S.-2 21-1488A Approval by the Board of Education of Professional Services Agreement 2021-2025 - No Cost by and between the District and OK Program of Oakland, Oakland, CA, for the latter to provide a mentoring and leadership development program that focuses on African American males, 12 to 18 years old, as described in Exhibit A, incorporated herein by reference as though fully set forth, via the Community Schools and Student Services Department, for the period of September 1, 2021 through August 31, 2022, at no cost to the District.
As the former principal of Frick Impact Academy I would say that the OK program was a necessity to the school and the community. Officer Smith along with the other Black men who spent countless hours mentoring, supporting, and loving our black boys are irreplaceable. They built and continue to build life-long relationships with young men who often do not have fathers in the home. They feed, clothe, teach, and love our children in ways that no one can. All of the resources are FREE. The student celebrations, mentoring Saturday sessions, the trips, and all of the experiences they bring to our boys are FREE. Never did they ask to pull resources from the school site. The men in OK give their time, money, and love to the community because they believe that our boys deserve it! They believe in their future. Taking the OK program out of OUSD is a disservice to black boys. We NEED the OK program.
My name is Thomas Leach, was a Los Angeles public school graduate in 1982. Lives as a street hustler until I ended up with a 3-Strikes prison sentence at 34. Now I’m almost 60 and have been mentoring with the OK Program since its inception in OUSD. I attend most every Saturday, my personal experiences are exactly what these boys go through. I’ve witnessed unaccountable young men that are living exceptional lives due directly to this Program. It has to be reinstated.
I believe the OK program is a positive contribution to Our City and it’s neighborhoods, mentoring program are a proven, effective, difference making, component of an effective community impact effort. Neighborhood policing is as well. With the OK Program You have Both!!!
I truly support the ok program snd it has clearly shown help and support the the youth. If we keep kids busy with something to do we as the people keep them out of trouble . The program is a must !
My name is Charlene Green I have 1 student in OUSD without this program my oldest child would not have graduated high school my youngest child would have been in serious situations without the help of officer Smith I believe this program is with all students need within our school district to be able to bridge the relationship between the youth and the police departments. This program is showing young black man that officers are human beings just like them they have had struggles and they have had triumphs and that they can trust the badge. Without this program I do not know where a some of students would be at today we need officer Smith and all the officers that he work with I believe it It would be detrimental to my son's future in ousd without the support of this program OK PROGRAM NEED TO STAY
This program has been a great help to my son teaching him skills that he can use in his future positive male role models in my son life is what he needed and needs and this program provided that
My name is Langston B. Walker, and I am the Mentoring Co-Chair, along with Sgt. Robert Smith, for the Bay Area chapter of the 100 Black Men. For over 4 years, the Ok Program and the 100 Black Men have partnered to bring mentoring and support services to the young Black men who are underserved in the community. I have participated weekly in weekend Kic'It sessions and seen first hand the impact the OK Program makes on our Black boys. Beyond the weekend sessions, the officers of the OK Program do more for the children of OUSD--and by default, the community as a whole--than 1000 characters would allow me to write. Facing what can seem like insurmountable odds--various systemic issues, poverty, negative health outcomes--the officers of the OK support the kids of the program 24/7. In closing, I ask that you reconsider your initial vote and now elect to reinstate the OK Program's partnership with OUSD; this is a program our community BADLY needs.
After retiring from Law Enforcement, (25 yrs, Deputy, Detective, SRO School Resource Ofc,), and then from Education, (9 Yrs.), after obtaining my teaching certificate to teach in public schools in Washington State, retirement brought me back to Northern CA where I grew up and had graduated from Hogan Senior High in Vallejo. I was blessed to have been a member of the "Continental Boys Club" in Vallejo, I am currently a OK program "Teammate" the history I shared about myself could not have been successfully accomplished without the mentorship, guidance, I received from the boys club Black men, and those who worked and lived in my community. being a teammate I see and hear the Black boys developing into young men, with very similar home and educational challenges more similar or exactly like my childhood. The benefit of this program is young men that grow to become graduates, citizens, community leaders, etc.., most proud of with this program it produces good "Decision- makers",
I've been a Teammate for several years now and one of the major outcomes I've seen from the OK Program is that it enables the boys to create positive perceptions and experiences with the police. It is precisely, this awareness that keeps them safe. Additionally, they are given tools to improve their education experiences. Please re-instate this partnership.
My name is Gary Mallory and I am an 8th grade student at Frick. I go to the Saturday Kick-it sessions at my school and I want the OK Program to stay. The things I like about the program is I felt safe coming to the program; I loved learning more about being black and being a black boy. It was better for me to learn from the OK Program people because those police officers were like me. I met and made friends and had fun. I played basketball and I learned how to play on a team. I loved eating with my group. I know I felt joyful and loved and proud to be in the group. I want the program to stay to keep learning about my culture and stuff.
The OK PROGRAM is
Essence of community
A life-line for countless black boys, young men and families
Black boys have been fed, clothed, nurtured, educated, celebrated, rescued and LOVED by police officers, in particular Sergeant Smith
Countless families have meals personally delivered by police officers & are spoken to like family
Partnered with CEP delivering tutoring to bridge the educational inequity; a space packed with black boys who feel supported, safe, understood, loved and educated
Black boys wake up to head to the OK 'Kick-it Session' on Saturdays where they play games, eat together and have real conversations with men who they trust and who look like them
Collected at home at 5am to head for a day of fishing, paint-balling, bowling, biking etc Caregivers wave goodbye with joy knowing they are safe & with somebody they trust
Scholarships, clothes, food, bikes, furniture, cars etc have been resourced & delivered
Tell me please who will do this if you remove our OK Program? Who
My name is Kylan Patterson, I am a member of the 100 Black Men of the Bay Area. I have been a mentor for the OK program, I have seen first hand the tremendous positive impact the program has on these young boys and men. I have worked hand in hand with caring, brave officers who mentor these boys and are trusted by these youth in their schools. But there is so much that you don't see, the officers showing up late at night to squash a beef, making sure our kids are fed, helping to keep families together and so much more. The false perceptions that these officers are trying to infiltrate the schools to arrest our kids is malicious and false and is causing harm. Rush decisions that are based on false propaganda will cause these youth more harm than good. I urge you to reconsider and to fully support, fund, and allow OK program to thrive and for our officers to continue their important work saving and changing lives for the better. Thank you for your consideration.
My name is Amare Reed and I am a member of the OK Program. I think the OK Program should stay because Officer Smith was a great guy and he taught us how to be loyal to ourselves; how to not let anything get in your way or allow things to get in your head that will get in the way of us being the best we can be. On Saturdays I came to Frick to play basketball and we played other games with friends and we had tournaments and then the OK Program fed us. I was joyful and happy and it was fun to be with everybody from my school and other schools. I felt safe and my mom liked that I was at the OK Program. I also went to the study hall on Wednesdays after school and I got help with my homework when I needed help. It was quiet and peaceful and I felt safe and it helped me with my math because I had a hard time with math. I've been waiting for the OK Program to start again since COVID.
I enthusiastically support the OK Program and the partnership between the Oakland Police Department and the 100 Black Men of the Bay Area. As a Black man that grew up in the East Bay and attended OUSD, I would have benefited from the OK program as a student. I've had the honor of volunteering with the OK Program over the past two years and I've witnessed first hand the positive impact the program has on young black boys in Oakland.
Whether its a camping trip to Trinity County, a group Bike Ride to Treasure Island or the KIC'IT Mentoring sessions, the boys embrace the program and make meaningful connections with professional Black men in their community. In fact, on several occasions an OK program participant has seen me in the community and approached me and said, "hey, I remember you from the OK program, what's up!" Those quick, impromptu positive interactions between young black boys and black men has eroded over the years and the OK program has worked hard to reverse that trend.
I strongly support the OK Program. The OK Program is a mentoring program conducted by carefully screened and trained black male police officers that are deeply involved in and respected by the community. This is not a "police on school campus" program, as described. The George Floyd resolution should not apply to the OK Program because there is no other mentoring and tutoring program that exists that can effectively provide daily guidance, food delivery, emotional support, tutoring, conflict resolution and genuine love for the 349 students, 6-12 grade. Without the OK Program, these students will not have these critical support services.
The 100 Black Men of the Bay Area has partnered with the OK Program for the past 4 years; our members have served as mentors for the young men, volunteering over 5,000 hours; and our Chapter has served as a financial partner for the administrative costs of the program, which has exceeded $325,000. This is one our best investments in time and treasure.
As a Black Man born and raised in Oakland, now more than almost any other time in recent memory our OUSD children need the OK Program (with OPD Leadership) to be a steady supportive team of Community role models to be there for our future leaders.
Our OUSD children need this Program which has a proven track record of producing positively contributing young adults with bright futures ahead of themselves.
Please keep the OK Program. It's providing the academic support and adult mentoring that are crucial for our black males who are 12 to 18 years old. Especially now, we need positive relationships between our police officers and our black youth and their families. Let's continue to let the OK Program show that by working hard and taking personal responsibility, black youth can take control of their lives, be successful, and help to change their communities for the better.
The 100 Black Men of the Bay Area has partnered with the OK Program for the past four years; our members have served as mentors for the young men, volunteering over 5,000 hours; and our Chapter has served as a significant financial partner for the administrative costs of the program, which have exceeded $325,000. In 2018, the 100 Black Men of America agreed to become a partner with the OK Program on a national level; in this regard, the Oakland partnership has begun to serve as a model for other cities.
The 100 Black Men believe strongly in our partnership with the OK Program; and we believe the OUSD Board of Education Directors should continue to support the OK Program.
I fully support The OK Program and join the chorus of supporters who recognize the critical role it plays enriching the lives of hundreds of OUSD student providing them and their family with the support, the tools, the resources, the life skills, the mentorship, and so much more to be successful in school, at home, in the community and beyond. I urge you to approve this contract and give this program all of the support you can so that it can expand its impact even more.
Please don’t force vaccination on our kids . It’s not right
As the former principal of Frick Impact Academy I would say that the OK program was a necessity to the school and the community. Officer Smith along with the other Black men who spent countless hours mentoring, supporting, and loving our black boys are irreplaceable. They built and continue to build life-long relationships with young men who often do not have fathers in the home. They feed, clothe, teach, and love our children in ways that no one can. All of the resources are FREE. The student celebrations, mentoring Saturday sessions, the trips, and all of the experiences they bring to our boys are FREE. Never did they ask to pull resources from the school site. The men in OK give their time, money, and love to the community because they believe that our boys deserve it! They believe in their future. Taking the OK program out of OUSD is a disservice to black boys. We NEED the OK program.
My name is Thomas Leach, was a Los Angeles public school graduate in 1982. Lives as a street hustler until I ended up with a 3-Strikes prison sentence at 34. Now I’m almost 60 and have been mentoring with the OK Program since its inception in OUSD. I attend most every Saturday, my personal experiences are exactly what these boys go through. I’ve witnessed unaccountable young men that are living exceptional lives due directly to this Program. It has to be reinstated.
I believe the OK program is a positive contribution to Our City and it’s neighborhoods, mentoring program are a proven, effective, difference making, component of an effective community impact effort. Neighborhood policing is as well. With the OK Program You have Both!!!
I truly support the ok program snd it has clearly shown help and support the the youth. If we keep kids busy with something to do we as the people keep them out of trouble . The program is a must !
My name is Charlene Green I have 1 student in OUSD without this program my oldest child would not have graduated high school my youngest child would have been in serious situations without the help of officer Smith I believe this program is with all students need within our school district to be able to bridge the relationship between the youth and the police departments. This program is showing young black man that officers are human beings just like them they have had struggles and they have had triumphs and that they can trust the badge. Without this program I do not know where a some of students would be at today we need officer Smith and all the officers that he work with I believe it It would be detrimental to my son's future in ousd without the support of this program OK PROGRAM NEED TO STAY
This program has been a great help to my son teaching him skills that he can use in his future positive male role models in my son life is what he needed and needs and this program provided that
My name is Langston B. Walker, and I am the Mentoring Co-Chair, along with Sgt. Robert Smith, for the Bay Area chapter of the 100 Black Men. For over 4 years, the Ok Program and the 100 Black Men have partnered to bring mentoring and support services to the young Black men who are underserved in the community. I have participated weekly in weekend Kic'It sessions and seen first hand the impact the OK Program makes on our Black boys. Beyond the weekend sessions, the officers of the OK Program do more for the children of OUSD--and by default, the community as a whole--than 1000 characters would allow me to write. Facing what can seem like insurmountable odds--various systemic issues, poverty, negative health outcomes--the officers of the OK support the kids of the program 24/7. In closing, I ask that you reconsider your initial vote and now elect to reinstate the OK Program's partnership with OUSD; this is a program our community BADLY needs.
After retiring from Law Enforcement, (25 yrs, Deputy, Detective, SRO School Resource Ofc,), and then from Education, (9 Yrs.), after obtaining my teaching certificate to teach in public schools in Washington State, retirement brought me back to Northern CA where I grew up and had graduated from Hogan Senior High in Vallejo. I was blessed to have been a member of the "Continental Boys Club" in Vallejo, I am currently a OK program "Teammate" the history I shared about myself could not have been successfully accomplished without the mentorship, guidance, I received from the boys club Black men, and those who worked and lived in my community. being a teammate I see and hear the Black boys developing into young men, with very similar home and educational challenges more similar or exactly like my childhood. The benefit of this program is young men that grow to become graduates, citizens, community leaders, etc.., most proud of with this program it produces good "Decision- makers",
Dear OUSD :
I've been a Teammate for several years now and one of the major outcomes I've seen from the OK Program is that it enables the boys to create positive perceptions and experiences with the police. It is precisely, this awareness that keeps them safe. Additionally, they are given tools to improve their education experiences. Please re-instate this partnership.
Thank you. Frank Lee
My name is Gary Mallory and I am an 8th grade student at Frick. I go to the Saturday Kick-it sessions at my school and I want the OK Program to stay. The things I like about the program is I felt safe coming to the program; I loved learning more about being black and being a black boy. It was better for me to learn from the OK Program people because those police officers were like me. I met and made friends and had fun. I played basketball and I learned how to play on a team. I loved eating with my group. I know I felt joyful and loved and proud to be in the group. I want the program to stay to keep learning about my culture and stuff.
The OK PROGRAM is
Essence of community
A life-line for countless black boys, young men and families
Black boys have been fed, clothed, nurtured, educated, celebrated, rescued and LOVED by police officers, in particular Sergeant Smith
Countless families have meals personally delivered by police officers & are spoken to like family
Partnered with CEP delivering tutoring to bridge the educational inequity; a space packed with black boys who feel supported, safe, understood, loved and educated
Black boys wake up to head to the OK 'Kick-it Session' on Saturdays where they play games, eat together and have real conversations with men who they trust and who look like them
Collected at home at 5am to head for a day of fishing, paint-balling, bowling, biking etc Caregivers wave goodbye with joy knowing they are safe & with somebody they trust
Scholarships, clothes, food, bikes, furniture, cars etc have been resourced & delivered
Tell me please who will do this if you remove our OK Program? Who
My name is Kylan Patterson, I am a member of the 100 Black Men of the Bay Area. I have been a mentor for the OK program, I have seen first hand the tremendous positive impact the program has on these young boys and men. I have worked hand in hand with caring, brave officers who mentor these boys and are trusted by these youth in their schools. But there is so much that you don't see, the officers showing up late at night to squash a beef, making sure our kids are fed, helping to keep families together and so much more. The false perceptions that these officers are trying to infiltrate the schools to arrest our kids is malicious and false and is causing harm. Rush decisions that are based on false propaganda will cause these youth more harm than good. I urge you to reconsider and to fully support, fund, and allow OK program to thrive and for our officers to continue their important work saving and changing lives for the better. Thank you for your consideration.
My name is Amare Reed and I am a member of the OK Program. I think the OK Program should stay because Officer Smith was a great guy and he taught us how to be loyal to ourselves; how to not let anything get in your way or allow things to get in your head that will get in the way of us being the best we can be. On Saturdays I came to Frick to play basketball and we played other games with friends and we had tournaments and then the OK Program fed us. I was joyful and happy and it was fun to be with everybody from my school and other schools. I felt safe and my mom liked that I was at the OK Program. I also went to the study hall on Wednesdays after school and I got help with my homework when I needed help. It was quiet and peaceful and I felt safe and it helped me with my math because I had a hard time with math. I've been waiting for the OK Program to start again since COVID.
I enthusiastically support the OK Program and the partnership between the Oakland Police Department and the 100 Black Men of the Bay Area. As a Black man that grew up in the East Bay and attended OUSD, I would have benefited from the OK program as a student. I've had the honor of volunteering with the OK Program over the past two years and I've witnessed first hand the positive impact the program has on young black boys in Oakland.
Whether its a camping trip to Trinity County, a group Bike Ride to Treasure Island or the KIC'IT Mentoring sessions, the boys embrace the program and make meaningful connections with professional Black men in their community. In fact, on several occasions an OK program participant has seen me in the community and approached me and said, "hey, I remember you from the OK program, what's up!" Those quick, impromptu positive interactions between young black boys and black men has eroded over the years and the OK program has worked hard to reverse that trend.
I strongly support the OK Program. The OK Program is a mentoring program conducted by carefully screened and trained black male police officers that are deeply involved in and respected by the community. This is not a "police on school campus" program, as described. The George Floyd resolution should not apply to the OK Program because there is no other mentoring and tutoring program that exists that can effectively provide daily guidance, food delivery, emotional support, tutoring, conflict resolution and genuine love for the 349 students, 6-12 grade. Without the OK Program, these students will not have these critical support services.
The 100 Black Men of the Bay Area has partnered with the OK Program for the past 4 years; our members have served as mentors for the young men, volunteering over 5,000 hours; and our Chapter has served as a financial partner for the administrative costs of the program, which has exceeded $325,000. This is one our best investments in time and treasure.
As a Black Man born and raised in Oakland, now more than almost any other time in recent memory our OUSD children need the OK Program (with OPD Leadership) to be a steady supportive team of Community role models to be there for our future leaders.
Our OUSD children need this Program which has a proven track record of producing positively contributing young adults with bright futures ahead of themselves.
Please keep the OK Program. It's providing the academic support and adult mentoring that are crucial for our black males who are 12 to 18 years old. Especially now, we need positive relationships between our police officers and our black youth and their families. Let's continue to let the OK Program show that by working hard and taking personal responsibility, black youth can take control of their lives, be successful, and help to change their communities for the better.
The 100 Black Men of the Bay Area has partnered with the OK Program for the past four years; our members have served as mentors for the young men, volunteering over 5,000 hours; and our Chapter has served as a significant financial partner for the administrative costs of the program, which have exceeded $325,000. In 2018, the 100 Black Men of America agreed to become a partner with the OK Program on a national level; in this regard, the Oakland partnership has begun to serve as a model for other cities.
The 100 Black Men believe strongly in our partnership with the OK Program; and we believe the OUSD Board of Education Directors should continue to support the OK Program.
I fully support The OK Program and join the chorus of supporters who recognize the critical role it plays enriching the lives of hundreds of OUSD student providing them and their family with the support, the tools, the resources, the life skills, the mentorship, and so much more to be successful in school, at home, in the community and beyond. I urge you to approve this contract and give this program all of the support you can so that it can expand its impact even more.