X.-1 20-1335 Adoption by the Board of Education of Resolution No. 1920-0260 - George Floyd Resolution to Eliminate the Oakland Schools Police Department
I am in full support of the George Floyd Resolution to Eliminate the Oakland Schools Police Department. For any given goal that our community has for our children, there is a better way of achieving it than installing police officers in schools. Aside from pure laziness or lack of creativity, there is no reason to spend resources on police when programs that actually promote student wellbeing and safety remain severely underfunded.
The current unfair system needs to end. Black students matter, and the system clearly doesn't value them. We can get better outcomes through counseling and restorative justice programs. Please reallocate the $6 million spent on policing – which adds nothing positive to the educational experience – towards these other programs that could have a huge positive impact on students.
As an Oakland resident, I strongly support the George Floyd Resolution. I urge you to eliminate police in OUSD schools and reallocate funds to create crucial support positions such as school-based social workers and restorative justice practitioners.
As a school-based mental health clinician, I believe it is past time that OUSD eliminates the OSPD. OUSD students, particularly black students, have reported ongoing experiences of violence and trauma at the hands of the police in the environments in which they should be supported to learn and grow. I believe without a doubt that we can better support, teach, and empower students through increasing mental health, social service, and special education services. I fully support this resolution and give thanks to the Black Organizing Project for their tireless efforts and leadership.
With the record showing that police presence so clearly does not protect black and brown people, but in fact the opposite - it is not necessary OR beneficial to have a police presence at Oakland schools.
I am an alumni of OUSD schools and a lifelong Oakland resident. Spending $6.5 million on policing and surveilling students is unconscionable, especially when services that support students' learning and wellbeing are underfunded. I urge you to adopt the George Floyd Resolution and join universities and schools across the country that are cutting ties with police.
Hello, my name is Dana Elliot, I am a resident of Oakland. I have friends, family, and loved ones who are teachers, both in Oakland public schools and in other schools. I would like to express my strong support of the Black Organizing Project and the adoption of resolution no. 1920-0260 - George Floyd Resolution to Eliminate the Oakland Schools Police Department. Students in Oakland need to feel supported and encouraged in their school experience, and in no way does a police presence contribute to that. BOP has presented overwhelming evidence that policing in schools is detrimental to students of color, and directly contributes to the school-to-prison pipeline. The money that is currently allocated for police should be redirected to services that directly support students and teachers and contribute to a safe, positive learning experience for every OUSD student.
Children do not need violent police in their schools. They need support, guidance, and opportunities for self-development. Once we eliminate the police, we can put those savings into those areas as mentioned. Police in schools, just like in the streets do not keep people of color safe. In fact, they escalate the violence in order to gain compliance. Our kids deserve better. Eliminate police presence in the OUSD.
I am a community organizer at Coleman Advocates and we stand in support of the George Floyd Resolution to end the district's ties to OPD. Earlier today a Student Representative lifted up the fact that Black students make up only 26% of the student population but 73% of arrests. This shows intentional and corrupt targeting towards Black students. This district like so many is in a very critical budget deficit and cannot afford to spend one penny on anything that doesn't directly lead to the wellness, safety, and liberation of its students. The reality is that ending the SRO program can save Black lives and futures- history and recent news has shown us that! Protect your students and invest in what true education equity means right now.
I’m commenting on behalf of LCCR to support the elimination of OPD. Research and history have shown that OUSD has a long record of disproportionately suspending, expelling, involuntary transferring, and arresting Black students in the name of safety. Many students who are criminalized have mental health needs, behavioral health needs, or disabilities. Instead of funding these needs, OUSD spends more than $6 billion dollars a year employing school police and security officers. The same officers that in 2016 violently choked and dragged a 14-year-old special education student. Over policing is a costly system that diminishes educational success and fails to guarantee safety in schools. Specifically, over-policing leads to the criminalization of youth, a higher dropout rate, and exacerbates the cycle of poverty in Black and Brown communities in Oakland. Eliminating OPD and redistributing those funds on students and teachers would do more for the community than policing ever could.
Our students deserve to learn and grow in a place where they are not terrorized. Please defund the Oakland Schools Police Department and instead reinvest this money into hiring mental and behavioral health/special education staff for the students and creating a district safety plan that is rooted in transformative/restorative justice practices. Our students deserve to have all the tools they need to succeed and become future leaders of their communities! Thank you
My name is Holly Wilson and I am a behavior specialist in the district. I am here today to voice my support of the BOP and their mission to defund OSPD, reallocating money back into our students' education. In my network, 24% of our students are Black yet account for 88% of my behavior referrals. That being said, not only am I the only Black specialist, I am also the only specialist of color and am now facing a layoff. Including myself, there are 3 specialists for ALL OUSD elementary schools and our students NEED and DESERVE not just more staff to support them, but more staff who look like and understand them. No student should have their entire educational career tossed out the window for things such as “disruption” or “defiance”. So I urge you, to do what the community and what your students are asking for. Students are the ONLY reason any of us come to work, so go to work for THEM. Support them and defund OSPD, thank you.
I grew up in the bay, had many friends who were OUSD students, who lives were traumatized by the OSPD. Eliminate the OSPD! Vote to eliminate OSPD at your meeting later this month! You are representatives, please represent the people who voted for you.
I strongly support the resolution and urge you to adopt it. I am an Oakland resident and the mother of a child of color. Police in schools make children less safe, especially children of color and black children. I have been deeply disturbed to learn of cases of extreme violence perpetrated by Oakland School PD and racist comments by a former OSPD Chief. Funding for nurses and counselors, school supplies, and dedicated attention and support to children -- instead of for police in schools -- is crucial to ensure our kids are safe, empowered, and thrive in our school settings. These outcomes are not only good for our community, but they represent our children's fundamental human rights. Take this opportunity to fulfill them.
As an Oakland citizen and proud father of OUSD graduates, I support this resolution. The George Floyd Resolution is a positive first step. The funds paid to OPD for the OUSD police force can be better spent on other student support resources. Policing in the schools is harmful to the brown and black student body and negatively affects the entire school community.
I vigorously support the adoption of the George Floyd Resolution to defund and eliminate policing in OUSD schools as a first step in total abolition of policing in Oakland. The presence of police in Oakland's schools is incredibly harmful to black and brown youth and the entire learning community of the city. Police forces further racial inequality and injustice in this country, and their presence in our schools is both toxic to learning and an essential element of the school-to-prison pipeline. The funds apportioned to school policing are desperately needed for community-based and crisis-responding programs. Do right by Oakland's students, particularly its black students, and abolish school policing!
I am in full support of the George Floyd Resolution to Eliminate the Oakland Schools Police Department. Oakland is the only district in all of Alameda County that has its own police department. The Oakland School Police Department and other school security costs OUSD a combined $6M+. However, school policing services are ineffective in both reducing school crime and improving safety. School police re-traumatize students of color. It is unacceptable that essential student programs are cut and basic needs like paper are insufficient at our schools while we overspend on obsolete policing that only serves to reinforce the systemic racism of policing practices and bolster the Oakland school-to-prison pipeline. It's unacceptable that while black students only make up 26% of those enrolled in OUSD, they make up 73% of student arrests. I urge you to support this resolution in its entirety- the students, parents and greater Oakland community deserve safe and uplifting schools.
I am in full support of the George Floyd Resolution to Eliminate the Oakland Schools Police Department. For any given goal that our community has for our children, there is a better way of achieving it than installing police officers in schools. Aside from pure laziness or lack of creativity, there is no reason to spend resources on police when programs that actually promote student wellbeing and safety remain severely underfunded.
The current unfair system needs to end. Black students matter, and the system clearly doesn't value them. We can get better outcomes through counseling and restorative justice programs. Please reallocate the $6 million spent on policing – which adds nothing positive to the educational experience – towards these other programs that could have a huge positive impact on students.
As an Oakland resident, I strongly support the George Floyd Resolution. I urge you to eliminate police in OUSD schools and reallocate funds to create crucial support positions such as school-based social workers and restorative justice practitioners.
As a school-based mental health clinician, I believe it is past time that OUSD eliminates the OSPD. OUSD students, particularly black students, have reported ongoing experiences of violence and trauma at the hands of the police in the environments in which they should be supported to learn and grow. I believe without a doubt that we can better support, teach, and empower students through increasing mental health, social service, and special education services. I fully support this resolution and give thanks to the Black Organizing Project for their tireless efforts and leadership.
With the record showing that police presence so clearly does not protect black and brown people, but in fact the opposite - it is not necessary OR beneficial to have a police presence at Oakland schools.
I am an alumni of OUSD schools and a lifelong Oakland resident. Spending $6.5 million on policing and surveilling students is unconscionable, especially when services that support students' learning and wellbeing are underfunded. I urge you to adopt the George Floyd Resolution and join universities and schools across the country that are cutting ties with police.
Hello, my name is Dana Elliot, I am a resident of Oakland. I have friends, family, and loved ones who are teachers, both in Oakland public schools and in other schools. I would like to express my strong support of the Black Organizing Project and the adoption of resolution no. 1920-0260 - George Floyd Resolution to Eliminate the Oakland Schools Police Department. Students in Oakland need to feel supported and encouraged in their school experience, and in no way does a police presence contribute to that. BOP has presented overwhelming evidence that policing in schools is detrimental to students of color, and directly contributes to the school-to-prison pipeline. The money that is currently allocated for police should be redirected to services that directly support students and teachers and contribute to a safe, positive learning experience for every OUSD student.
Children do not need violent police in their schools. They need support, guidance, and opportunities for self-development. Once we eliminate the police, we can put those savings into those areas as mentioned. Police in schools, just like in the streets do not keep people of color safe. In fact, they escalate the violence in order to gain compliance. Our kids deserve better. Eliminate police presence in the OUSD.
I am a community organizer at Coleman Advocates and we stand in support of the George Floyd Resolution to end the district's ties to OPD. Earlier today a Student Representative lifted up the fact that Black students make up only 26% of the student population but 73% of arrests. This shows intentional and corrupt targeting towards Black students. This district like so many is in a very critical budget deficit and cannot afford to spend one penny on anything that doesn't directly lead to the wellness, safety, and liberation of its students. The reality is that ending the SRO program can save Black lives and futures- history and recent news has shown us that! Protect your students and invest in what true education equity means right now.
I’m commenting on behalf of LCCR to support the elimination of OPD. Research and history have shown that OUSD has a long record of disproportionately suspending, expelling, involuntary transferring, and arresting Black students in the name of safety. Many students who are criminalized have mental health needs, behavioral health needs, or disabilities. Instead of funding these needs, OUSD spends more than $6 billion dollars a year employing school police and security officers. The same officers that in 2016 violently choked and dragged a 14-year-old special education student. Over policing is a costly system that diminishes educational success and fails to guarantee safety in schools. Specifically, over-policing leads to the criminalization of youth, a higher dropout rate, and exacerbates the cycle of poverty in Black and Brown communities in Oakland. Eliminating OPD and redistributing those funds on students and teachers would do more for the community than policing ever could.
Our students deserve to learn and grow in a place where they are not terrorized. Please defund the Oakland Schools Police Department and instead reinvest this money into hiring mental and behavioral health/special education staff for the students and creating a district safety plan that is rooted in transformative/restorative justice practices. Our students deserve to have all the tools they need to succeed and become future leaders of their communities! Thank you
I support the resolution to eliminate the Oakland Schools Police Department.
My name is Holly Wilson and I am a behavior specialist in the district. I am here today to voice my support of the BOP and their mission to defund OSPD, reallocating money back into our students' education. In my network, 24% of our students are Black yet account for 88% of my behavior referrals. That being said, not only am I the only Black specialist, I am also the only specialist of color and am now facing a layoff. Including myself, there are 3 specialists for ALL OUSD elementary schools and our students NEED and DESERVE not just more staff to support them, but more staff who look like and understand them. No student should have their entire educational career tossed out the window for things such as “disruption” or “defiance”. So I urge you, to do what the community and what your students are asking for. Students are the ONLY reason any of us come to work, so go to work for THEM. Support them and defund OSPD, thank you.
I grew up in the bay, had many friends who were OUSD students, who lives were traumatized by the OSPD. Eliminate the OSPD! Vote to eliminate OSPD at your meeting later this month! You are representatives, please represent the people who voted for you.
I strongly support the resolution and urge you to adopt it. I am an Oakland resident and the mother of a child of color. Police in schools make children less safe, especially children of color and black children. I have been deeply disturbed to learn of cases of extreme violence perpetrated by Oakland School PD and racist comments by a former OSPD Chief. Funding for nurses and counselors, school supplies, and dedicated attention and support to children -- instead of for police in schools -- is crucial to ensure our kids are safe, empowered, and thrive in our school settings. These outcomes are not only good for our community, but they represent our children's fundamental human rights. Take this opportunity to fulfill them.
I am in support for an OPD-Free school.
As an Oakland citizen and proud father of OUSD graduates, I support this resolution. The George Floyd Resolution is a positive first step. The funds paid to OPD for the OUSD police force can be better spent on other student support resources. Policing in the schools is harmful to the brown and black student body and negatively affects the entire school community.
I am in support of removing/ eliminating the Oakland School Police Department Presence and allocating funds to other programs that support the youth.
I vigorously support the adoption of the George Floyd Resolution to defund and eliminate policing in OUSD schools as a first step in total abolition of policing in Oakland. The presence of police in Oakland's schools is incredibly harmful to black and brown youth and the entire learning community of the city. Police forces further racial inequality and injustice in this country, and their presence in our schools is both toxic to learning and an essential element of the school-to-prison pipeline. The funds apportioned to school policing are desperately needed for community-based and crisis-responding programs. Do right by Oakland's students, particularly its black students, and abolish school policing!
I am in full support of the George Floyd Resolution to Eliminate the Oakland Schools Police Department. Oakland is the only district in all of Alameda County that has its own police department. The Oakland School Police Department and other school security costs OUSD a combined $6M+. However, school policing services are ineffective in both reducing school crime and improving safety. School police re-traumatize students of color. It is unacceptable that essential student programs are cut and basic needs like paper are insufficient at our schools while we overspend on obsolete policing that only serves to reinforce the systemic racism of policing practices and bolster the Oakland school-to-prison pipeline. It's unacceptable that while black students only make up 26% of those enrolled in OUSD, they make up 73% of student arrests. I urge you to support this resolution in its entirety- the students, parents and greater Oakland community deserve safe and uplifting schools.