Is Kaiser Elementary closing?
Hi, we are entering the OUSD lottery for kindergarten in 2019-20 and were planning to rank Kaiser high on our list as we liked it better than any of the other schools we toured/visited. Now I hear that Kaiser is being forced to combine with Sankofa (at the Sankofa location I guess?) and that the principal at Kaiser, whom we really, really liked, is being let go. Is this true? Is it a done deal? If so, when is is this happening and why is it not being announced before the lottery deadline for next year? Thanks for any info anyone can provide!
Jan 25, 2019
Parent Replies
It is not a done deal by any means. It has been proposed that Kaiser move to the larger Sankofa location and expand to include the current Sankofa students. The School Board has not yet approved this, and I would expect to see many more meetings and dialogues through the spring before it even goes to a vote. I have not heard anything to suggest that the current Kaiser principal would not stay on, assuming he wants to; he is well loved by the Kaiser community.
Yes, it seems to be closing, according to this article in KQED:
https://www.kqed.org/news/11721070/oakland-unified-announces-plans-to-merge-kaiser-and-sankofa-elementary-schools-as-part-of-major-downsizing-effort
Sigh. Very sad to see this school go
As a parent of a 4yo living near Sankofa, I am thrilled to hear about the merge! We have a growing body of engaged, motivated parents of young kids in the area - so much that we have an education committee and fully fleshed school proposal for the former Santa Fe school site.
As that project has stalled, I can reassure you that the parents of Kaiser Elementary will find a similarly motivated and organized group of parents as we refocus our efforts on making the new, merged school a quality program.
Hope to see you there!