Seeking Advice About Best School in Oakland (Child Going into 6th Grade)
Hello,
Our situation is slightly unconventional: my little sister (age 12) will be coming to live with me for the coming school year. This means that we haven't been involved with the local school system or its processes. I live in the Oakland Grand neighborhood, and it looks like the official public school for her would be Westlake. I am trying to figure out whether to enroll her there or what other options we have. I grew up attending charter schools and have been very happy with the education I received, however I'm not familiar with the charter schools in the greater Oakland/Berkeley area (I'm sure they're very popular/hard to get into).
I would love to get some advice from the network as I'm trying to get an overview and am a bit overwhelmed.
Thank you so much for your help.
Parent Replies
Hi,
Most schools have already closed enrollment, but its worth knocking on some doors to see what might be available. Charters with middle schools:
Urban Montessori Charter School
East Bay Innovation Academy
Lighthouse Charter School
Also you can check out Brewer Middle School - its public and they may accept out of neighborhood kids.
Best of luck.
Hi! I am not as familiar with charter schools as my kids have gone through Oakland public schools only. Registration does happen at the beginning of the year, so there may be some issues with open space at schools both public and charter. I have a kid entering 6th grade and he is going to Claremont Middle on College Ave next to BART station. I am not sure if they have any opening. My oldest who attends Oakland Tech HS went through Claremont Middle as well. The new principal is fantastic, it is a smaller school (which is great for my family) and there is an amazing group of parents and teachers there. It is worth checking out. Have you been to the school district office yet? They may have an idea of openings, but you can also contact the schools you are interested in directly. You might also look at greatschools.org to check out public and charter schools. It doesn't give the whole picture, but might be able to help you make the choice that is the best fit for you sister. Good luck with your search! Lisa
My daughter goes to Edna Brewer Middle School (off Park Blvd, not far from the Grand Lake area). It's one of Oakland's better rated middle schools. Great music program, solid academics, and my daughter likes her teachers.
We had a foster daughter ins special ed at Westlake and it was an okay experience. I think there is no way to know whether it is a good fit for you unless you visit and you can't do that until fall.
My best advice is to enroll her where you can, but be aware that at the beginning of the year, some people have accepted spots at multiple places or things change for them, so there are often openings after the year starts. Many kids don't report that they won't be attending school and sometimes it doesn't get registered with the district that the pupil isn't showing up. Some people may not liek the school that they start in and move, I've heard that called "the shuffle." It is certainly not reliable, but I have gotten great school placements for foster kids in November by getting inside information directly from the school administration. Is your sister in foster care? If so, OUSD does have a foster care liasion that might be able to pull some strings for you, but unfortunately probably can't create a spot for you that is actually full. He may have some power to get you higher priority or do some of the legwork for you at the district level.
Do your best to figure out 1) what your first choices are and 2) what acceptable choices are. Get on waiting lists now, but you will want to do another round of contact with both the district and the individual schools both the first week of school and potentially a few weeks after that.
Good luck. Just know that even though your situation is somewhat unusual, many of us don't know exactly where we are going to land. It is stressful, but lots of people are on waiting lists and you never know where spots will open up, especially if you are willing to move her after a few weeks.