Featured

Incumbents Run for Four Seats on Oakland School Board

Published

8 years ago

August 19, 2016

Incumbents will be facing newcomers for four seats on the seven-member Oakland Board of Education that will be on the November ballot.

Great Oakland (GO) Public Schools, whose political advocacy group, has been a major donor in recent board elections, is sure to have a big impact on this year’s races.

GO’s advocacy group is endorsing three of the incumbents, Jody London, Jumoke Hinton Hodge and James Harris.

Four years ago, GO backed Roseann Torres when she first ran for office, but this year the organization is backing charter elementary school teacher Huber Trenado against her in District 5.

District 1 School Boardmember Jody London will face Don Macleay.

London, a member of the board since 2009, works with local government and nonprofit organizations on strategic planning, communication, and advocacy on environmental sustainability and energy issues.

Macleay is a longtime activist with the Oakland Greens and ran for office twice before in Oakland.

Incumbent Boardmember Jumoke Hinton Hodge, who represents District 3, which includes West Oakland, is running against three challengers: Benjamin Lang, Lucky Narain and Kharyshi Wiginton.

A member of the board since 2009, Hinton Hodge is a community and youth development consultant. She holds a B.A. in Black Studies and English from Oberlin College.

Narain is an attorney in Oakland.

Lang, who also ran for school board in 2012, has worked as a substitute teacher in Oakland and as director of educational technology for Orinda’s public schools.

Wiginton has worked as Youth Leadership Coordinator at McClymonds High School Youth and Family Center. She was a founder and former artistic director at P.R.I.S.M. Dance Company.

District 5 Boardmember Roseann Torres is being opposed by school activist Michael Hutchinson, charter school elementary teacher Huber Trenado and Michael Hassid.

Hutchinson, an Oakland native who has worked as a school employee, ran for school board in the last election and speaks out regularly at school board meetings.

Huber Trenado, a former Oakland student, teaches at Lazear Elementary School.

Hassid lives with his wife and two children in the Fruitvale District. He has worked for over 14 years advising a wide variety of nonprofit organizations on how to use their resources to improve public education.

School Board President James Harris, representing District 7, will face community activist and parent Chris Jackson.

Harris is an Oakland native, a former teacher, and a small business owner. He was a founding board member of Great Oakland (GO) Public Schools, a local nonprofit that works in Oakland schools.

Jackson is a social worker who works with the formerly incarcerated on parole or probation. He is a parent of a kindergartener who is going into an OUSD school

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Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

Published

11 hours ago

April 26, 2024

Oakland Post

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Alameda County

DA Pamela Price Stands by Mom Who Lost Son to Gun Violence in Oakland

Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018.

Published

4 days ago

April 22, 2024

Oakland Post

District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones

Publisher’s note: Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018. The photo was too small for readers to see where the women were and what they were doing. Here we show Price and Jones as they complete a walk in memory of Scott. For more information and to contribute, please contact Carol Jones at 510-978-5517 at morefoundation.help@gmail.com. Courtesy photo.

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City Government

Vallejo Welcomes Interim City Manager Beverli Marshall

At Tuesday night’s Council meeting, the Vallejo City Council appointed Beverli Marshall as the interim city manager. Her tenure in the City Manager’s Office began today, Wednesday, April 10. Mayor Robert McConnell praised Marshall’s extensive background, noting her “wide breadth of experience in many areas that will assist the City and its citizens in understanding the complexity of the many issues that must be solved” in Vallejo.

Published

4 days ago

April 22, 2024

Oakland Post

Beverli Marshall began her first day with the City on April 10. ICMA image.

Special to The Post

At Tuesday night’s Council meeting, the Vallejo City Council appointed Beverli Marshall as the interim city manager. Her tenure in the City Manager’s Office began today, Wednesday, April 10.

Mayor Robert McConnell praised Marshall’s extensive background, noting her “wide breadth of experience in many areas that will assist the City and its citizens in understanding the complexity of the many issues that must be solved” in Vallejo.

Current City Manager Michael Malone, whose official departure is slated for April 18, expressed his well wishes. “I wish the City of Vallejo and Interim City Manager Marshall all the best in moving forward on the progress we’ve made to improve service to residents.” Malone expressed his hope that the staff and Council will work closely with ICM Marshall to “ensure success and prosperity for the City.”

According to the Vallejo Sun, Malone stepped into the role of interim city manager in 2021 and became permanent in 2022. Previously, Malone served as the city’s water director and decided to retire from city service e at the end of his contract which is April 18.

“I hope the excellent work of City staff will continue for years to come in Vallejo,” he said. “However, recent developments have led me to this decision to announce my retirement.”

When Malone was appointed, Vallejo was awash in scandals involving the housing division and the police department. A third of the city’s jobs went unfilled during most of his tenure, making for a rocky road for getting things done, the Vallejo Sun reported.

At last night’s council meeting, McConnell explained the selection process, highlighting the council’s confidence in achieving positive outcomes through a collaborative effort, and said this afternoon, “The Council is confident that by working closely together, positive results will be obtained.”

While the search for a permanent city manager is ongoing, an announcement is expected in the coming months.

On behalf of the City Council, Mayor McConnell extended gratitude to the staff, citizen groups, and recruitment firm.

“The Council wishes to thank the staff, the citizens’ group, and the recruitment firm for their diligent work and careful consideration for the selection of what is possibly the most important decision a Council can make on behalf of the betterment of our City,” McConnell said.

The Vallejo Sun contributed to this report.