Commentary

Additional Steps Urgently Needed to Protect Students, Teachers from COVID-19

Why hasn’t OUDSD School Board President Shanthi Gonzales called a special meeting this week to discuss reopening? Why is staff unilaterally creating enrollment policies?

Published

5 years ago

August 7, 2021

Isabelle Price

Protest Bus in Atlanta, Georgia. Photo courtesy Stephen Harlan via Unsplash

The first day of school is August 9. This was always going to be a challenging start to a school year, especially given our lack of proper planning, but with the resurgence of COVID-19, reopening schools to 20,000 unvaccinated children needs to be done in a safe and equitable way.

Currently, the Oakland Unified School District is set to reopen for full, in-person school in days. Masks will be required in classrooms and every classroom has an air purifier. Classes are being fully enrolled so there will be no social distancing.

It has been announced that there will be 10 regional COVID-!9 testing sites, which means there will be no regular testing at all school sites. With full classes and no regular testing, it will be impossible to do contact tracing or to quarantine. Many questions remain unanswered such as recess, lunch, choir, band, sports, volunteers….. which, at this point, is unacceptable.

With the Delta variant of the virus and no vaccine for our students under 12 we must, at a minimum, have COVID-19 tests one to two times a week at all of our school sites.

All of our families have the option to select distance learning instead of in-person instruction, but currently OUSD is telling families that if they opt for distance learning that they will lose their placement at their school.

OUSD is also telling families that many of our programs will not be offered in DL, including dual immersion. That is unacceptable: we must have a distance learning program that is equitable and accessible to provide families with a true option.

No families should be penalized for choosing distance learning.

The school board has neither voted nor been involved in these decisions. The board has not met since June 29 and our first meeting isn’t scheduled until August 11, two days AFTER school starts. And even the yearly school board retreat for planning has been pushed back to August 21.

Why hasn’t OUDSD School Board President Shanthi Gonzales called a special meeting this week to discuss reopening? Why is staff unilaterally creating enrollment policies?

This is an emergency and we need all hands on deck in order to keep our community as safe as possible and OUSD has COVID-19 Relief dollars to fund whatever fixes we need. Where is the urgency?

I will introduce legislation at the August 11 school board meeting to guarantee that families do not lose their school placement if they opt for distance learning. I will also work to add dual immersion and other programs to our DL offerings as needed. If it’s still needed, I will also introduce a resolution directing OUSD to provide COVID-19 testing at all of our school sites at least once a week.

Please email the school board and the superintendent to at least demand that:

Students don’t lose their school placement for opting for distance learning.
There is dual immersion offered in distance learning
OUSD provide weekly COVID-19 testing at every school
That Board President Gonzales call a special meeting immediately to address the many issues surrounding the beginning of the school year

Please attend the August 11 school board meeting, which is currently scheduled to be in person for the first time in 18 months.

Here’s the link to the video of the 6/30 welcome back information session for families

https://youtu.be/WzOqI6D9Q0E

Isabelle Price

Posts by Isabelle Price

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Black History

IN MEMORIAM: The Rev. Leon “Sonny” Clark, Longtime Orange County Pastor and Community Leader, Dies at 72

Rev. Leon William “Sonny” Clark, the longtime pastor of New Spirit Baptist Church in Santa Ana and a prominent faith and community leader in Orange County, passed away on September 9 at the age of 72. Born in Bennettsville, South Carolina, Clark was a U.S. Navy veteran who dedicated his life to service. He served various Southern California churches before leading New Spirit Baptist Church for over 22 years, extending his work into counseling, mentoring, and civic engagement, and supporting the African American community. To learn more about his life and contributions, read more.

Published

2 days ago

September 28, 2026

Post News Group

The Rev. Leon “Sonny” Clark. File photo.

By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

Rev. Leon William “Sonny” Clark, longtime pastor of New Spirit Baptist Church in Santa Ana and a respected faith and community leader in Orange County, died Sept. 9. He was 72.

Born Oct. 2, 1953, in Bennettsville, South Carolina, Clark was a U.S. Navy veteran who later built a life of service centered on family, faith, ministry, and community.

Clark began his formal ministry at Metropolitan Baptist Church in Altadena in 1978. After acknowledging his call to ministry in 1980, he preached his first sermon and went on to serve churches throughout Southern California, including Second Baptist Church in Riverside, Mount Vernon Baptist Church in Rubidoux, Antioch Missionary Baptist Church in Pomona, and Friendship Baptist Church in Yorba Linda.

In November 2003, Clark was called to lead New Spirit Baptist Church in Santa Ana, where he served as pastor for more than 22 years. His work extended beyond the pulpit through counseling, mentoring, civic engagement, and efforts to strengthen Orange County’s African American community.

Clark served on the Orange County Heritage Council and supported efforts to preserve and celebrate African American history and culture. He helped organize the Orange County Black History Parade and Unity Festival, served on the Interfaith Committee and the Orange County Transit Authority, and served as president of the Orange County Ministers Conference.

In 2024, the City of Santa Ana recognized Clark for his contributions to the community. He also received the Orange County Southern Baptist Association Hall of Faith Award and was previously honored as Pastor of the Year by the Orange County Heritage Council.

Clark is survived by his wife, Andrea Joyles Clark; six children, Shawn Williams, Le Ondra Clark Harvey, Kyla Coward, Joshua Clark, Marissa Clark and Ashley Clark; grandchildren and great-grandchildren; siblings; extended family; and the New Spirit Baptist Church congregation.

A wake will be held Thursday, Oct. 1, from 4 to 8 p.m. at New Spirit Baptist Church, 701 S. Sullivan St. in Santa Ana, with a remembrance service from 5 to 6:30 p.m.

A Celebration of Life will be held Friday, Oct. 2, at Friendship Baptist Church, 17145 Bastanchury Road in Yorba Linda. Viewing begins at noon, followed by the service at 1 p.m.

Burial will take place Monday, Oct. 5, at 10:15 a.m. at Riverside National Cemetery.

Clark often shared a guiding principle that shaped his ministry: “Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.”

Post News Group

Posts by Post News Group

Black History

Remembering Chauncey Bailey as Student Journalists Face Threats to Truth-Telling

Nearly two decades ago, Oakland Post reporter and editor-in-chief Chauncey Bailey was tragically murdered for investigating a crooked business. His assassination shocked the journalism world and is remembered as student journalists today face increasing threats and censorship. A former classmate of Bailey and chair of the Student Press Law Center notes a significant rise in calls from students seeking legal advice amid a hostile environment. This situation highlights the importance of protecting young journalists and their pursuit of truth. Read more to learn about Bailey’s legacy and current challenges facing student press.

Published

2 days ago

September 27, 2026

Post News Group

By Steven A. Holmes Special to The Post

It is nearly 20 years since Chauncey Bailey, a crusading journalist, was murdered

on an Oakland street corner, gunned down to prevent him from writing stories about a

crooked business.

I hope people remember Bailey, a reporter and editor-in-chief for the

Oakland Post, the city’s Black newspaper. He had already written several articles about

the problems of a business called Your Muslim Bakery and was working on another

when the bakery’s owner ordered an employee to kill Bailey.

His murder shocked the journalism world that found the idea of an American

reporter killed for doing his job unfathomable. For me, the shock and sadness were also

personal.

I knew Bailey. In the mid-1970s we were classmates in the Michelle Clark Memorial

Foundation program, the precursor to the Institute for Journalism Education Summer

Program. A program, backed by the Ford Foundation, that provided intensive training

for fledgling minority journalism students and then placed them in jobs at newspapers

and television stations.

I’m reminded of Bailey and that program when I visit the East Bay at the end of

September to discuss the future of student journalism. To me, the visit will not only

evoke memories of Bailey. It will also be an opportunity to hone strategies to protect and

support student journalists who are under attack today, maybe not in the way that took away Chauncey Bailey, but an attack, nonetheless.

Spurred by the hostility toward the free press emanating out of Washington, high

school and college journalists are facing a barrage of censorship and harassment from

school administrators and local officials.

The 24-hour hotline staffed by the Student Press Law Center (SPLC), the non-profit I chair, has seen a 35% increase in calls from student journalists seeking legal advice on censorship, libel and copyright issues during the past two years, as well as a tripling in the number of complaints of harassment, including threats of firing, of faculty advisors.

I am not suggesting today’s national climate is as dangerous as the murderous

intentions of Yusef Bey IV, the man who ordered Bailey’s assassination. But the

harassment of student journalists does kill something else. It can destroy the desire of

student journalists to continue their growth to become professional news gatherers and

producers – something the country will always need.

It is that professional maturation that I’m reminded of when I think back on Chauncey

Bailey.

Truth be told, when we were classmates back in 1974 Bailey was the class clown,

known more for his sardonic wit than his writing or reporting talent. I have vivid

memories of Bailey sitting at his desk in the back of the room regaling us with sarcastic

comments. Sure, he was funny.

And he didn’t exhibit the level of reporting skills of our other classmates such as Milton Coleman who went on to be the Deputy Managing Editor of the Washington Post or Alexis Scott who for years has run the Atlanta Daily World.

After a series of reporting jobs in Hartford, Connecticut, Detroit, Michigan, and Oakland, Bailey had risen in talent and skill to helm this very newspaper. A tip from a source led Bailey to look into the possibility that Bey was running Your Muslim Bakery into bankruptcy. Word that Bailey was working on that story filtered back to Bey who ordered the journalist killed.

On August 2, 2007, Bailey was shot three times at point-blank range as he walked to work.

So, when I think of my trip to the East Bay my thoughts go to journalism’s past

represented by Chauncey Bailey’s sacrifice and what the staff and the board of SPLC

can do to secure the current and future work of student journalists.

Steven A. Holmes is a former Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist. His novel “Black Messiahs” was published in May this year.