In February 2022, we partnered with Alameda County Health Care Services Agency (HCSA) to amplify the voices of 5 young men of color from United for Success Academy to discuss how COVID-19 has impacted them, their families, their friends, their school, and their communities. We are so proud of our young people for stepping up to provide their communities with this much needed perspective and to have also partnered with Alameda County HCSA to contribute to county-wide messaging and best practice sharing. Take a listen to hear the inspirational discourse and to catch a very encouraging preview to our future generation.
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April 2021 Newsletter
A Message From Our CEO
Dear Friends,
It has been over a year of COVID. As we begin to turn the page on our next chapter that thankfully includes vaccines, we must reflect on where we’ve been, and where we’re headed. We have experienced unprecedented loss and grief. Equally, undeniably we have demonstrated unprecedented resiliency and even as the pandemic exacerbated the health, educational, and economic disparities experienced by our communities, those communities leveraged every asset to work through the worst global pandemic of our lifetimes.
As we continue to share our stories of resiliency and innovation, we honor the contributions of those that came before us and acknowledge that we have leveraged their courage and examples to get us through each day. MLK Day, Black History Month, Women’s History Month, and Cesar Chavez Day provided us with the opportunity to reflect on how far we have come, but perhaps more importantly, how far we still need to go.
I remain honored to lead Safe Passages through this year of volatility and work side by side with so many heroes who stretched beyond capacity to provide youth and families at the center of our work with an anchor as the waves crashed upon us all.
In Community,
Josefina Alvarado-Mena, J.D.
Chief Executive Officer, Safe Passages
Through our collaborative efforts with community partners and families, we’ve managed to maintain high levels of service, outreach and opportunity.
BABY LEARNING: WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
The Baby Learning Community Collaborative program began as a foundational program to bring families and mothers together with their newborn babies. The program provides parents with educational resources and an opportunity to support each other. For over a decade now, the Baby Learning program has served over 8,000 children and parents through community-building activities, parenting workshops, infant playgroups, case management and mental health supports.
As we celebrate the growth of the Baby Learning program, we wanted to ask our families for a retrospective look at how the program has supported them and their children.
In 2010, Dinora Velarde brought her baby Andy, who at the time was only a few months old, to the program. Talking with other mothers, Dinora learned about different strategies of care, while also sharing her own personal experience of motherhood with new mothers.
“The best part of the program was the communication we had as mothers. It provided a space for us to get to know one another, vent, share experiences and more importantly spend time with our babies,” Dinora says.
Dinora also recalls that spending time with other mothers and babies created opportunities for the social development of her child.
“I remember a moment, where Andy was playing with another child, and one grabbed a toy from the other. I saw how they interacted with each other in that situation and they began to share the toy and proceeded to play together,” Dinora recalled.
For more than 10 years, the program has served as a supportive and educational space for new and experienced mothers alike to learn from one another and spend valuable quality time with their children. The time spent between mothers and their babies has long-lasting emotional and psychological effects, this has been evident in the strong relationship Dinora and her son Andy have 10 years later.
SAFE PASSAGES SUPER STARS LITERACY: HOW FAR WE HAVE COME!
In March of 2020, when we all went remote and our communication turned virtual, students, teachers, parents, and academic mentors had to quickly adapt to attend school and work from behind a screen. Now, one year later, not only have we adjusted to virtual learning, but we have made great gains supporting students reaching their academic goals.
The Super Stars Literacy program (SSL) supports Kindergarten through-2nd grade students at 6 different schools across 3 different districts. To serve high-need students during in-person learning, the SSL program shifted to provide 3 hours a day of academic and social-emotional support. In addition, the Esperanza SSL school team brought on two bilingual speakers to deliver lessons in English and Spanish.
To date, the SSL literacy intervention program serves a total of 250 students in grades K-2nd in small groups and one-on-one mentoring facilitated by AmeriCorps members. Through these small group breakout sessions, students are able to interact with each other in a positive and constructive way.
Randal Hamati, Safe Passages AmeriCorps Director, points out, “We often find that students really like helping each other either with homework assignments or with social situations. During this time of social distancing, these efforts greatly support the social development of our young students.”
While we have enjoyed every minute spent online with our students, we look forward to seeing them again in person and celebrating their accomplishments.
VIRTUAL READ-ALOUD LIBRARY
As we continue to educate our children from behind a computer screen, Safe Passages is committed to developing innovative learning strategies so that our students do not fall behind. This was the intent for the development of the Safe Passages Virtual Library, an online offering of over two-dozen read-aloud videos by teachers, staff, mentors and community members.
Students may select from a wide range of books related to Black History Month, the work of American civil rights activist Cesar Chavez, as well as an all-inclusive array of stories. Young readers can follow word for word at home or just relax and enjoy a story being read to them sometimes even in their home language.
“We are so appreciative of all the members and volunteers who have created videos for this virtual library. In January, when we began this project, we only had 3 videos and now we have over 30 videos of people reading books,” says Volunteer Management VISTA Jocelyn Lombera.
Not only is there a diverse variety of stories, but there are stories being read in two different languages to ensure that videos represent the home languages spoken by our communities. There are also plans for additional read-alouds to be created in more languages.
“Being a part of the project is important because we get to share great books with our youth while following Covid regulations. With every read-aloud, we are reaching more and more students,” said AmeriCoprs member Justin Tovar.
The Safe Passages Virtual Library can be found in our YouTube channel1.
COVID-19 RAPID RESPONSE TEAM
“As vaccine eligibility continues to expand throughout California, Safe Passages has developed a COVID-19 Response Team that verifies information, distributes eligibility/vaccination site updates and assists in scheduling vaccine appointments for interested community members.
Meeting multiple times a week, the response team receives updates with the latest information given by Chidi Uwaeme, M.S.W., R.N., Safe Passages Health Outreach Coordinator. Once updates are provided, information is distributed in multiple languages across all social media platforms, at food distribution sites, school sites and through hundreds of individual phone calls to families. The goal of the response team is to ensure equitable access to information and vaccine appointments.
“We want our community the be protected, and have the most up-to-date information and resources so they can protect their families,” says Mario Argueta, Extended Day School-Based VISTA.
As of mid-February, the Safe Passages team has conducted over 3,000 phone calls in various languages and scheduled over 880 vaccination appointments for the most vulnerable members of our community.
“Working with people that speak the same language as me, makes my work more personal. I see them physically relax when they hear me speak Spanish and it reminds me of my own family. They feel more comfortable asking questions that they didn’t think they would be able to ask otherwise. This gives them more reason to come back and ask for help,” says Family Resource VISTA Guadalupe Jimenez.
BECOME AN AMERICORPS MEMBER
Safe Passages is recruiting AmeriCorps Academic Intervention Specialists for the 2021-2022 school year. By choosing a year of service with AmeriCorps, you will have the opportunity to help meet critical needs for vulnerable populations in Alameda County, CA. As a member of our Elev8 AmeriCorps team, you will develop professional skills, gain hands-on experience that will reshape your worldview, and change the way you engage with your community — all while making a difference!
“The past few months have been incredibly enriching. I’ve witnessed first-hand the power of an altruistic collective. The best part of this whole experience is contributing to the empowerment of a community, that is an experience that I will carry with me forever,” says Extended Day VISTA Karina Lopez.
Now more than ever our communities need you. You can be a part of the solution and heed the call for action. Through Safe Passages’ Elev8 Youth Initiative, AmeriCorps members provide academic intervention to small groups of students with the goal of improving their academic achievement by one full functional grade level.
Members are placed at our partner schools throughout Oakland and New Haven Unified School Districts. In return for your service, you will gain valuable professional skills, a modest living stipend, and an education award to support your college studies. If you are interested in applying, please contact Alyssa Mamaclay, amamaclay@safepassages.org for more information.
January 2021 Newsletter
A Message From Our CEO
Dear community,
It is with great hope and gratitude that we share our first newsletter of 2021. The 2020 year could not end fast enough for many of us. In March of 2020, the world changed for us all. We never imagined being on the front line of a global pandemic, yet this is exactly where we found ourselves. With your support we leveraged the nimbleness of the organization to extend our wrap around services to meet the moment. Since March, we distributed 614,377 pounds of food directly to the children and families we serve. Staff and partners have worked tirelessly to support the populations most impacted by COVID-19 and its broad socio-economic consequences.
We are deeply grateful to all of you who have supported our critical work in this time of need through financial contributions, essential product donations, and in-kind service contributions. Equally, we are thankful for the families who place their trust in us and support critical service delivery in their communities.
As you will read in our newsletter, we were very busy during the last quarter of the year; delivering food to over 2,000 families across all our programs; providing children with gift cards for toys and books so they could enjoy the holidays; ensuring access to COVID-19 safety information and protective equipment and overall increasing access to education, mental health services, and family support services.
We welcome the new year with open arms and look forward to our continued partnership in support of a more just country for everyone. This year, we also recommit our efforts to helping our families navigating the pandemic and ensuring that our children stay connected to school.
With gratitude,
Josefina Alvarado-Mena, J.D.
Chief Executive Officer, Safe Passages
Supporting Families During the Holiday Season
Children attend the Anna Yates K-8th School food distributions in Emeryville, where families took home toys, clothing, books, and groceries for the holidays.
The holiday season, meant to be a time for family, togetherness and tradition, looked very different for all of us but it was particularly difficult for low income communities in need. To alleviate the stress on families, Safe Passages led several fundraising campaigns during November and December that allowed the distribution of food, toys, and other resources to the most vulnerable members of our community. We distributed food to over 2,000 families and toys (in the form of gift cards) to more than 11,000 children. Even from behind the masks and safe social distance protocols, the joy and smiles were felt from all.
We are grateful to the Alameda County – Oakland Community Action Partnership, the Alameda County Food Bank, the Office of the Oakland Mayor, individuals and our school communities and families for supporting efforts to keep food on everyone’s tables during the holidays. At one of our partners sites, located in the Fruitvale neighborhood in Oakland, Safe Passages staff, school leaders and families exemplified grass roots fundraising efforts by coming together to coordinate a successful taco sales event at United for Success Academy; all proceeds supported additional gift cards for families to purchase toys for the holidays.
KOMODO TOY STORE SUPPORTING THE COMMUNITY
Our community partners are integral to the mission and vision of our organization. While we all continue to cope with the pandemic, for one small business owner in Oakland, giving back was her way of giving thanks.
Lease Wong, the owner of Komodo Toys located in the Laurel District of Oakland, donated hundreds of toys right before Christmas. Lease and her daughter, a student at Laurel Elementary are grateful to support the Safe Passages after school program.
“Fostering relationships with the immediate neighborhood especially the youth has been the most rewarding experience,” Lease says.
Due to safety protocols, we were unable to host our annual holiday and toy celebration in East Oakland. Nonetheless, we continued our efforts to ensure as many children felt the love of their community and families received much needed relief for the holidays. Despite having limited hours which has affected her business, Lease donated over 200 toys valued over $1,000 to the Oakland community.
“Toys became a bridge to foster the line of communication to create a more immediate relationship with the young people,” Lease says. “We all need to help each other and look out for one another.”
AMERICORPS VISTA MIDYEAR OUTCOMES
Safe Passages is proud to have 16 VISTA members who are committed to the expansion of family support services in high need schools across three school districts in Alameda County. During this past year, AmeriCorps VISTA have become more essential than ever. Members have provided support in outreaching to our most vulnerable families during the time of COVID-19. They have helped families sign up for public benefits online, virtual classroom training for their children, provided outreach for weekly food distributions, and processes for cash aid assistance. The efforts of the AmeriCorps members have resulted in services delivered to over 2,000 families in the past year.
Since March, school-based VISTA members have played a key role in mitigating the impact of COVID-19 on low-income families and students by:
1) Providing digital training to families so that they may best support their students with online learning.
2) Implementing rapid response systems for families needing urgent services including housing, food, medical insurance, unemployment insurance/supports, and other critical need items.
3) Developing updated family resource referral contacts to effectively support families.
4) Providing teachers with online classroom supports during Extended Day Programs and enrichment programming.
5) Keeping families and community updated with new COVID-19 public health mandates, requirements and resources.
But most importantly, the VISTA members work in partnership with school staff and families to ensure that schools are a welcoming and safe place. This necessitates an honest and continuous effort to integrate culturally accessible elements in all programs which cannot be accomplished without a highly diverse and committed staff.
SUPER STARS LITERACY
Our Super Stars Literacy program (SSL) has been working hard to assist our youngest students during this time of extended virtual learning, SSL has been making great strides.
The program is an academic intervention for elementary schools in Alameda County where less than 25% of third through fifth grade students currently exceed language arts and math testing scores. SSL provides students with additional support in literacy intervention while incorporating social emotional learning standards.
In order to support family literacy efforts, SSL mentors coordinated a fun filled event at Anna Yates, a K-8th grade public school of the Emery Unified School District. Community partners like the local fire department, local businesses and school staff all joined forces to create a winter wonderland on the school’s turf. With holiday music playing and a snow machine blowing, over 200 families strolled through the different resource tables where families picked up reading tips for engaging their young children in reading activities.
BABY LEARNING
“It takes a village to raise a child,” is an old time phrase that has never proven more accurate than during this past year.
As our community continues to feel the effects of the pandemic, families in the Safe Passages Baby Learning program are grateful for all the emotional and tangible supports the program provides. The program is aimed at low income families with young children, from birth – 8 years of age, primarily families of color, immigrants and families with children who have special needs. The program is delivered in English, Spanish, Arabic and Mum.
Aisha Mohamed, Early Childhood Enrichment Assistant, who supports with Arabic language interpretation shared the following from one of our parent participants. “During the pandemic, the Baby Learning program provided my family with lots of food and supplies which was the best help for my family. To this day I still I have some food and supplies from the distribution,” the parent remarked.
During Baby Learning, a safe space is created for parents to ask questions and learn how to respond to their children’s needs. The workshops are located in the neighborhoods where the parents reside thereby increasing opportunities for parents to build community. Not many things are predictable when raising a young child, but over the past 10 years and counting, East Bay Area families can rely on the Baby Learning program to be a constant place of refuge, increased access of resources and growth for their families.
A parent with a special needs child explains, “since joining the program, I have learned of other opportunities about other organizations that provide useful resources for special needs children.”
The support families obtain through the Baby Learning program is felt months and years after attending. Parents leave a Baby Learning session with groceries in hand, resources and precious time well spent.
Now more than ever our communities need you. You can be a part of the solution and heed the call for action. Through Safe Passages’ Elev8 Youth Initiative, AmeriCorps members provide academic intervention to small groups of students with the goal of improving their academic achievement by one full functional grade level.
Members are placed at our partner schools throughout Oakland and New Haven Unified School Districts. In return for your service, you will gain valuable professional skills, a modest living stipend, and an education award to support your college studies. If you are interested in applying, please contact Alyssa Mamaclay, amamaclay@safepassages.org for more information.
November 2020 Newsletter
A Message From Our CEO
Dear Safe Passages Allies,
More than ever, I am extremely grateful to all of you for the tremendous support over the past six months. You have helped us help thousands of families with children in critical need of community and a helping hand. While we continue to walk with our families in this time of unprecedented need, we recognize the resiliency and commitment of our communities to families.
In this newsletter, we highlight the work of our partnerships over the past two months and highlight individuals who have leaned into this tremendous endeavor. From food distributions to online tutoring and classroom support to pumpkin patches for little ones, to continued immigration outreach and education, to simply a kind word, we have all amplified the meaning to being in it together.
Thanksgiving has never had a greater meaning. We reach out to you once again to help us continue to bring relief and hope to so many families who have lost their jobs, their health, and loved ones. We are seeking support for continued food distributions, toy and coat drives for the holidays, and overall support for our mentoring programs for our most vulnerable children and youth.
In Service,
Josefina Alvarado-Mena, J.D.
Chief Executive Officer, Safe Passages
Supporting Students, Families, and Teachers with Online Learning
Education goes beyond the classroom, and this year it has become more evident than ever. As we all continue to navigate the world during an uncertain pandemic, Safe Passages continues to stay committed to supporting students, teachers, and their families. AmeriCorps members have been assigned to work in partnership with teachers to support small breakout room sessions during online classroom time. Our members are also available to support small, in-person learning pods at several high-needs schools in Oakland, Emeryville, and Union City. For teachers, this has been a great relief, as teaching 30+ students over a screen can be daunting.
Jonathan Soria leads a drawing class via zoom, as students color in the coloring books they received as part of the Get Active Urban Arts Initiative to educate and bring families together.
A #teacherthankyoushoutout video of Randy Hamati, Safe Passages AmeriCorps Director and passionate Oakland Educator. Click the video to watch!
Baby Learning Celebrates 10 Years of Serving Our Communities
Time flies when you’re having fun, and what a decade it has been. 2020 marks the 10th year anniversary of our Baby Learning Communities Collaborative Program. It has been an extraordinary experience watching young babies come into the program and being able to see their growth and development ten years later. At Safe Passages, we understand the support a child needs from the very first few months after birth, all the way through grade school and into higher education. Not only has it been rewarding to see their growth, but it has been impactful and moving to hear from parents on how the Baby Learning program has supported them through the years.
Children and families attend a pumpkin patch where they were able to pick their own pumpkins in time for Halloween at Esperanza Elementary as part of the Baby Learning initiative.
AmeriCorps Member Highlight
Diego Cisneros, speaks about his experience working with 3rd grade students and how educational programs from Safe Passages have helped him and his siblings.
Our efforts to nurture the community from the first months of birth, through high school, college, and early adulthood, has reached a full-circle moment for Diego Cisneros.
His start with AmeriCorps and Safe Passages first began with his brothers, who received help from Safe Passages while in high school. After he saw the positive impact Safe Passages had on his own family, he decided to join the program, but little did he know how much of an impact he would make as an educator and the effect that Safe Passages would have on him. Diego now works as an AmeriCorps Elev8 member with 3rd grade students. As a member of the Safe Passages academic mentoring team, he is helping students in his own community succeed in school despite the obstacles they face.
“Safe Passages is a really good organization. I have met all kinds of people working here. I have bonded with all kind of people, and it’s brought me to places that I didn’t think there were.”
This is the kind of work our program brings to members of our own community, who now work as agents of change.
Emeryville Unified School District Super Stars Literacy Program
Teaching young children can be a challenging task, especially now that the virtual learning environment has created new obstacles for teachers, students, and their families. Recently, Safe Passages has acquired the Super Star Literacy Program, further committing Safe Passages to continue supporting students to reach their reading goals.
The new partnership between Safe Passages will expand to additional schools within the Emeryville Union School District, where we will be able to reach more students and propel them to reach their proficiency levels. This new partnership will extend beyond the 4,200 students and their families that Safe Passages currently serves and will allow us to provide additional academic support throughout Alameda County.
This year, the Safe Passages Super Star Literacy project expanded to Bridges at Melrose Elementary School, Esperanza Elementary School, Laurel Elementary School in Oakland Unified, Anna Yates TK through 8th grade school in Emery Unified, and Searles Elementary School and Guy Emanuele Elementary School in New Haven Unified.
SSL AmeriCorps members are working diligently to make sure students reach literacy proficiency by the 3rd grade, understanding that preparing students at an early age ensures that they thrive throughout their academic career.
“Third grade literacy matters. It indicates if a student will be able to graduate from high school on time and if they’re able to be successful later on in life.” – Katie Brym, Early Literacy AmeriCorps Manager.
Continued Food Distribution Efforts
As Thanksgiving approaches, we would like to give thanks to the Alameda-Oakland Community Action Partnership for assisting in our efforts to bring some much needed relief to families this holiday season. We would also like to thank Alameda County Community Food Bank and their volunteers for their efforts to help families bring food to their tables.
We are thankful that we have been able to help so many families from our Oakland Community these past few months. During the months of September and October, we were able to distribute 90,290 pounds of food to our families at Coliseum College Prep Academy, Esperanza Elementary,
We understand the need for our Oakland families is oftentimes great.
Annual Toy Drive Campaign
Safe Passages is fundraising for our annual toy drive! Every year, we partner with the City of Oakland to distribute hundreds of toys to our families in Alameda County through an exciting annual toy-giving event.
This year, due to COVID-19 health and safety reasons, we will not be able to hold our annual gift-giving event, but we are still keeping the giving spirit alive and delivering gifts directly to families in our community!
The need in our communities is higher than ever. With the added stress and economic pressures from COVID-19, many families that we work with will not be able to purchase toys for their children this holiday season. At Safe Passages, we believe that every child has the right to play. Toys and playing have been proven as developmentally appropriate tools for positive mental health during times of crisis. Now more than ever do we understand the value and importance of play in a child’s life.
We are currently seeking funds to make sure that all our families and youth are able to play and receive gifts this year. Please consider making a donation to help us with this effort. Every donation, small or large, will make a massive impact in the lives of our youngest community members.
This fundraiser will help us serve over 650 families in Alameda County.
Now more than ever our communities need you. You can be a part of the solution and heed the call for action. Through Safe Passages’ Elev8 Youth Initiative, AmeriCorps members provide academic intervention to small groups of students with the goal of improving their academic achievement by one full functional grade level.
Members are placed at our partner schools throughout Oakland and New Haven Unified School Districts. In return for your service, you will gain valuable professional skills, a modest living stipend, and an education award to support your college studies. If you are interested in applying, please contact Alyssa Mamaclay, amamaclay@safepassages.org for more information.
August 2020 Newsletter
A Message From Our CEO
Dear Safe Passages Allies,
The world is radically different from the writing of our last newsletter. We are navigating the greatest public health, political, and socioeconomic crisis of our lifetime. COVID-19 exponentially amplifies the disparities experienced by people of color in America.
The disproportionate rates of COVID-19 infection and morbidity among the Latinx/o and African American populations tell the familiar story of structural inequities. And although all Americas face unprecedented challenges, families of color must navigate the uniquely American intersection of historical economic, education, health, and political disparties. This intersection of disparity is where Safe Passages exists. As the families we serve are battered by the ongoing crisis we pivot to build crosswalks to lifelines of support. We are stretching our nimbleness to meet this moment and we can use your support.
Moving forward in this moment of unprecedented need, Safe Passages’ highest and most immediate priority is the physical and mental wellbeing of the families and children that we serve. While our mission of disrupting the cycle of poverty in Alameda County remains the same, the organization has shifted its immediate focus to meet the demand for basic needs and services in our communities; both during the pandemic and in the post-virus economy.
In Service,
Josefina Alvarado-Mena, J.D.
Chief Executive Officer, Safe Passages
Families at the Center of Online Instruction and Health Support Transitions
“Safe Passages disrupts the cycle of poverty by engaging youth and families to build and drive a continuum of services that supports student success and community development”
More than words, the mission statement of Safe Passages represents a deep intentional commitment to the concept of mutual aid. We are the community we serve and that community serves us. Our families and community members “drive” the solutions, the services, and their futures. This is a key principle in the development of all community programs, whether related to education, socio-emotional development, public health, prevention, and intervention. No other principle is more relevant during this pandemic as we trust in our families to continue to move our children’s education forward. There is a common statement in Spanish that translates to “the community saves the community.”
As schools and instruction shifted to online learning, we have become increasingly aware of the need to have families as key partners in the both academic and socio-emotional learning and development of our children. At Safe Passages, we migrated to multiple online platforms almost seamlessly as we partner with schools and families to ensure that technology tools and one-on-one software training is provided to every family we serve.
This work has not occurred overnight, just like relationships do not grow in the course of one day or even three months. The ability of Safe Passages staff/families to stay engaged and actively participate in children’s education is the outcome resulting from years of practicing family engagement tenets that include:
- Respect for parents/caregivers as the first and most important teacher in a child’s life;
- Respect of cultural based practices and norms;
- Trust in that every parent wants the best for their children;
- Serve every family through an assets-based approach;
- Reliance on mutual aid practices;
- Programs that are designed and driven by users of services themselves are more effective; and
- Remove barriers to participation by meeting basic needs first; this allows all parents to be more engaged with their children’s learning and education.
Overcoming Obstacles and Delivering High Quality Online Summer Programs
Over the course of the last three months, Safe Passages programs have successfully migrated to online platforms with the support of families and have witnessed tremendous success. Below, please find examples of how our families and students have remained engaged with our programs in the last three months.
Angel, a student at Esperanza Elementary School works with mom and dad on a “worm” engineering project.
“It was so much fun to do these activities. My favorite part was that my husband was finally able to participate on a school activity with my son. They were so happy watching dad help them finish their “worm” activity. Then they all played together; even our cat jumped in. ”
-Familia Sanches Flores
Get Active Urban Arts Program:
During Shelter in Place, the Get Active program operated with success using Zoom, Google Classroom, and cellular communications.
Our projects for the youth during virtual learning time included: organizing youth entrepreneurial projects to further their personal brands, providing access to life coaches and economic resources, and creating youth driven mural projects to give back to struggling businesses.
In addition, several members of the Get Active and co-owners of the Community Network Solutions COOP, developed a COVID-19 coloring book for children instructing them on public health/safety lessons.
View book
Food Distributions
From April through July, Safe Passages distributed over 250,000 pounds of food to over 2,000 families weekly. We wish to extend our gratitude to our food security partners and funders who made this effort possible: The Oakland-Alameda County- Community Action Partnership, the Alameda County Food Bank, California Family Resource Association, and the countless community donors that have contributed to our GoFundMe Accounts. If you would like to contribute to these efforts, please click on the links below. Any contribution is welcome. Just a $10 contribution can leverage 2 bags of staples and fresh vegetables for a family of four.
Announcing Super Stars Literacy Program at Safe Passages
Safe Passages is excited to welcome a new program, Super Stars Literacy and new partners. Launched in 2002 by a group of warm-hearted individuals seeking to improve academic outcomes for low income children, Super Stars Literacy provides extended learning time intervention services to K-2nd grade students, helping them develop the literacy and social skills that are the foundation for future learning.
In the Fall of 2019, Super Stars Literacy (SSL) approached Safe Passages in their search for a new organization to continue and expand their work. The vision of SSL is for every child to possess the necessary reading and social-emotional skills to realize their full potential and transform their future. Realizing that SSL’s vision is greatly aligned with that of Safe Passages’ we heeded the call. We are excited to launch this program in some of our existing schools as well as in new partner schools this fall.
We are also grateful to have several of the former Super Stars Board members continue their commitment to this effort as an Advisory Board to Safe Passages supporting the fundraising efforts and development of this innovative work. Josefina Alvarado Mena, CEO of Safe Passages announces, “We are excited to be part of this new chapter of Super Stars Literacy and committed to integrating this effort into a continuum of services that keeps families and their children at the center of the work.”
The program will deliver virtual reading intervention programs to young children in small group settings, provide additional family supports and trainings, and build strong partnerships with school communities to ensure that every child has the literacy tools necessary to reach their full potential. The efforts will be launched this school year at the following Oakland Unified School District sites: Esperanza and Bridges Elementary Schools, and at New Haven Unified School District: Searles and Guy Emmanuelle Elementary Schools.
VISTA Family Resource Centers Committed to Service
Only five years ago, Safe Passages had a vision for expanding and sustaining the efforts of Family Resource Centers that were developed as part of a larger Elev8 Full-Service Community School initiative in five middle schools in Oakland. To achieve this vision, Safe Passages entered into an innovative partnership with the Corporation for National Community Service (CNCS) AmeriCorps VISTA Program. During this time, Safe Passages has hosted over 45 VISTA members, many of who have either stayed for a second year of service and/ or have become program managers at Safe Passages. Others have ventured on to graduate programs, including MSW, law, teaching, and medical school, with the promise of returning to the communities they served to continue their lifelong commitment to giving back.
As we close the 2019-2020 school year and prepare for a new challenging year ahead, we pause to review what these efforts have yielded:
- Safe Passages recruited, onboarded and trained 17 VISTA members: 7 year-round members, and 10 Summer VISTA.
- Safe Passages VISTA served 1735 families regularly (prior to Covid 19) through six Family Resource Centers,
- Recruited over 350 volunteers (who provided over 840 hours of service),
- Raised $410,000 in grants and $351,000 in in-kind services for families and schools.
California Reducing Disparities Project Statewide Briefings
At Safe Passages we recently participated in a Mental Health Media Forum exploring the impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Mental Health services in the Oakland community. Anchored by our CEO Josefina Alvarado and Jonathan Brumfield, Program Director for our CRDP Law and Social Justice Life Coaching Project, other panelists included members of the larger California Reducing Disparities Project (CRDP). They included La Clinica de La Raza, Catholic Charities of the East Bay, the Native American Health Center, Gender Spectrum and the California Black Women’s Health Project. This initiative is the first in the nation to elevate community defined evidence based practices in mental health services in the African American, Asian and Pacific Islander, Latinos/x, and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning (LGBTQ+), and Native American communities.
Participating on the panel was California Assemblymember Rob Bonta and Tasneem Raja of the newly launched local journalism nonprofit-Oaklandside. Please check out and follow this important new resource covering critical issues in Oakland.
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AmeriCorps Recruitment Underway
Now more than ever our communities need you. You can be a part of the solution and heed the call for action. Through Safe Passages’ Elev8 Youth Initiative, AmeriCorps members provide academic intervention to small groups of students with the goal of improving their academic achievement by one full functional grade level. Members are placed in our partner schools throughout Oakland and New Haven Unified School Districts. In return for your service, you will gain valuable professional skills, a modest living stipend, and an education award to support your college studies. If you are interested in applying, please contact Alyssa Mamaclay, amamaclay@safepassages.org for more information.
Elev8 Oakland – A Youth Led Urban Arts Enterprise
In the summer of 2013, Safe Passages joined forces with youth residents of the Havenscourt neighborhood in Oakland to create an urban arts movement dedicated to uplifting the consciousness of how our city is portrayed. The youth of this movement seek to Elev8 Oakland by portraying images of peace, hope and strength through their art. This video gives voice to the youth in this movement.
Elev8 Oakland Family Engagement Video
This video highlights the family engagement work at West Oakland Middle School, one of the five original Safe Passages Elev8 Middle School sites in Oakland. It was produced in partnership with StoryTellers for Good and Bright Research Group.
Elev8 – Overview
Elev8 is a national initiative dedicated to providing middle-school age youth and their families with a coordinated array of services to support student success in school and life by providing a powerful combination of high-quality supports. Safe Passages in Oakland was selected by Atlantic Philanthropies in 2008 to lead this full service community schools initiative along with the cities of Chicago and Baltimore and the State of New Mexico. This video highlights the components of Elev8 – Academic, Health, Family Supports and accomplishments to date.
After-School Landscape, Analysis, & Recommendations: Sustainability in Oakland
The purpose of this document is to answer the following questions regarding after-school programming in the City of Oakland:
1) What is the after-school context in Oakland?
2) What are the existing resources?
3) Who is being served?
4) Who is not being served?
5) What should be the priorities?
6) What are new resources and how to target them?
Safe Passages After-School Efficacy: A Guide To Evaluating What Works For Kids
This guide identifies questions that cities are currently addressing in their evaluations, and provides definitions of research terms and activities used in program evaluation, a comprehensive list of common outcomes and processes that have been measured in past after-school evaluations, a summary of recent after-school outcome evaluation findings, and a discussion of these findings. Finally, this paper presents the next steps in Oakland’s evaluation efforts, based on this information, for the Oakland Comprehensive After-School Program Initiative and other city funded after-school programs.