By Tanya Dennis Coach Linda Stenson does what it takes to help her cheerleaders succeed. She sits in the classroom with them if necessary to make sure they earn their grades. The students have to achieve at least a 2.5 grade-point-average to stay on the team.  “I told the girls they could accept being average, [...]

By Ken A. Epstein Teach Tomorrow Oakland (TTO) this week celebrated it fifth year of preparing homegrown teachers for Oakland schools. TTO, which began in 2009, has a federal grant that allows it to pick excellent candidates and supports them to become Oakland teachers.  The organization helps them pass teacher exams and overcome other hurdles [...]

By Post Staff There may be no scientific proof of life beyond Earth, but that didn’t make the alien spaceship landing at DeJean Middle School any less exciting to student Celsa De La Cruz. “You can get inside it, and you feel like you’re actually in space!” said De La Cruz, a seventh grader at [...]

The San Leandro Public Library and Ace Monster Toys are presenting a free Arduino Microcontroller Computer Programming Workshop on four Saturdays, starting June 1 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Arduino Microcontrollers are computers that can sense and control the physical world. In this hands-on, entry-level workshop, adults 18 and over will learn to program [...]

By Kunbi Tinuoye A pair of identical twins at Spelman College in Atlanta  have achieved a first in the school’s 132-year history. Kirstie and Kristie Bronner, both music majors, have been named co-valedictorians for the class of 2013. The sisters will each graduate with a perfect 4.0 GPA, the highest grade point average out of [...]

Seniors at Oakland’s Emiliano Zapata Street Academy recently celebrated  completion of their senior projects, giving 10-minute presentations on the social issue of their choice to an enthusiastic audience of the school’s parents and staff- Their projects were the culmination of two quarters of hard work, anxiety and worry, since a completed senior project is a [...]

By Post Staff As educators across the country are responding to the call to teach Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) in K-12 classrooms, one local teacher is making extra efforts to make sure her students receive the best in science education. Fifth grade teacher Shaundra Miller, who was raised and educated in Richmond and [...]

Elaine Brown, former leader of the Black Panther Party, will give the second in a series of lectures at Marcus Books on May 11, 6:30 p.m. – 8 p.m. at the Oakland  store, 3900 Martin Luther King, Jr. Way. Born in North Philadelphia, Brown’s story is one of a poor Black woman who managed to [...]

[responsive_vid]Words of Colour Productions celebrated its seventh anniversary on Thursday 24 May 2012 in London with guest appearances from acclaimed poet and spoken word artist Malika Booker, spoken word artist, writer and singer Lyrical Healer, rnb singer Joel Culpepper and award-winning singer and spoken word artist FLOetic Lara. Music was supplied by Pyramid with background [...]

Immigration: Black Caucus to Fight for Diversity Visas and African, Caribbean Immigrants. “The gloves are coming off — the point system is not enough,” said a senior member of the Congressional Black Caucus yesterday on the issue of the diversity visa lottery being axed in the “gang of eight” immigration legislation. “We’re having a press [...]

MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL AND ALL 30 CLUBS TO HOST SCREENINGS OF “42” FOR THOUSANDS OF TEENS ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND IN CANADA Clubs to Select Local Group of Students in Grades 8-12 for Private Theater Screenings Commissioner Selig to Host the First Screening of The Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures Film in Milwaukee Major League [...]

Rev. Jesse Jackson is leading a group of community leaders in calling for an infusion of $7 million from the Quinn administration to keep Roseland Community Hospital running without dramatic cuts to patient care. The Far South Side safety net hospital has a backlog of about $8 million in outstanding bills older than 90 days [...]

By Rachel Voss and Javier Kordi, UC Berkeley News Eighteen UC Berkeley students attended the Clinton Global Initiative University (CGI-U) annual gathering, hosted by President Bill Clinton and Chelsea Clinton from April 5-7 in St. Louis, Missouri. The conference included knowledge sharing and networking opportunities for students committed to tackling the world’s most pressing problems [...]

The Ecology Center Farmers’ Markets’ 9th annual Family Fun Festival–”a whole day of free fun for the whole family” co-sponsored by the Downtown Berkeley YMCA; the City of Berkeley, Parks, Recreation & Waterfront Dept.; BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit); and Parents’ Press. Featuring hands-on activities, games, contests, performances, and informational booths. Admission: Free Saturday, June [...]

Tennyson High School Teacher Miroslaba “Lili” Velo from Hayward has been named the Outstanding Senior High School History Teacher of the Year by the California Council for the Social Studies. The award recognizes Velo’s leadership in advancing social studies education through engaging activities for Hayward youth, and developing innovative history curricula and teaching techniques for [...]

West Contra Costa Unified School District (WCCUSD), with support from Chevron, is engaging the community in an unparalleled way to develop the district’s  next five-year strategic plan. Throughout April and May, the school district will host six public town hall meetings, one town hall with its teachers and one town hall with its classified employee, [...]

By Post Staff Fresh from a two-week tour of southern colleges sponsored by For Richmond, Pinole Valley High senior Blake Evans returned to his south Richmond home this week with more questions than answers about life after graduation. “When I left, I had been accepted to four colleges, so I was really focusing my decision [...]

Eight San Leandro schools participated in the Alameda County Golden Sneaker Contest during the month of March for healthy and greener transportation to and from school. The contest challenged students and teachers to walk, bike, carpool, or take transit to schools. Families who could not walk or bike to school still joined in the contest [...]

By Andrew Cohen, UC Berkeley News The Thelton E. Henderson Center for Social Justice has never shied away from difficult subjects, and its spring symposium—Race, Domestic, and Sexual Violence: From the Prison Nation to Community Resistance—was no exception. Scholars, activists, and community members gathered recently to discuss the topic against the backdrop of a fast-growing [...]

The California Highway Patrol (CHP) is helping to educate teenaged drivers and their parents regarding safe driving practices through its Start Smart Program.  The Start Smart Program is a collaboration between the CHP, Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), Office of Traffic Safety (OTS), parents and their teenage drivers.  Its goals include: (1) helping younger drivers, [...]

Obama praises Calif. AG’s looks Rich Pedroncelli, AP In this this May 10, 2012 file photo, California Attorney General Kamala Harris appears before an Assembly committee at the Capitol in Sacramento, Calif. by David Jackson, USA TODAY Published: 04/04/2013 05:40pm We can’t help but wonder what the first lady is going to think of this. [...]

Participants learn basic html with Black Girls Code’s Summer of Code in San Francisco on July 28, 2012. All Photos by Julianne Hing by Julianne Hing Tuesday, July 31 2012, 9:48 AM EST Tags: BlackGirlsCode, Science, Technology, Teens Aita Zulu, on her first try and on her first day with computer programming, made a website. And [...]

We are less than half way through our Black Girls Code- Summer of Code Campaign and it has been an amazing journey!  We hosted our largest workshop yet in Oakland on Saturday June 30th with almost 80 girls in attendance.  Yes 8-0!  Who says girls don’t like technology? Fail.  Well they do and they came [...]

Ain’t No Reason A mother tongue spoken by millions of Americans still gets no respect. By Lex Friedman The Oakland, California, school board officially recognized the legitimacy of Ebonics in 1996. Controversy erupted when it issued its decree, but its action was almost entirely misunderstood. No modern linguist embraces the term Ebonics. The more accurate [...]

  Black Art In America (BAIA) is the leading online social network focused on African-American art. BAIA is a member  based arts group for artists with global exposure. BAIA connects artists to collectors, arts enthusiasts, arts institutions and professionals. Black Art In America (BAIA) has received over 4 million page views from 180 countries and [...]

By Lee Hubbard With a broad smile, Kimberley Hayes greeted the guests coming into the reception area on the third floor at the African American Art and Cultural Complex in San Francisco. Though she had already been working for two weeks as the new executive director at the complex, this was her introduction to San [...]

By Ashley `Chambers Writer Kia Croom has always been an advocate for those in need. As program director at the Greater Richmond Interfaith Program (GRIP), she has helped provide services to homeless individuals and families, including emergency shelter and transitional housing, a resource center and serving meals 365 days a year. Holding a bachelors degree [...]

Contra Costa College (CCC) and Single Stop Program are hosting  An Evening with Julian Bond,  accompanied by members of the Freedom Singers on Friday, April 12 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the college’s John & Jean Knox Center for the Performing Arts,  2600 Mission Bell Drive in San Pablo. Tickets are $50 per [...]

By Ken A. Epstein If you read the city auditor’s new report like it’s the gospel truth, then Courtney Ruby’s 64-page “performance review” cites damning evidence against two members of the Oakland City Council who are accused of interfering with staff in awarding a multi-million dollar contract for part of the city’s Oakland Army Base [...]

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By Ashley Chambers Oakland native James Meeks  Jr. will get the chance to live out his dream, taking the opportunity of a lifetime in the NFL Draft next month. Towering at 6’5”, he will compete in the regional combine on March 23 with the Seattle Seahawks in Washington. A graduate of Central Washington University (CWU), [...]

The Sickle Cell Community Advisory Council of Northern California  is offering the Samuel Wallace Scholarship Award to high school seniors and college students living with the Sickle Cell disease. The advisory council was started in 1999 as a collaboration between patients of the former Alta Bates Sickle Cell program, administrators at Children’s Hospital of Oakland [...]

The San Leandro Police Officers Association and the City of San Leandro have agreed to a three-year labor contract. The 2013-2015 agreement provides wage increases to retain  officers and to recruit qualified new officers, while keeping the city financially sustainable for the long term, according to city officials. “We commend the San Leandro Police Officers [...]

  By Kyra Worthy Dr. Sylvia Greenwood often remembers a quote her father kept on his desk as a teacher, principal and later interim superintendent of West Contra Costa Unified School District: “It is better to build children than to repair men.” It’s a phrase that the longtime Richmond educator carries with her when she [...]

Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc., a predominantly Black fraternity founded in 1911 on the campus of Indiana University, will award $1,000 dollar scholarships to two high school seniors. The deadline is March 30. Applicants must have a 3.0 grade-point average and demonstrate active community service. A PDF is available at the Berkeley Alumni website, www.kapsi-berkeleyalumni.org, [...]

The Metropolitan Transportation Commission’s  annual High School Internship Program is seeking student applicants for paid summer internships in local transportation agencies throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. High school sophomores, juniors and graduating seniors in the nine counties (Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano and Sonoma  of the San [...]

Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) is accepting applications from students to receive PG&E Bright Minds scholarships, as well as scholarships from the utility’s Employee Resource Groups. Through its Bright Minds Scholarship program, PG&E will award up to $1 million in scholarships to enable high school, community college and “non-traditional” students to complete their higher [...]

Anyone interested in completing a bachelor’s degree or a master’s degree is invited to attend Holy Name University’s Information Night, 6 p.m. on Thursday, Jan.  31 or Feb. 28, to learn about master’s degree and adult bachelor’s degree completion programs. Holy Names, which has a 145 year history, offers master’s programs in business, culture and [...]

WriterCoach Connection (WCC) volunteers this semester are beginning to coach ninth graders at Oakland School for the Arts, pairing trained community volunteers to students to coach one-on-one through English writing assignments. Volunteers began coaching at Berkeley High School 12 years ago, and the program rapidly caught on, expanding to Fremont High School in Oakland’s Fruitvale [...]

Based on the work of the African American Male Achievement Initiative in the Oakland Unified School District, two local researchers are conducting  a research project to look at the level of cross-cultural competence necessary for teachers to successfully meet the academic needs of Black male students. Often the proposals for improving academic performance focus on [...]

The Metropolitan Transportation Commission High School Summer Internship Program is accepting student applications online for about 38 internships that will be available throughout the nine-county San Francisco Bay Area. The pay rate is $10.55 per hour. Each internship will last up to a maximum of 250 hours. Students may work full-time or part-time, for up [...]

The Alameda County Arts Commission is promoting an opportunity for county high school students involved in the arts to participate in the State Summer School for the Arts, a four-week, intensive pre-college program for talented and motivated high school students in the arts, held on the campus of the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) [...]

Chevron has announced that its 2012 Fuel Your School program has paid out $958,739, benefitting 960 local public school classroom projects and impacting 111,925 students in Alameda and Contra Costa counties. Through the Fuel Your School program, teachers at 344 public schools in Alameda and Contra Costa counties received classroom resources. Linda Townsend Bryson, a [...]