AGENDA REPORT
TO: Jestin D. Johnson FROM: Lea Lakes
City Administrator Human Services
Department Interim Director
SUBJECT: Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment
Program and OFCY Summer Program
Service Term Awards FY 2026 - 2028
DATE: March 30, 2026
City Administrator Approval Date:
RECOMMENDATION
Staff Recommends That The City Council Adopt A Resolution Accepting The Planning And Oversight Committee Recommendation To:
1. Award Nine (9) Grants Within The Youth Summer Jobs / Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program Funding Strategy Totaling An Amount Not To Exceed One Million Four Hundred Eighty Thousand Two Hundred Fifty Three Dollars And Sixty Cents ($1,480,253.60) For Two Summer Program Service Term Grant Cycles: June 1, 2026, Through September 30, 2026, And June 1, 2027, Through September 30, 2027, Contingent Upon Funding Availability And Program Performance
2. Award Twelve (12) Grants Across Four Funding Strategies (Elementary School- Based Expanded Learning, Middle School -Based Expanded Learning, Youth Development And Leadership, And Career Access And Employment), Totaling An Amount Not To Exceed One Million Sev en Hundred And Twelve Thousand Five Hundred And Fifty Eight Dollars ($1,712,558.00) For Two Summer Program Service Term Grant Cycles: June 1, 2026, Through September 30, 2026, And June 1, 2027, Through September 30, 2027, Contingent Upon Funding Availability And Program Performance
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Oakland Fund for Children and Youth (OFCY) requests that the Council accept the funding recommendation put forth by the OFCY Planning and Oversight Committee (POC) to award 21 agencies grant awards to operate programs during the summer service term, from June 1st to September 30th. OFCY seeks approval to fund these programs for two fiscal years, 2026 and 2027.
Jestin Johnson (Apr 15, 2026 09:20:26 PDT)
Apr 15, 2026
2 These agencies were selected through a competitive process; each applied for funding through the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 – 2028 OFCY Request for Proposals (RFP), released on October 24, 2026. The first nine grant awards will fund programs under the Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program to provide an estimated 505 youth 100 hours of paid work experience.
These were reviewed, approved, and recommended by the Oakland Workforce Development Board in addition to OFCY. The remaining twelve grant awards will fund programs across four other OFCY funding strategies: Career Access and Employment, Elementary School-Based Expanded Learning, Middle School-Based Expanded Learning, and Youth Development and Leadership and serve an additional 1,664 youth.
The City Council is asked to accept the award recommendations so OFCY, the Oakland Workforce Development Board (OWDB), and the Oakland Children’s Initiative (OCI) can begin the contracting process with agencies to provide summer services, from June 1, 2026, through September 30, 2026, and from June 1, 2027, through September 30, 2027.
Through this recommendation, over 2,000 youth, particularly those with the least access to services, will get access to critical summer programming that promotes public safety, violence prevention, cultural enrichment, and academic support.
Table 1: Youth Summer Jobs – Mayor's Summer Youth Employment Program (MSYEP) Proposed Awards
Agency Name Program Name Average
Score
Proposed
Award
1. Trybe Inc. Trybe Summer Youth
Employment 93 $ 147,549.60
2. The Youth Employment
Partnership, Inc.
YEP Summer Career
Tryout/Summer Rising 92 $ 312,500.00
3. Lao Family Community
Development Inc.
Oakland Youth on the Move
Summer Program 91 $ 312,500.00
4. Alameda County Office
of Education Career
Pathways Support Team
Green Carers Guidance
Initiative - Graduate
Employment in the Trades
88 $ 209,939.00
5. Rising Sun Center for
Opportunity Climate Careers 85 $ 47,765.00
6. YouthBeat
Summer Youth Media
Careers: Media Apprentice
Program, College Bridge,
Media & Money Conference
85 $ 84,000.00
7. Youth Uprising YU Career and Education
Summer Jobs 83 $ 171,096.62
8. Destiny Arts Center Destiny Works at Camp
Destiny 79 $ 108,000.00
9. Soccer Without Borders
Summer Youth Leadership
Program at Soccer Without
Borders
71 $ 86,903.38
Total Youth Summer Jobs / Mayor’s Summer Youth
Employment Program (MSYEP) Annual Allocation $ 1,480,253.60 3 Table 2: Summer Program Service Term Proposed Awards
Agency Name Program Name Average
Score
Proposed
Award
1. East Bay Consortium of
Educational Institutions Pre-Collegiate Academy 97 $ 200,000.00
2. Family Support Services Kinship Youth Summer
Program (Elementary) 96 $ 71,965.00
3. Prescott Circus Theatre
Prescott Circus Theatre
Summer Circus and Academic
Program
95 $ 63,500.00
4. Lincoln Oakland Freedom School 94 $ 200,000.00
5. Aim High for High School Aim High Oakland 92 $ 200,000.00
6. The Junior Center of Art
and Science
Junior Center of Art and
Science (JCAS) Innovation
Mentors Program
92 $ 41,960.00
7. The Crucible Crucible Youth Summer Camp
Scholarships 91 $ 145,000.00
8. Family Support Services
Kinship Youth Summer
Program (Youth Development
and Leadership)
89 $ 71,390.00
9. Oakland Unified School
District
Exploring College Career
Community Options 89 $ 250,000.00
10. Girls Incorporated of
Alameda County Concordia Park Summer 86 $ 68,743.00
11. Acta Non Verba: Urban
Youth Farm Project Camp ANV 85 $ 200,000.00
12. Flourish Agenda Inc. Camp Akili 85 $ 200,000.00
Total OFCY Summer Program Service Term Annual Allocation $ 1,712,558.00
BACKGROUND / LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
The Kids First! Amendment (Article XIII – Amended in 2020) of the City of Oakland Charter requires that three percent (3%) of the annual actual unrestricted General-Purpose Fund be set aside as annual revenues, along with interest accrued and any unspent funds from prior years and appropriated to the Oakland Kids First! Children’s Fund. Ninety percent (90%) of the annual revenue is made available for grants to non-profit and public agencies to address the well-being of Oakland children and youth from birth through age 21. Ten percent (10%) is available for administration and evaluation. The City Council adopted Ordinance No. 13588 C.M.S. on March 3, 2020, which extended OFCY for twelve (12) years, beginning July 1, 2021, and continuing through June 30, 2033.
4 On October 16, 2024, the POC unanimously approved the OFCY FY 2025-2028 Strategic Investment Plan (SIP). On December 17, 2024, the City Council approved the OFCY FY 2025- 2028 SIP through Resolution 90580 C.M.S.
The sixth funding strategy listed in the 2025 - 2028 SIP is Youth Summer Jobs / the Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program (MSYEP). The MSYEP is funded collaboratively by OFCY, the Oakland Workforce Development Board (OWDB), and the Oakland Children’s Initiative (OCI). Please see Attachment B for a detailed description of the Youth Summer Jobs / MSYEP Funding Strategy.
Differing from the FY 2022 – 2025 SIP, the approved FY 2025 – 2028 SIP does not have a dedicated Summer Academic and Enrichment Funding Strategy. Instead, Programs were instructed to identify their Program Service Term: either Summer (June 1st through September 30th) or Year-round (July 1st through June 30th).
On June 17, 2025, the City Council approved Resolution 90767 C.M.S. extending FY 2024- 2025 grants for FY 2025-2026 to 74 non-profit and public agencies operating 144 district grant programs to allow staff sufficient time to distribute the RFP for the next funding cycle.
On October 24, 2025, OFCY released the Request for Proposals (RFP) to fund programs under the FY 2025 – 2028 SIP. Attachment C provides a comprehensive overview of the FY 2026 – 2028 OFCY RFP, including the funding strategies, application timeline, campaign and outreach strategy, proposal submission statistics, and the process for reader recruitment, assignment, and scoring.
OFCY received 333 completed proposals across the eight funding strategies by the deadline of 11:59 pm on December 12, 2025. This is a 45% increase from 2022, when 229 proposals were received. The cumulative annual amount requested by all proposals was $62.2 million. This is approximately a 65% increase from 2022, when $37.8 million was requested.
The FY 2026 – 2028 RFP received thirteen proposals under the Youth Summer Jobs / MSYEP Funding Strategy and twenty proposals for the Summer Program Service term across four other Funding Strategies:
1. Elementary School-Based Expanded Learning
2. Middle School-Based Expanded Learning
3. Youth Development and Leadership
4. Career Access and Employment
5. Independent Living
Of the 20 proposals submitted to operate services during the Summer Program Service Term, nineteen met the minimum score threshold of 70 for funding consideration. This meant that there were more proposals that met the minimum threshold score of 70 / 100 than OFCY could fund.
OFCY will make awards for a two-year grant cycle, for FY 2026-2027 and FY 2027-2028, contingent upon fund balance, satisfactory evaluation, grant monitoring and overall performance subject to approval by the Planning and Oversight Committee and Oakland City Council. OFCY may extend the grant cycle for additional fiscal years.
5 ANALYSIS AND POLICY ALTERNATIVES
The Alternative to this proposal would be that the Council rejects the recommendation from the OFCY POC.
Alternative #1 Council rejects the recommendation from the OFCY POC to award 21 programs for the Summer Program Service Term
Pros • More funds are available for Year-round service term awards Cons
• Loss of an estimated 505 jobs for youth, particularly those living in West Oakland, the Fruitvale, and East Oakland, through the loss of funding for the Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program • Loss of programming during the summer months for an estimated 1,664 youth, ages 5 – 21, including academic enrichment, youth leadership, and violence prevention.
• Failure to meet the 2025 – 2028 OFCY Strategic Investment Plan goal to expand investment in programming for older youth • Failure to meet the goals identified by Mayor Barbara Lee to expand the Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program
Reason for not
recommending
• Rejecting the POC’s recommended funding awards would
jeopardize summer programs that provide essential jobs, services, and support for Oakland youth.
• Research consistently shows that summer programs deliver critical developmental, educational, and economic benefits—especially for young people, especially those in communities with fewer opportunities.
• Approving these awards ensures OFCY can invest in vital summer opportunities while still maintaining sufficient funds for year-round programming.
Staff reviewed all proposal submissions received by the deadline to ensure that the required proposal elements were provided according to the directions included in the RFP. In accordance with the evaluation criteria outlined in the RFP, all proposals that met the minimum threshold of 70 were considered for funding.
Of the thirteen proposals submitted under the Youth Summer Jobs / MSYEP Funding Strategy, nine met the minimum score threshold of 70 for funding consideration. OWDB Executive Director, Sofia Navarro, and Administrative Services Manager, Honorata Lindsay, reviewed and approved the final recommendations to be presented to the OWDB and the POC.
Youth Summer Jobs / MSYEP OFCY Award Allocation
The total amount requested across all selected MSYEP proposals was $1,488,656.98. OFCY determined the allocation of $ 1,030,253.60 for awards under the MSYEP strategy to fully fund the proposals that received a score of at least 85 / 100.
Table 3 provides the table, average score, requested award amount, and OFCY proposed allocation.
6 Table 3: Recommended Allocation for Recommended Programs in the Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program
Agency Name Program Name
Agency
Funding
Requested
OFCY
Proposed
Allocation
OWDB, OCI,
MSYEP
Allocation
1. Trybe Inc. Trybe Summer Youth
Employment $ 147,549.60 $ 147,549.60 $ 0.00
2. The Youth
Employment
Partnership, Inc.
YEP Summer Career
Tryout/Summer Rising $ 312,500.00 $ 312,500.00 $ 0.00
3. Lao Family
Community
Development Inc.
Oakland Youth on the
Move Summer
Program
$ 312,500.00 $ 312,500.00 $ 0.00
4. Alameda County
Office of Education
Career Pathways
Support Team
Green Carers
Guidance Initiative -
Graduate Employment
in the Trades
$ 209,939.00 $ 209,939.00 $ 0.00
5. Rising Sun Center
for Opportunity Climate Careers $ 47,765.00 $ 47,765.00 $ 0.00
6. YouthBeat
Summer Youth Media
Careers: Media
Apprentice Program,
College Bridge, Media
& Money Conference
$ 84,000.00 $ 0.00 $ 84,000.00
7. Youth Uprising
YU Career and
Education Summer
Jobs
$ 179,500.00 $ 0.00 $ 171,096.62
8. Destiny Arts Center Destiny Works at
Camp Destiny $ 108,000.00 $ 0.00 $ 108,000.00
9. Soccer Without
Borders
Summer Youth
Leadership Program at
Soccer Without
Borders
$ 86,903.38 $ 0.00 $ 86,903.38
$1,488,656.98 $1,030,253.60 $ 450,000.00
The $450,000.00 funding allocation from OWDB, OCI, and other sources enables staff to fully fund all programs that met the minimum score threshold of 70 in the Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Strategy.
Table 4 shows the total amount requested, the total amount recommended, and the total amount awarded by funding source.
7 Table 4: Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program Allocation by Funding Source
Total Requested by All Agencies $ 1,488,656.98
Total Funded by OFCY Youth Summer Jobs / Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program (MSYEP) Annual Allocation $ 1,030,253.60 Total Funded by OWDB, OCI, and Measure HH for Mayor’s
Summer Youth Employment Program (MSYEP) Annual
Allocation
$ 450,000.00
Total Proposed Youth Summer Jobs / Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program (MSYEP) Annual Allocation $ 1,480,253.60
The additional funding sources leveraged for the Youth Summer Jobs / MSYEP funding strategy enable OFCY and its collaborators to fund more proposals within that strategy. This also means that OFCY can allocate more funding to other strategies while still meeting the 2025 – 2028 SIP investment goal.
The proposed OFCY allocation of $ 1,030,253.60 aligns with the 2025 – 2028 SIP estimated funding range for the funding strategy, show in Table 5 below.
Table 5: Estimated Investment by Strategy under the 2025 - 2028 OFCY SIP (Based on $20,000,000 annual investment)
OFCY Investment Strategy
FY 25 – 28
Funding
Allocation
Range
Low Amount High Amount
1. Family Resource Centers &
Parent Engagement 8 – 13% $ 1,600,000.00 $ 2,600,000.00
2. Expanded Learning- Elementary
School 8 – 13% $ 1,600,000.00 $ 2,600,000.00
3. Expanded Learning- Middle
School 10 – 15% $ 2,000,000.00 $ 3,000,000.00
4. Youth Development & Leadership 30 – 35% $ 6,000,000.00 $ 7,000,000.00
5. Career Access & Employment 12 – 17% $ 2,400,000.00 $ 3,400,000.00
6. Youth Summer Jobs 6 – 11% $ 1,200,000.00 $ 2,200,000.00
7. Independent Living 3 – 8% $ 600,000.00 $ 1,600,000.00
8. Place Based Innovations for
Safety 10 – 15% $ 2,000,000.00 $ 3,000,000.00
Additional Strategies Summer Program Service Term Award Allocation
Nineteen proposals met the minimum score threshold of 70 for funding consideration. This meant that there were more proposals that met the minimum threshold score of 70 / 100 than OFCY could fund.
8 To determine final award allocations for the proposals in other funding strategies for the Summer Program Service Term, OFCY considered additional factors beyond average score, including:
• Geographic population served
• Number of proposals submitted by the agency
• Total funding requested
• Percentage of funding requested from OFCY compared to total program cost • History in Oakland
• Applied expertise
• Alignment with the 2025 – 2028 SIP
• Funding climate
Using this methodology, OFCY identified the twelve programs that received an average score of at least 85 / 100 that were recommended for funding. These programs, along with their recommended funding amount, are listed in Table 6.
THIS SPACE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK
9 Table 6: Summer Program Service Term Proposed Awards
Agency Name Program Name Requested
Amount
OFCY
Proposed
Award
1. East Bay Consortium of
Educational Institutions Pre-Collegiate Academy $ 217,501.00 $ 200,000.00
2. Family Support Services Kinship Youth Summer
Program (Elementary) $ 71,965.00 $ 71,965.00
3. Prescott Circus Theatre
Prescott Circus Theatre
Summer Circus and
Academic Program
$ 63,500.00 $ 63,500.00
4. Lincoln Oakland Freedom School $ 240,000.00 $ 200,000.00
5. Aim High for High School Aim High Oakland $ 312,000.00 $ 200,000.00
6. The Junior Center of Art
and Science
Junior Center of Art and
Science (JCAS) Innovation
Mentors Program
$ 41,960.00 $ 41,960.00
7. The Crucible Crucible Youth Summer
Camp Scholarships $ 145,000.00 $ 145,000.00
8. Family Support Services
Kinship Youth Summer
Program (Youth
Development and
Leadership)
$ 71,390.00 $ 71,390.00
9. Oakland Unified School
District
Exploring College Career
Community Options $ 312,000.00 $ 250,000.00
10. Girls Incorporated of
Alameda County Concordia Park Summer $ 68,743.00 $ 68,743.00
11. Acta Non Verba: Urban
Youth Farm Project Camp ANV $ 200,000.00 $ 200,000.00
12. Flourish Agenda Inc. Camp Akili $ 312,500.00 $ 200,000.00 Total $ 2,057.059.00 $ 1,712,558.00
Total OFCY Summer Program Service Term Requested Allocation $ 2,057.059.00 Total OFCY Summer Program Service Term Annual Allocation $ 1,712,558.00
Based on the low estimates from Table 5 on page 7, Table 7 shows the percentage of funding received by Programs operating during the Summer out of the total estimated amount available by each funding strategy as approved through the FY 2025 – 2028 SIP.
10 Table 7: Estimated Percentage Investment by Strategy for Programs Operating During the Summer Program Service Term
OFCY Investment Strategy
FY 25 – 28
Funding
Allocation
Funding
Availability
1. Family Resource Centers & Parent Engagement Not Impacted $ 1,600,000.00
2. Expanded Learning- Elementary School $ 471,965.00 $ 1,600,000.00
3. Expanded Learning- Middle School $ 400,000.00 $ 2,000,000.00
4. Youth Development & Leadership $ 548,633.00 $ 6,000,000.00
5. Career Access & Employment $ 291,960.00 $ 2,400,000.00
6. Youth Summer Jobs $ 1,030,253.60 $ 1,200,000.00
7. Independent Living Not Impacted $ 600,000.00
8. Place Based Innovations for Safety Not Impacted $ 2,000,000.00 Summer Program Service Term Total $ 2,742,811.60 $ 20,000,000.00
Table 7 above demonstrates that:
• Approximately 29% of estimated funding allocated to the Elementary School-Based Expanded Learning Strategy will be used for Programs operating during the summer service term.
• Approximately 20% of the Middle School-Based Expanded Learning Strategy will be used for Programs operating during the summer service term. • Approximately 12% of the Career Access and Employment Learning Strategy will be used for Programs operating during the summer service term. • Approximately 9% of the Youth Development and Leadership Strategy will be used for Programs operating during the summer service term.
• Approximately 14% of all OFCY funding allocated each FY will be for programs operating during the summer service term, from June 1st through September 30th.
Program Impact
While there is no dedicated summer funding strategy in the 2025 – 2028 SIP, OFCY aims to deepen investment in summer programming, recognizing that Summer youth programming provides critical developmental, educational, and economic benefits for young people, especially those in communities with fewer opportunities.
For FY 2025 – 2026, OFCY currently allocates $1,161,000.00 to fund twelve programs under the 2022 – 2025 SIP Summer Academic and Enrichment and Summer Youth Employment funding strategies.
11 The programs selected for funding propose to serve 1,724 youth: 229 youth through the Summer Youth Employment strategy and an additional 1,495 youth through the Summer Academic and Enrichment strategy.
By approving this recommendation, a proposed 2,169 youth will be served in FY 2026 – 2027: 505 youth through MSYEP and 1,644 through the other four strategies, which is a 26% increase in the number of youth served during the summer months.
Table 8 below shows the proposed number of youth served by funding strategy through this agenda item:
Table 8: Total Youth Served by Funding Strategy (Proposed)
Strategy Proposed Number of
Youth Served
Career Access and Employment 535
Elementary School Expanded Learning 385
Mayor's Summer Youth Employment 505
Middle School Expanded Learning 420
Youth Development and Leadership 324
TOTAL 2,169
One goal of increased investment during the summer is to prioritize programming for youth with the least access to services and supports during the summer. Table 9 shows the proposed number of youth served by Council district through this award. Table 10 shows the total number of programs funded within that Council district.
Table 9: Estimated Number of Youth Served by Council District
District Estimated Number of
Youth Served
Percentage of
Youth Served
2 210 10%
3 302 14%
4 94 4%
5 158 7%
6 120 6%
7 1145 54%
Citywide 100 5%
12 Table 10: Proposed Number of Programs Funded by Council District
District Count of Programs
2 2
3 5
4 1
5 1
6 1
7 7
Citywide 2
Across all awards, the chart below presents the estimated number of youth served by ethnicity, ordered from highest to lowest.
By funding 21 programs for an annual amount of $ 2,742,811.60 during the Summer Service Term (nine programs in the Youth Summer Jobs / MSYEP funding strategy and twelve programs across the Elementary School-Based Expanded Learning, Middle School-Based Expanded Learning, Youth Development and Leadership, and Career Access and Employment funding strategies), OFCY increases its investment and deepens its support for youth during the summer months.
RELATED PLANNING EFFORTS: OAKLAND STRATEGIC PLAN
Under the Oakland Strategic Plan, this agenda item supports the Strategic Priority to Foster Cross-Department Collaboration. Specifically, this item relates to the implementation of the following task:
“Strengthen Governance and Coordination for Economic and Workforce Development.”
10 17
20 22
35 39
62 116
203
768
875
0 200 400 600 800 1000
American Indian or Alaskan Native
South Asian, Indian, or Desi
Afro-Caribbean or Afro-Latin(o/a)
Other
Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian
Arab and other Middle Eastern American
White, European, or Caucasian
Two or More
Asian, Asian American, Filipino
Black or African American
Hispanic or Latin(a/o), or Latinx
13 For Fiscal Years 2026–2027 and 2027–2028, the Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program will be administered through a collaborative partnership between OFCY, OWDB, and OCI.
This interdepartmental partnership will coordinate efforts across:
• Grantee engagement and support
• Program reporting through OFCY’s Cityspan grants management system • Program monitoring and site visits
• Fiscal oversight and accountability
RELATED PLANNING EFFORTS: OAKLAND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ACTION PLAN
This item also supports the Oakland Economic Development Action Plan Job and Workforce Development priority. Specifically, the Mayor’s Youth Summer Employment Program aims to increase the number of jobs, the likelihood Oakland residents will be hired, and the number of workforce development and training opportunities available for Oakland youth ages 14-21.
The additional summer program service term grants support the Oakland Economic Development Action Plan Place and Community Investment priority through strengthening neighborhood supports. By funding these awards, the City of Oakland invests in local non-profit organizations that employ Oakland residents, many of which are from the communities they serve. Thus, this investment not only supports the youth participants identified in the proposed program, but also the Oakland residents employed to serve them.
FISCAL IMPACT
The City of Oakland Adopted Biennial Budget for FY 2025-2027 estimates a total allocation of $23,576,450.00 for FY 2026-2027 for the Oakland Kids First! Children’s Fund. $21,218,805.00 (90%) is available for grants, and $2,357,645.00 (10%) is available for evaluation, strategic planning, and other administrative costs. These amounts may change based on updated GPF revenues that will be released with the pending adoption of the FY 2026-27 Midcycle Budget.
OFCY seeks approval to allocate $1,030,253.60 to awards under the Youth Summer Jobs / MSYEP funding strategy. To fund all proposals that met the minimum scoring threshold ($ 1,480,253.60), other funding sources will need to contribute $ 450,000.00.
The MSYEP is a key initiative of Mayor Barbara Lee. Under the direction of OWDB, the below funding sources listed in Table 11 have been identified to contribute the remaining $ 450,000.00.
Table 11: MSYEP Investment by Funding Source
Funding Source Estimated
FY 2026 - 2027
OFCY Youth Summer Jobs $ 1,030,253.60
OWDB, Measure HH, Restored General
Fund, Private Grants $ 300,000.00
Oakland Children’s Initiative $ 150,000.00
Total Youth Summer Jobs /
MSYEP Allocation $ 1,480,253.60
14 Future year funding will be included in the proposed annual budget and is subject to Council approval of annual appropriations.
A breakdown of the appropriated project funding sources for MSYEP and all OFCY summer program service term awards is included in Table 12.
Table 12: Project Funding Sources
Fund Source Organization Project Program Amount
1780 – Oakland
Fund for
Children and
Youth (OFCY) –
Kids First
Oakland
Children’s Fund
78251 – Youth
Services
Organization
1007730 –
OFCY FY 2026
– 2027 Project
YS04 – OFCY
Program
$ 2,742,811.60
1030 – Measure
HH Fund
85311 –
Workforce
Development
Board
1008236-
Summer Youth
Employment
TBD $300,000.00
2261 – Measure
AA Oversight
Fund
02111 - City
Administrator:
Administration
1000002 -
DP020
Administrative
Project
TBD $ 150,000.00
TOTAL $ 3,192,811.60
PUBLIC OUTREACH / INTEREST
On March 18, 2026, the OFCY POC unanimously approved the nine FY 2026-2028 Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program and twelve additional summer program service term grant recommendations in a noticed public meeting.
On March 20, 2026, the OWDB also unanimously approved the FY 2026-2028 Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program grant recommendations in a noticed public meeting.
COORDINATION
These funding recommendations were developed in close partnership with staff from OWDB and OCI. Before bringing this to City Council for consideration, both the OWDB and POC approved the Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment funding award recommendations.
This report and legislation have also been reviewed by the Office of the City Attorney and the Budget Bureau.
15 PAST PERFORMANCE, EVALUATION AND FOLLOW-UP
During the 2022–2025 funding cycle, MSYEP-funded programs significantly exceeded expectations, serving 988 youth—79% above initial projections—demonstrating strong demand and program effectiveness.
The MSYEP aims to achieve the following outcomes:
• Increase the number of Oakland youth participating in summer employment and gaining first-time work experience
• Expand youth awareness of career pathways and employment opportunities • Improve financial stability and income access for participating youth • Increase equitable access to paid work opportunities for youth in East Oakland, Central Oakland, and West Oakland
Building on previous efforts, and integrating a Results Based Accountability framework, all funded grantees will be required to capture and report quarterly participant demographics, geographic areas served, and the impact of programming (outcomes) for the participants served.
In FY 2026 – 2027, OFCY will be tracking outcomes using eight identified outcome measurement categories to evaluation how participants are better off since being in the program funded by OFCY:
1. Client Satisfaction
2. Belonging and Community Support
3. Knowledge Acquisition and Skill Development
4. Connections and Access to Resources
5. Leadership and Development
6. Engagement in School and Academic Achievement
7. Violence Prevention
8. Employment and Financial Stability
RACE AND EQUITY
OFCY is committed to partnering with the City of Oakland’s Department of Race & Equity (DRE) and recognizes the responsibility of implementing the City of Oakland Administrative Instruction 580 (AI580) requirements to ensure funding investments support fairness and justice for all City of Oakland children, youth, and their families by removing barriers, promoting access and opportunity and to reducing disparities.
OFCY embedded an equity outcome statement into the FY 2025-2028 SIP and has adopted the following Race & Equity Statement:
For the four OFCY goal areas, all children and youth participating in OFCY funded programs will have opportunities to thrive, including those experiencing the most disparities.
Based on guidance from DRE, OFCY embedded equity outcomes in the OFCY FY 2026 – 2028 RFP and evaluation criteria used to score proposals. Each Funding Strategy identified Priority Populations & Geographic Areas / neighborhoods listed as “Highest” or “High” priority as defined by the City of Oakland Department of Transportation Geographic Equity Toolbox. Programs that
16 addressed disparate outcomes and reduced burdens for youth most impacted by racial disparities were awarded more points and prioritized for funding.
As demonstrated by Table 9 in the Analysis section on pages 11-12, most programs funded and youth served are in Districts 2, 3, and 7.
ACTION REQUESTED OF THE CITY COUNCIL
Staff Recommends That The City Council Adopt A Resolution Accepting The Planning And Oversight Committee Recommendation To:
1. Award Nine (9) Grants Within The Youth Summer Jobs / Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program Funding Strategy Totaling An Amount Not To Exceed One Million Four Hundred Eighty Thousand Two Hundred Fifty Three Dollars And Sixty Cents ($1,480,253.60) For Two Summer Program Service Term Grant Cycles: June 1, 2026, Through September 30, 2026, And June 1, 2027, Through September 30, 2027, Contingent Upon Funding Availability And Program Performance
2. Award Twelve (12) Grants Across Four Funding Strategies (Elementary School-Based Expanded Learning, Middle School -Based Expanded Learning, Youth Development And Leadership, And Career Access And Employment), Totaling An Amount Not To Exceed One Million Sev en Hundred And Twelve Thousand Five Hundred And Fifty Eight Dollars ($1,712,558.00) For Two Summer Program Service Term Grant Cycles:
June 1, 2026, Through September 30, 2026, And June 1, 2027, Through September 30, 2027, Contingent Upon Funding Availability And Program Performance
For questions regarding this report, please contact ROBIN LOVE, MANAGER, at (510) 238 - 3213.
Respectfully submitted,
LEA LAKES
Interim Director, Human Services Department
Reviewed by:
Robin Love, Manager
Prepared by:
Robyn Levinson, Program Planner
Children and Youth Services Division
Lea Lakes (Apr 10, 2026 10:00:04 PDT)
Lea Lakes
17 Attachments (3):
A: Summer Program Service Term Grantee Award List with Program Descriptions
B: Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program (MSYEP) Funding Strategy and Oakland Children’s Initiative (OCI) Overview
C: FY 2026 – 2028 OFCY RFP Background Information