By Ken Epstein

Leaving many students, faculty and Oakland residents feeling betrayed, Holy Names University’s leadership is aggressively moving ahead with plans to sell the 60-acre campus in the Oakland hills for high-end private residences and have not been willing to work with city leaders and other universities that are reaching out to save the site as a center for higher education.

In a reply to a recent letter to Vice Mayor Rebecca Kaplan, Jeanine Hawk, HNU’s vice president for finance and administration, wrote that HNU has already placed the property on the market through real estate broker, Mike Taquino at CBRE marketing, to market the property and is already distributing marketing materials offering the campus for sale.

Responding to Kaplan’s offer to collaborate with HNU to save the campus for educational purposes, Hawk replied, “At this point it is unclear to HNU how the City of Oakland can assist with the process of achieving the objectives of obtaining the highest and best use of the HNU property for public good.”.

“Nevertheless, if the city is aware of any interested acquirer or successor entity, please provide that information to Mike Taquino or to me,” she wrote.

She added that HNU had sent letters to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) so see if they might be interested in establishing a campus on the West Coast.

The CBRE Group, Inc. is the world’s largest commercial real estate services and investment firm. The term “highest and best use” is used in the real estate industry as expression of seeking to sell a property for its highest possible value.

Hawk did not mention the universities that have expressed interest in collaborating with Holy Names nor the university’s lender, Preston Hollow, which has also offered to find solutions other than selling the campus to a real estate developer.

Campus leaders at Holy Names and members of the Oakland community were stunned by the announcement of HNU’s latest moves to dispose of the campus,

“It’s too bad I don’t believe my own rhetoric sometimes,” said activist and scholar, Kitty Kelly Epstein. “I’ve been saying for some months that it seemed like the chair of the Holy Names Board was actually trying to sell the campus to real estate developers, and that’s why he refused to meet with any of the elected officials and city leaders who have offered help in keeping Holy Names open as a college campus.

“So – guess what? Now the marketing materials are out to sell the campus, while our trusting students, many from Oakland, are tossed out with hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt and no college degree. It’s more evil than even a suspicious person like me can wrap my mind around.”

“I’m shocked,” said a HNU faculty member when hearing the news about the real estate developer.

A Holy Names student leader said, “Students are furious. They are afraid that Holy Names will be sold to a private developer.”

Said Councilmember Carroll Fife, “As an alumnus of Holy Names University, I am deeply disappointed the administration refuses to work with city leaders to ensure the campus can continue to be an important resource for Oakland but insists on selling the campus for maximum profit. I’m most concerned for students and faculty. I hope Oakland residents will make it clear that preserving this campus for generations of future students is more important than enriching a developer.”

San Rafael, CA – Recruitment has just opened for the Marin County Career Explorer Program, a popular vocational skills internship opportunity for those between the ages of 15 and 22 funded by the Marin County Probation Department.

Young people curious about public service careers get a chance to work with County of Marin departments and earn a few bucks while gaining exclusive experience. The program runs from June 12 through August 4. Participants are paid $17.50 per hour during their internship. Applications are available online in English[External] and Spanish[External] and may be turned in through May 31.

Manpreet Kaur of Marin City, a 2022 participant, spent time learning about the Marin County Public Defender’s Office from mentor attorney La Dell Dangerfield. She subsequently connected with he Marin Teen Girl Conference, the Marin 9 to 25 Initiative, and an internship with the nonprofit Bloom Marin. Kaur was the recipient of the 2022 Dan Daniels Spirit of Service Award, which goes to an intern who demonstrates a passion for serving clients, coworkers, and community partners.

“The Career Explorer Program wasn’t just an internship for me,” Kaur said. “It was a gateway to opportunities. I met so many incredible people and had a great time. I would highly recommend this program to anyone.”

The Career Explorer program provides opportunities to local youth who are exposed to circumstances that traditionally present barriers to employment. Those may include personal experiences with the juvenile justice system, family members with experience in either the juvenile or adult justice systems or live in neighborhoods impacted by crime or other socioeconomic issues.

Career Explorers, now in its eighth year, was borne from a long-range business plan that included focus areas of “diversity and inclusion” and “growth and development.” The program also includes a comprehensive soft skills training course and a guest speaker series that features County employees, community partners, and leaders from the business community sharing stories designed to motivate future members of the workforce.

Chief Probation Officer Marlon Washington saw first-hand how important the internships can be last summer as the program organizers presented purely online experiences during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I am proud to continue the Probation Department’s innovative program, which is the best way for youth to find a career they love through exploration,” Washington said. “Showing them the many options available can help spark interest and find their passion.”

Luis Luciano, a Probation Senior Program Coordinator, said he was grateful to return to the in-person experience as the pandemic eased. Career Explorers programming now features a daily online guest speaker and one in-person guest speaker per week, allowing youths connect with more County employees and community leaders.

“There were lessons learned during the pandemic that have served us well,” he said. “As much as youth are into technology, they really were needing the connection and sense of community that the in-person internship experience creates. We were able to provide them with practice interviews and also have them partake in a public speaking workshop, something that is a bit more difficult to replicate in the online environment. These trainings give young people the skills and confidence they need to become our next leaders.”

The Career Explorer Program creates a diverse, skilled, and local candidate pool for employment opportunities in a manner that promotes growth and development. The Probation Department collaborates with the County’s Department of Human Resources and other County departments to offer the program. Probation uses funds from a state grant to cover the costs of stipends, work uniforms, food, transportation, and supervision for the interns. Departments that employ the interns also contribute to the cost of the program.

Email Luciano or call (415) 473-6676 to learn more about the program or to obtain a printed application.

By Ken Epstein

In an escalation of labor pressure, hundreds of teachers boycotted district-organized Professional Development (PD) sessions, instead attending a mass, Oakland Education Association (OEA) rally this week at Lake Merritt to demand the Oakland Unified School District begin bargaining “in good faith” for a new union contract.

The rally Wednesday afternoon was held at the Lake Merritt Amphitheater, across from the Oakland Museum.

Chairing the rally, OEA Vice President Kampala Taiz-Rancifer said the union has been trying to negotiate for months with the school district for a new contract but has not received responses to its demands for “dignity, respect in the workplace … for a living wage (and)… for student supports and community schools.”

“Oakland has been bargaining with OUSD for safe and racially just community schools,” she said. “We are here today to demand that OUSD bargain with us in good faith.”

OEA Interim President Ismael Armendariz said, “Today, we took a step in having a labor action; we walked out on our [professional development]. That is an escalation.”

“OUSD has been bargaining with OEA since October,” he continued.  “We have a 51-member bargaining team that spent hours crafting [21] bargaining proposals. OUSD has come to the table with two unserious proposals and zero counter [proposals].”

Criticizing the district’s approach to bargaining in public, he said, “We cannot bargain on Facebook Live; we are going to bargain at the table.”

He accused the district of spreading “fear, uncertainty and doubt to divide us as workers,” which is a “boss tactic,” adding that the district is talking about a budget crisis, even though it has received $66 million from the state to develop community schools.

“There is always a budget crisis when we’re bargaining,” Armendariz said.

OEA is getting ready to take a vote to see if members are prepared to strike if necessary. Also, word is circulating that some union members are getting ready for a short unauthorized or wildcat strike to demonstrate teachers’ willingness to stand up to the district.

Even though the district is not in financial difficulties, it has passed a budget proposal that includes possible school closures or mergers, as well as layoffs and a hiring freeze.