OUSD is back to school facing big challenges with budget uncertainty and possible closures

OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) — It’s the start of the school year for much of the Bay Area this week, including Oakland Unified School District starting Monday, which is feeling the wrong kind of back-to-school jitters.

With drops in enrollment, issues with chronic absenteeism, and a drastic budget deficit, OUSD is facing one of the most uncertain school years yet.

These challenges that the district is facing could lead to some schools closing. OUSD School Board President Sam Davis says there will be tough conversations throughout the year.

“We are putting in a lot of resources into our schools because we want to keep families with us and we would appreciate them being on time every day,” Davis said.

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OUSD has seen its enrollment decline over the last several years. Attendance, which revenues are based on, has dwindled as well.

The district still faces a large budget shortfall of around $56 million.

The budget deficit is expected to get worse and Davis says they are still using federal and state relief money to cover the costs.

“We just have to take a tough look at every school and say ‘Is this really the one we need for our district right now and for our city?'” Davis said. “Because we do see declining number of students everywhere. Not just Oakland but Berkeley, Hayward, across the Bay and across the country.”

Davis says closing schools is still on the table.

Organizations that represent underprivileged families say things have to change.

Kimi Kean, the CEO of Families in Action, says the pandemic really affected OUSD.

“Unfortunately in Oakland, just two in 10 Black and brown students can read at grade level and only one in 10 can do math at grade level,” Kean said. “Just about 50% are actually even allowed to apply to a four-year college when they are done with high school. Those stats aren’t ok.”

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Kean says the pandemic hurt district attendance and she has been focusing on helping families get their children to go to school and stay in class.

“The Covid pandemic and the amount of time students spent out of school, we are still recovering from that,” she said. “We found that particularly in Oakland, the achievement gap widened.”

Kean acknowledges the district may have to close schools or cut programs that might affect certain families.

She thinks the district needs to make changes that improve everyone’s education.

“We welcome tough decisions and hard decisions, but we need to focus on improving the quality of our schools in Oakland,” Kean said.

Even with some of the issues, she is calling on Oakland families to work with the district and their teachers to help make sure each child has a strong year.