As a longtime parent, teacher, and activist in Oakland, I know the schools well and will commit myself full-time to addressing the big challenges that face our district.

Our school board needs to take a stronger stand in overseeing charter schools, require transparency in district budgeting, and stopping additional school closures or consolidations, which until now have primarily affected Oakland's African-American community. Counteracting structural racism in our school systems will be my top priority. I'm also proud to celebrate the successes of our public schools that many people overlook.

For all these reasons, I'm running for Oakland School Board Director in District 1 (North Oakland), in the November 2020 election. A majority of the board has announced they will step down in 2020 so this will be a crucial year for the direction of our schools.

In recent elections, wealthy interests have donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to support Oakland school board candidates. I am a grassroots candidate and will not accept support from PACs funded by billionaires.

Instead, I will apply progressive common-sense ideas to get our district back on track, supporting the neighborhood public schools that our families love, with a focus on students of color who are underserved by our current system.

Please read about our campaign, sign up for my newsletter, and get involved!

Click here to make a donation, and thank you so much for your generosity. Together we will reprioritize students, families, educators, and sound financial practices at Oakland Unified.

Sincerely,

Sam Davis