Watch NBC Bay Area cover the Get on The Bus tour and see why this work is crucial.
Making Gains in College Eligibility
One of my favorite days of the year is always our “Get on the Bus” Legislative Tour. This year, we took guests on a journey through FIA’s A-G campaign, showcasing remarkable gains in Oakland’s public schools, first at Aspire’s Lionel Wilson Academy and then ending at Oakland High School. The overall data tells an inspiring story: Oakland Unified School District students achieving A-G completion jumped from 42% in 2023 to 49% in 2024, representing a significant 7% increase in just one year.
At Aspire Lionel Wilson, Principal Tommy Gonzalez confronted a 33% A-G completion rate when he arrived four years ago. He shared their turnaround journey to change mindsets, policy and practice in order to achieve an impressive 91% A-G completion rate in 2024. At Oakland High School, where Pam Moy leads a team which serves over 1,500 students, the number of seniors now eligible for CSU and UC schools has increased by 5% overall in 5 years. Latino students made particularly strong gains, with a 20% increase in A-G completion – including many students who began as English Language Learners.
Oakland School Board Director Patrice Berry underlined her commitment to improving A-G completion as a board priority.
The Tour Experience
This year’s tour brought together current board members Angela Normand (ACOE A3), Dr. Clif Thompson (OUSD District 7), Rachael Latta (OUSD District 1), and Patrice Berry (OUSD District 5), along with former board members, funders, and community leaders. These influential leaders came to experience firsthand FIA’s “secret sauce”, student leaders who have taken the reins and are themselves leading workshops that have given 2,000 Oakland students large tools and knowledge to self-advocate for their own A-G completion.
Lucinda, senior at Aspire Lionel Wilson leads tour guests on a tour.
First Stop: Aspire Lionel Wilson
Student leaders at Aspire Lionel Wilson shared their personal stories on how the disparities in the A-G motivated them to get their peer’s awareness. Tatiana, a high school senior, broke down how student-led A-G workshops increased student understanding from 22% to 84% of the A-G requirements. Sharing the data and importance of completing A-G courses with a C- or better and how to analyze their own transcripts, Tatiana and Lucinda (also a senior) have created a culture of student agency that permeates the entire school community.
Dr. B, principal at Lodestar Upper school implored, “Oakland needs more students with this kind of agency.”
“We can always pass kids along, which is immoral. That is educational malpractice,” said Dr. Charles Cole III of Families in Action and Energy Converters during the visit. “Our students deserve better.”
Tatiana leads a “data dive” on A-G data including how students who participated in FIA’s youth-led workshops increased their understanding of A-G from 22% to 84% before and after their workshops.
Second Stop: Oakland High School
At Oakland High School, FIA hosted a press conference and a panel of students and school leaders who shared their story about what has led to their A-G success. And Oakland High senior Airieanna Murrell shared her transformative experience:
“During my freshman year, I wasn’t the person you see standing here today. I didn’t know what college I wanted to go to. I didn’t even think I wanted to go to college at all,” she told the group. Today, Airieanna is applying to multiple universities and credits the school’s focus on A-G completion with opening doors she never thought possible.
Oakland High School Network Superintendent Vanessa Sifuentes acknowledged both progress and challenges: “Yes, we’re happy. We want to celebrate, but we are also continuing to do the work. While I know that we are serving many and we’re serving a lot of our students better than we did 10 years ago, there are still a lot of students that we have yet to reach in an equitable way.”
FIA Organizing Fellow Mariela Jimenez talked to elected officials and school leaders about how she trained students to lead workshops that reached 2,000 students over the last two years.
Beyond College Applications
FIA youth leaders emphasized that A-G completion isn’t just about college applications – it’s about giving students options and agency in their educational journey.
“Even if a student doesn’t want to attend a four-year university, which is not everyone’s forte, they should have the option. They deserve a chance to make that decision for themselves,” Murrell explained.
Oakland School Board member Dr. Clifford Thompson echoed this sentiment: “We knew that students needed to have the opportunity to attend any college that they wanted to or make any post-secondary decision.” Thompson and the school board members stand unified behind this effort and even in tough fiscal times, are leaning into the importance of A-G readiness.
The A-G progress has been a priority of OUSD High School Network Superintendent Vanessa Sifuentes. At Oakland High, Pam Moy’s consistent and tenacious leadership has led to measurable improvement in student A-G outcomes.
Looking Forward
Overall, the 2025 legislative tour showcased both celebration-worthy progress and the commitment to continue pushing forward until all Oakland students have equitable access to college and career pathways. Sarai, a FIA youth leader at Oakland Tech, said, “we need to better align our graduation policies in OUSD to A-G,” while Jorge, from Unity called on leaders to “look at the culture within our schools” and ensure all adults help students and families set higher goals for their education.
With continued focus on A-G completion and college access, we are steadfast in our commitment to our goal of ensuring 80% of all major student populations graduate from high school college ready, meeting all A-G requirements by 2034.
Let me know if you’d like to “Get on the Bus” with us next year and see how parent and youth power is changing outcomes in Oakland education.
Kimi
