Oakland Education Association has spent over $239,000 to elect a school board majority friendly to the union’s financial interests. Those board members have returned the favor.
People in the Bay Area complain incessantly and with justification about the outsized influence of billionaires on politics but, as a practical matter, it is the money and resulting influence of the public employee unions that are the cause of many of the problems of public entities like the OUSD in CA.
So grateful for Oakland Report naming the “ elephant in the room” . Hoping your next series can address “ how to bring change” to this outsized power dynamic harming Oakland’s school children.
Mike, thank you for your comment, which prompted us to check the current data. Using the latest official California Department of Education dataset (2024–25) and the same methodology the Grand Jury used in 2018-19:
> OUSD is now at 1 administrator per 3.9 teachers, consistent with the area-wide average cited in the 2019 Grand Jury report.
There was a Grand Jury report on the OUSD back about 2019 that said that the area wide average was 4 teachers to every one administrator, but in Oakland it was one administrator for every 2.5 teachers. This has to be expensive. While I agree with the outsized role of the unions, there're more things to look at.
Mike, thank you for your comment, which prompted us to check the current data. Using the latest official California Department of Education dataset (2024–25) and the same methodology the Grand Jury used in 2018-19:
> OUSD is now at 1 administrator per 3.9 teachers, consistent with the area-wide average cited in the 2019 Grand Jury report.
Labor unions—including public sector unions—are valuable and important, worthy of gratitude and respect. And teaching is such a noble profession it should be a public good. But when voters go to the polls every few years, they must put aside these foundational sentiments and instead weigh complex and competing technicalities regarding institutional structures, financial standards and conflicts of interest.
Got it.
A lot of awfully smart people seem to be ignorant of basic human nature.
People in the Bay Area complain incessantly and with justification about the outsized influence of billionaires on politics but, as a practical matter, it is the money and resulting influence of the public employee unions that are the cause of many of the problems of public entities like the OUSD in CA.
So grateful for Oakland Report naming the “ elephant in the room” . Hoping your next series can address “ how to bring change” to this outsized power dynamic harming Oakland’s school children.
As a former teacher & CTA member I can only say we have so lost our way.
Close unenrolled schools and problem solved. Teachers were underpaid. Raise needs to come with concession of closed schools.
Mike, thank you for your comment, which prompted us to check the current data. Using the latest official California Department of Education dataset (2024–25) and the same methodology the Grand Jury used in 2018-19:
> OUSD is now at 1 administrator per 3.9 teachers, consistent with the area-wide average cited in the 2019 Grand Jury report.
https://www.cde.ca.gov/ds/ad/dataquest.asp
Thank you again for your comment; the discussion is appreciated.
There was a Grand Jury report on the OUSD back about 2019 that said that the area wide average was 4 teachers to every one administrator, but in Oakland it was one administrator for every 2.5 teachers. This has to be expensive. While I agree with the outsized role of the unions, there're more things to look at.
Mike, thank you for your comment, which prompted us to check the current data. Using the latest official California Department of Education dataset (2024–25) and the same methodology the Grand Jury used in 2018-19:
> OUSD is now at 1 administrator per 3.9 teachers, consistent with the area-wide average cited in the 2019 Grand Jury report.
https://www.cde.ca.gov/ds/ad/dataquest.asp
Thank you again for your comment; the discussion is appreciated.
Labor unions—including public sector unions—are valuable and important, worthy of gratitude and respect. And teaching is such a noble profession it should be a public good. But when voters go to the polls every few years, they must put aside these foundational sentiments and instead weigh complex and competing technicalities regarding institutional structures, financial standards and conflicts of interest.
Got it.
A lot of awfully smart people seem to be ignorant of basic human nature.