FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE—June 5th, 2013 Castlemont High Staff, Teachers, Students Outraged by Neglect and Threats of Closure School Community Rallies, Demands OUSD Address Inequalities Press Contact: Sagnicthe Salazar 510-812-1426, ssagnicthe@gmail WHAT: Rally and Press Conference WHEN: Thursday June 6th, 3:30-4:30pm WHERE: Castlemont High School 8601 MacArthur Blvd. Oakland, Ca. 94605 On June 6th, Castlemont Students, teachers, Alumni, parents and community partners will hold a rally and press conference in front of Castlemont High School to bring attention to rampant neglect, dwindling resources, and lack of basic safety. Castlemont High School community members are demanding immediate action from the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) as well as guarantees that long-unaddressed neglect faced by the school does not lead to its closure. “Our school is tired of the dismal support on behalf of the District and we join together to demand accountability from the District to fully serve the needs of our students and school community,” says Candice Valenzuela, a teacher and one of the organizers of Thursday’s rally. “Every child has a right to a quality education and the District cannot continue making Castlemont High School the exemption.” Throughout the past 3 years, Castlemont has faced the destabilizing effects of the OUSD ‘reassignment’ of three principals, and the consolidation of smaller schools into one large school. The school district recently decided to remove Castlemont’s current principal just one year after he was voted into the position. The decision was made behind closed doors. Community members have been outraged that the principal’s removal was revealed after it was too late for school stakeholders to exercise their district mandated right to weigh in on principal selections. “Castlemont High School has been set up for failure,” says Marguerite Sheffer, a 4th year Castlemont Teacher. “The issue of inequality is at the forefront of these decisions—whether that be around having to compete with charter schools for funding, basic lack of safety, lack of on-site case managers, or under-resourced programs for special-needs students. These issues disproportionately affect students of color and Castlemont is severely impacted by the racial disparities that exist within OUSD.” The coalition of teachers, students, parents, staff, community partners, and administrators who are speaking out against conditions at Castlemont liken their fight to the protracted struggles for public education in Chicago in 2012. “We intend to be relentless in our agitation against OUSD policies and mandates that continuously undermine our integrity as an educational institution; dehumanize our students, families, and staff; and violate the rights of our youth to equitable access to fully resourced, effective public schools,” says Michelle Espino, a tenured Castlemont Teacher. Thursday’s rally will open with a press conference and will feature lively speakers and colorful artwork. Spokespeople will be available for interviews throughout the day.
Posted on: Wed, 05 Jun 2013 06:39:58 +0000
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