City Government

Schaaf Administration Cuts Youth Jobs Programs

Published

8 years ago

March 24, 2016

The City of Oakland under the leadership of Mayor Libby Schaaf is continuing to cut funding for jobs and training programs that serve young people in need.

Federal job funds for year-round youth job programs have been reduced from $1.1 million in 2015-2016 to $886,000 in 2016-2017, a cut of $164,000 or 16 percent.

Since July 2014,the cut has been 33 percent.

The cuts have been implemented even though federal funding has been nearly steady over the past few years, and the state has not yet released what the funding levels will be for 2016-2017, which begins July 1.

This money serves low-income young people who face additional barriers to employment, whether they are teen parents, on probation, homeless or in the foster care system.

The money is dispersed by the city to nonprofits that help youth with job preparation, gaining their high school diploma or other education credential and placing them in a job.

Further, Mayor Schaaf’s administration is reorganizing youth services without discussion or agreement by the Oakland Workforce Investment Board (WIB) or the Youth Council of the WIB, which is a federal requirement for structuring and recommending funding for youth employment programs according to activists who are fighting for jobs for Oaklanders.

Mayor Schaaf did not re-spond to questions submitted by the Post,

The administration oversees these agencies, and due to lack of effective technical assistance, the city is failing to meet its state required youth performance measures. The last year in which those results were reported was 2013-2014.

Over the past several years, several of the nonprofit agencies that serve youth have been forced to shut down due to delays in city payments and the hostility of the city bureaucracy, activists say.

Overall, the Schaaf administration has reorganized the city’s job programs unilaterally, without involvement of the WIB or the agencies that work with youth and adults and provide crucial support for immigrants, the formerly incarcerated and long-term unemployed, according to the activists.

The mayor’s changes will mean that three Oakland career centers, including the ones in Central Oakland, East Oakland and West Oakland, will be closed down.

Jobs and housing activists are concerned that the mayor’s reorganization and reduction of jobs programs – combined with the city’s failure to respond to the housing emergency – will mean that low-income residents will continue to be forced out of the city.

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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

2 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.