage community engagement and bonding.” – Community Based Organization Staff
“Career pathways that are culturally related as well as careers that are or transitioned into what you love [are difficult to access in Oakland]” – Staff from Youth-Serving Organization
“[We need] more safe spaces for older youth to hang out.” – Parent/Guardian
“Access to safe, clean green spaces [and] parks; we do not have enough that are walkable and we have none with good public transit access.” – Parent/Caregiver
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 89 Joy, Play, and Belonging
Respondents emphasized the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on youth mental health and social connection. • Respondents felt that the COVID-19 made youth more resilient, but they emphasized that the pandemic also made youth more isolated, dependent on technology and less physically active.
• Respondents reported challenges with accessing social emotional and mental health supports and lifted up that low-income families have challenges with meeting their most basic household needs. • Many respondents want Oakland to be more family-friendly, highlighting the need for affordable and safe recreational resources, including parks, paths to school, roads and bike lanes, and swimming classes for youth to participate in afterschool and in summer programming.
• Community members also noted gaps in supporting the academic needs of children and youth, including those with special needs.
“The past three years have been transformative for children and youth, bringing both challenges and opportunities for growth…We saw increased screen time, social isolation, learning disruptions, and awareness of social issues.”- Parent/Caregiver
“We need pure recreational programming specific to an interest like sports, arts, and technology.” – Parent/Guardian
“In Oakland, children, youth, and families often face challenges accessing… special education services. There are often delays in assessments and insufficient resources to meet the needs of children requiring special education, impacting their learning and development.” – Parent/Caregiver
“We need economic supports. Everything is so expensive.” – Parent/Caregiver
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 90 Support for OFCY Programming
Survey respondents were asked about the value of OFCY programming to children, youth and families. Respondents expressed strong support for many of OFCY funded services as shown in the table below.
Figure 44. Which of the following programs are most essential for children, youth and families in Oakland?
13%
14%
19%
19%
19%
19%
28%
31%
33%
34%
39%
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45%
Afterschool Programs at Middle Schools
Youth Leadership and Youth Development Opportunities
Violence Prevention Programs (Restorative justice, etc.) Connection to Jobs for Youth who do not go to school
Connection to Jobs for Youth that prepare them for careers Programs to Help Youth in Middle School
Programs that Prepare Youth for Graduating from High School & Going to College or Jobs Summer Academic and Enrichment Programs
Afterschool Programs at Elementary Schools
Family Resource Centers
Parenting classes, play groups, and other social emotional support for kids Proportion of Respodents Indicating Program Types Listed
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 91 APPENDIX C: LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1.Oakland Youth by Age Groups, 2020 vs. 2022 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................ 10 Figure 2. Oakland Youth by Racial Identity, 2020 vs. 2022 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ........... 11 Figure 3. Foreign-Born Youth by Age, 2020–2022 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ........................ 12 Figure 4. OUSD Middle and High School Students’ Self-Reported Sexual Orientation, 2022–2023 ................................ ................................ ............. 13 Figure 5. Poverty Status by Age, 2020 vs. 2022 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................ 14 Figure 6. Poverty Status in the Past 12 Months by Age Group and Race/Ethnicity, 2022 ................................ ................................ ............................ 15 Figure 7. Preschool Experience by Type of School, 2017 vs. 2023 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ 18 Figure 8. Preschool Experience by Race/Ethnicity, 2023 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .............. 19 Figure 9. Preschool Experience by Free/Reduced Lunch, 2023 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .... 20 Figure 10. Preschool Experience by Newcomer Status, 2023 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ....... 21 Figure 11. Preschool Experience by Language Spoken at Home, 2023 ................................ ................................ ................................ ......................... 22 Figure 12. Parents’ Self-Reports of Engaging Children in Activities Supporting Language Development, by Race/Ethnicity, 2023 ............................. 24 Figure 13. Parents’ Self-Reports of Engaging Children in Activities Supporting Nutrition and Sleep, by Race/Ethnicity, 2023 ................................ .... 25 Figure 14. Parents’ Self-Reports of Engaging Children in Activities Supporting Talking about Emotions, by Race/Ethnicity, 2023 .............................. 26 Figure 15.OUSD Enrollment by District-Run and Charter School Types, 2013–2023 ................................ ................................ ................................ .... 30 Figure 16. OUSD District-Run School Enrollment, 2013–2023 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...... 31 Figure 17. OUSD Charter School Enrollment, 2013–2023 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............. 32 Figure 18. Percentage of Students Reading “Mid-Above” or “Early On” Third-Grade Reading Level, 2020–2023 ................................ ....................... 33 Figure 19. Percentage of OUSD Students Who Met or Exceeded the Standard on SBAC, 2021–2022 ................................ ................................ ......... 34 Figure 20. Percentage of OUSD Students Who Met or Exceeded the Standard on SBAC by Free/Reduced Lunch Status, 2021–2022 ....................... 35 Figure 21. Percentage of Middle School Students Reporting Coming to Class Prepared Almost All the Time and Often During the Past 30 Days, by Race/Ethnicity ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............... 38 Figure 22. Percentage of High School Students Reporting Coming to Class Prepared Almost All the Time and Often During the Past 30 Days, by Race/Ethnicity ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............... 39 Figure 23. Middle and High School Students Self-Reporting Having an Adult at School Whom They Can Talk to about Problems ............................. 47 Figure 24. Middle School Students Self-Reporting Knowing Where to Go for Help with a Problem, 2021–2023 ................................ ........................ 48 Figure 25. High School Students Self-Reporting Knowing Where to Go for Help with a Problem, 2021–2023 ................................ ............................ 49 Figure 26. Middle School Students Self-Reporting That They’ve Seriously Considered Attempting Suicide over the Past 12 Months ........................ 50 Figure 27. High-School Students Self-Reporting That They Seriously Considered Attempting Suicide over the Past 12 Months ................................ 51 Figure 28. Percentage of Middle and High School OUSD Students Who Experienced the Loss of a Friend of Family Member to Violence, 2022–2023 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...... 52
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 92 Figure 29. Middle and High School Students Self-Reporting They Could Get Help from a Counselor or Therapist When Needed, 2022–2023 ......... 53 Figure 30. Percentage of Middle School Students Reporting Adults at their School Helping Students Resolve Conflicts through Mediation or Restorative Justice, by Race/Ethnicity, 2021–2023 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ....................... 54 Figure 31. Percentage of High School Students Reporting Adults at Their School Helping Students Resolve Conflicts through Mediation or Restorative Justice, by Race/Ethnicity, 2021–2023 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ....................... 55 Figure 32. Unhoused OUSD Students, by Race, 2021–2022 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ......... 56 Figure 33. Juvenile Felony Arrest Rate, per 1,000, in Alameda County and California, 2020 ................................ ................................ ....................... 57 Figure 34. Middle School Students’ Self-Reports of Participating in Student Leadership or Extracurricular Activities at Least One Time during the School Year, 2021–2023 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ 58 Figure 35. High School Students’ Self-Reports of Participating in Student Leadership or Extracurricular Activities at Least One time during the School Year, 2021–2023 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ 59 Figure 36. OUSD A–G Completion by Race/Ethnicity, 2021–2023 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ 64 Figure 37. Number of Oakland Youth, 16–19 Years Old Who Are Disconnected from School and Work, 2020–2022 ................................ ................. 65 Figure 38. Percentage of OUSD Students Self-Reporting They Believe They Will Go to College and Graduate from College, 2020–2023 .................. 66 Figure 39. Percentage of OUSD Students Self-Reporting Adults at School Encouraging Them All or Most of the Time to Work Hard in School So They Can Be Successful in College or at the Job They Choose ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............... 67 Figure 40. Percentage of OUSD Middle and High School Students Reporting a Plan for after High School................................ ................................ .. 69 Figure 41. Survey Respondents by Self-Identified Category ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ......... 87 Figure 42. Survey Respondents by Race/Ethnicity ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ........................ 87 Figure 43. Survey Respondents by Age Group ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .............................. 88 Figure 44. Which of the following programs are most essential for children, youth and families in Oakland? ................................ ............................ 90
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1. OUSD Middle and High School Students’ Self-Reported Gender Identity, 2021–2022 ................................ ................................ ................... 13 Table 2.Youth and Adult Participants in OFCY’s Healthy Development of Young Children Goal Area, 2023–2024 ................................ ...................... 17 Table 3. Percentage of “On Track / Fully Supported” in All Domains in the Early Development Instrument, 2017–2023 ................................ ........... 23 Table 4. Youth Participants in OFCY’s Children’s Success in School Goal Area, FY 2023–2024 ................................ ................................ ..................... 29 Table 5. Chronic Absenteeism by Race/Ethnicity, 2018-2023 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ....... 36 Table 6. Chronic Absenteeism by Free/Reduced Lunch Status, 2018–2024 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................. 36 Table 7. Suspensions By Racial Group, 2019–2023 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ....................... 37 Table 8. Parents Self-Reporting Their Child Learns Skills that Help with Their School Work in the School’s After-School Program, 2020–2023......... 40 Table 9. Parents Self-Reporting That Their After-School Program Provides Opportunities for Their Child That They Wouldn't Otherwise Have Access To on the CHKS Parent Survey, 2020–2023 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .. 41 Table 10. Youth Participants in OFCY’s Youth Development and Violence Prevention Goal Area, FY 2023–2024 ................................ ....................... 46
COPYRIGHT © 2024 BRIGHT RESEARCH GROUP AND OFCY :: 93 Table 11. Youth Participants in OFCY’s “Transitions to Adulthood” Goal Area, FY 2023–2024 ................................ ................................ .................... 62 Table 12. OUSD Graduation Rate by Race, 2017–2022 ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................. 63 Table 13. Percentage of Middle and High School Students Self-Reporting Having Someone, In and Out of School, Who Advised Them and Helped Them Think About Their Future, Such as How to Get a Job, Job Training, or Going to College ................................ ................................ .................... 68 Table 14. Percentage of Middle and High School Students Self-Reporting That There is a Parent or Some Other Adult Who Believes That They Will Be a Success ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .................. 68 Table 15. High School Students Who Self-Reported Plans for after High School ................................ ................................ ................................ .......... 70
City of Oakland
Department of Human Services
Oakland Fund for Children and Youth (OFCY)
150 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza, Suite 4216
Oakland, CA 94612
510-238-6379 Main Office
510-238-4971 Fax
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.ofcy.org
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