The education conversation in Oakland is focused on the wrong crisis. Less than 30% of Black and Latino kids in the district are reading grade level.
It’s time to focus on the real crisis: What can we do to get our students reading, and prepared for college and good jobs?
That’s where the Opportunity Ticket policy comes in. This is a real solution, led by The Oakland REACH and passed by the OUSD School Board, to help the most vulnerable students access high-quality instruction. As many students of color face school closures, we want to ensure every family knows about this policy.
What does the Opportunity Ticket do?
The Opportunity Ticket provides students from schools that are closing or physically moving to be merged with enrollment preference. Specifically, the Opportunity Ticket reserves 51% of seats at high-demand schools (it does not apply to students who are already changing schools — for example, a student heading into kindergarten or 9th grade).
Where did the Opportunity Ticket come from?
Parents like ours have waited for equity in Oakland for too long: ONLY ONE PERCENT of Black kids in Oakland attend a school that’s above the state average and making progress. Meanwhile, two-thirds of Black kids attend a school that is below the state average and going backward.
So, in 2019, The Oakland REACH decided to take action and do something about it! We created the Opportunity Ticket to ensure that families who are most often left behind actually have an opportunity and a pathway to a higher, better-quality option. The policy was passed UNANIMOUSLY by the school board in March 2019. Today, these families pass this Opportunity Ticket to you.
What makes a student eligible for the Opportunity Ticket?
Before March 2019, prioritization in the enrollment process was limited to siblings and neighborhood residents, with no prioritization for families impacted by closing schools and schools where families will need to move to a new location. Now, the Opportunity Ticket policy, established in Board Policy 5116.1, allows the enrollment team to also prioritize families who:
- Have a child currently attending the school that is a planned closure or that will be merging to another location and would have sent their other children to that school on the sibling priority;
- Live in the attendance area of the school that is a planned closure or that will be merging to another location and would have sent their children there on the neighborhood priority;
- Have children currently attending the school that is a planned closure or that will be merging to another location and would have had their children continue attending that same school if it were not closed (e.g. 3rd grade students who would have moved to 4th at that same school).
This process takes place after all student applicants with sibling priority are offered seats. Per the policy, the total number of students assigned to a school with an Opportunity Ticket cannot exceed 10% of the total student enrollment at the school.
Is my child eligible for an Opportunity Ticket?
The OUSD School Board announced that the following changes will take place before the next school year:
- Full Closure: Parker K-8, Community Day School
- Partial Closure: La Escuelita grades 6-8
- Merger: Rise Community School and New Highland Academy
Of these changes, students at Parker and La Escuelita are eligible for the Opportunity Ticket. If your child is in K-7th grade at one of these two schools, you are eligible to visit OaklandEnrolls.org NOW to apply for priority enrollment in a new school.
My child is eligible — what do I do next?
The Opportunity Ticket only works if families take advantage of it!! If your child is in K-7th grade at Parker or La Escuelita, apply for a new school now — this will only take 5 minutes and can be done totally on your cell phone in 4 steps:
- Explore: Visit OaklandEnrolls.org to explore your school options.
- The Oakland REACH is ready to help — if you want help exploring the options available to you, you can email Enrollmentsupport@oaklandreach.org. Once we receive your email, we will schedule a time to work with you to identify the right school for your child and help walk you through the application process.
- Apply: The application deadline is extended to February 18th. Be sure to apply before this date!
- Applications are available in 6 languages.
- Accept: Accept your school offer by March 24th.
- Register: Check in with your school for the registration deadline.
Want to learn more?
- Visit https://www.ousd.org/whatsnext or text/call Oakland’s enrollment office at 510-879-4600
- Look for support from the REACH in yellow shirts in front of Parker and La Escuelita beginning Friday, 2/11 between 8-9 a.m. and 2:30-4 p.m. OUSD enrollment staff will also be onsite to support families.