May 17th is Take Back Our Schools Day

Please forward widely!!

MAY 17,2005 is TAKE BACK OUR SCHOOLS DAY
in honor of the historic Brown v. Board of Education
verdict on May 17,1954. A growing tide of youth,
educators, parents, union members, and community
organizations are calling for an end to the
destructive takeover of the Oakland schools.

Schedule of Events (all events are within a few block radius of 12th Street BART))
Noon -1 p.m.:Rally at Frank Ogawa Plaza (at City Hall, 14th and Broadway)
1 p.m.-4 p.m.:Student-led teach-ins, First Unitarian
Church,14th and Castro streets
4 p.m.-6:30 p.m.:Major rally, the State
Building,15th and Clay streets

For information on the May 17 events, including curriculum for your classroom visit http://www.ednotinc.org
For articles on the destructive effects of the State Takeover: http://www.oaklandrising.com

May 17:Take Back Our Schools Day is a project of
Organize Da BAY, Education Not Incarceration, Oakland Education Association, Oakland ACORN, AFSCME 257, Oakland AFT and many more organizations from the Coalition to Defend and Improve Public Education

Media Contact: Micah, Organize Da Bay, 510.841.0690, enigmicah [at] gmail.com
Education Contact: Jessica Vasquez: 510.847.2523, jessica_vasquez [at] hotmail.com
Outreach Contact: Victor Duarte: 510.847.9521, duarte138 [at] yahoo.com

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Oakland City Council Unanimously Passed the Following Resolution Supporting May 17th's Events on May 3, 2005. The Resolution was introduced by Councilwoman Jane Brunner:

Resolution to Save Public Education

WHEREAS, on May 17, 1954, the Supreme Court of the
United States issued their historic opinion in the
case of Brown v. Board of Education that called for an
immediate end to segregated education; and

WHEREAS, on May 17, 2004, Mayor of Oakland Jerry Brown
issued a proclamation declaring May 17th “Equal
Education Day” in the City of Oakland; and

WHEREAS, the Oakland Unified School District has been
under the complete fiscal and legislative authority of
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack
O’Connell and his appointed Administrator Dr.
Randolph Ward since June 3, 2003; and

WHEREAS, vested with the authority of the State of
California, Dr. Ward in 2004 closed five Oakland
public schools and has, in his recently issued
“Multi-Year Fiscal Recovery Plan” and in public
statements, announced plans to close up to 9 more
Oakland public schools mainly in the flatlands, while
simultaneously opening up to 25 new, undefined
learning communities within the next two years; and

WHEREAS, Oakland schools have experienced an alarming
rate of student attrition with more than 6,900
students leaving the District since the state takeover
began and thousands more expected to leave in coming
years; and

WHEREAS, according to a March 24, 2005 Oakland Tribune
article, less than 50% of Oakland Unified School
District students graduate high school on time, with
closer to 30% of Latino and African-American students
likely to earn a high school diploma within four
years; and

WHEREAS, the closure of neighborhood schools and such
low graduation rates point to the prevalence of
unequal educational conditions for many Oakland
students and constitute an alarming crisis in the
Oakland public schools that demands immediate
attention; now

THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Council of
the City of Oakland encourages school administrators,
educators, community organizations, and concerned
citizens to participate in educational programs
located on school sites during the school day or
elsewhere after school, on May 17th, 2005, including



1. Study and discussion on the historic
importance of Brown v. Board of Education and its
relevance to public education today.



2. Development and presentation of workshops
to students, parents, and community members on May 17,
2005 on a variety of issues related to equal access to
public education.



3. Ongoing public dialogue among all
sectors of the community on the state of the Oakland
Unified School District and next steps to improve the
quality of education provided to the children and
youth of Oakland.



4. Study of the Oakland Unified
School District’s proposed Multi-Year Fiscal
Recovery Plan, including the financial plan, a
timeline for the State of California to return
Oakland’s schools to local control, and how we can
support Proposition 98 and increasing resources for
our schools.