Oakland high schools to close campuses at lunch

Oakland Tribune, Sep 24, 2008 by Katy Murphy

EDITOR'S NOTE: This is a sampling of the Education Report, Katy Murphy's blog on Oakland schools. Read more and post comments at www.ibabuzz.com/education.

Sept. 22

In the next four years, fewer and fewer Oakland high school students will be permitted to leave school grounds at lunchtime, according to a plan that will be presented at Wednesday night's school board meeting.

Skyline, Life Academy, International, Youth Empowerment, Dewey, Far West and Bunche already have closed campuses. Next year, under the phase-in plan, ninth-graders at the Oakland Tech, McClymonds, Castlemont, Fremont and Oakland high campuses also would have to bring their lunches or enjoy the cafeteria fare.

The idea is to cut down on afternoon truancy (kids going out to lunch and deciding not to come back) and to improve student safety. Think it will work?

I wonder how consistently the new rules will be enforced during the years when some students are allowed to leave and others aren't.

Reader comments

Nextset: The Oakland school district probably should have closed campuses with exceptions granted on individual cases if a family has a special need for their children to leave during the day.

I went to high school with an open campus. There may have been a wreck or two getting back to school on time. But most of the car wrecks were after class. A carload of girls managed to roll a Pinto on a perfectly flat intersection once. We never did figure that out.

I think the parents and school staff have too many security issues with the students nowadays going out for lunch and breaks. Metal detectors won't catch the drugs and currency -- if that's the issue -- even if they are really expected to stop all the weapons. Just too many problems nowadays for open campuses?

Cranky Teacher: The problems are usually for the neighborhood, which has mixed interests in the matter: Many small businesses like the foot traffic which buys a lot of Doritos, but residential neighbors hate the trash and shenanigans the students bring.

Closed vs. open has a long saga at Berkeley High.

Frankly, I'm amazed Oakland has open campuses. I guess those flatland schools are not located in neighborhoods that are overly sensitive to large groups of "saggin'" teens marching around.

Schools have also shrunk lunchtime to increasingly absurd times. Didn't they used to call it the lunch HOUR? Now it averages about 30 minutes.

Teri Gruenwald: I think it's a great idea if they also work on creating lunchtime activities and clubs for kids. The high school in the district where I teach closed its campus more than a decade ago (or even longer than that). There are lunchtime activities, clubs and programs for the kids. It creates a stronger identification with the school, I think. Of course, there will always be those kids who don't do anything at lunch but complain about wanting to leave, but in general, safety, drug use and truancy issues aside, it could provide a more meaningful way for the students to connect with the school and each other if done thoughtfully.

Parent And Public School Servant: "... As in working with youth - - not THOSE PEOPLE or THEY! -- the youth of today are struggling through much bigger obstacles and circumstances just to survive compared to generations of the past. Granted that there are high school students in OUSD that are not focused and need lots of support and guidance. But there are huge successes out there too! We need to recognize people and acknowledge and praise and support our youth that are making it and going very far in continuing their education and becoming professionals end even becoming educators and plan on giving back to their own community! We need to be aware that in the very near future, our youth will be leading this country!