Berkeley Parents Network: Emerson Elementary, Oakland

Berkeley Parents Network

Emerson Elementary, Oakland

Berkeley Parents Network > Reviews > K-12 Schools > Oakland Public Schools > Emerson Elementary, Oakland

Did not get your public school choice in Oakland?

March 2006

A group of North Oakland/Temsecal parents who did not get their Oakland school lottery choices are attempting to join forces to make Emerson Elementary School (located in the vibrant Temescal neighborhood) a viable option for our prospective kindergarteners. (Emerson is the neighborhood school for most of us; my daugher's local school is Santa Fe). We would love to hear from any other Oakland parents in or out of the neighborhood (the school is currently underenrolled) who would like to help us make Emerson a vital school. You can email me, or better yet, show your interest at EmersonSchoolNeighbors[AT]yahoogroups.com. Thanks

Editor Note: for replies to this posting, see Did not get your public school choice in Oakland?

April 2006

My husband and I are considering moving with our young son (and soon-to-be newborn) to Temescal. However, the Emerson School gets terrible reviews and does not seem to be an emerging school. I went to parochial school as child and am curious about whether people have good opinions of St. Leo's on Piedmont. I would also like to hear whether there is anything new being said about Emerson. Thanks. Andrea

I'm one of a number of Temescal parents who are trying to make Emerson School a viable choice for our children. At this time Emerson has a terrific principal, a beautiful facility and a growing group of interested parents. If you would like to learn more about who we are, please email me, or visit (and join!) us at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EmersonSchoolNeighbors/ (If you go to our group site and are interested, please add your name to our growing database of interested families!) Also, we have another community play date coming up on May 20, 10:30 am, at the Emerson yard, 49th and Lawton. carrie

There is a group of parents and neighbors of Emerson School in Temescal (Oakland) who have been working to create community support for the school. Take a look at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EmersonSchoolNeighbors/ There will be a playdate at the Emerson School playground on Sat. May 20 from 10:30 to 12:30. Join us! Emerson is at 4803 Lawton Ave at 49th St. beth

April 2005

My son will start kindergarten in Fall 2006 and our neighborhood school is Emerson Elementary in Oakland (Temescal neighborhood). The scores for Emerson are very discouraging and, based on the data reported in the OUSD ''report card'', the student body doesn't seem to reflect the makeup of the surrounding neighborhood. My questions are, why are't the Rockridge(below Clifton)/Temescal families sending their kids to Emerson? Are we all going to be competing with each other for inter-district transfers? should we all ''bite the bullet'' together and consider Emerson? is anyone else thinking along these lines? Christie

I live in the Temescal neighborhood near Emerson, and it seems that many of the kids bus in from other West Oakland neighborhoods. Although Emerson's scores and ratings are dismal, apparently they are better than what is available elsewhere. I'll be honest and say that the kids are rough, to say the least. I'm not in this situation, but it seems that the other parents may keep their kids out of Emerson to protect them -- and I'm not saying that to be snotty. You truly would not want your child to be exposed to a lot of the behavior that I see as they walk through the neighborhood after school. In addition, Emerson is located between Oakland Tech, and Carter Middle School (soon to close) and suffers from problems caused by those kids.

Having said that, I have heard that Emerson is a good school with a principal who cares and is trying to improve things. I hope that Emerson's bad reputation is overstated. I would love to see the kids who live nearby feel comfortable attending it and I applaud any parent who works toward that. I think the only way to find out what you want to know is by observing in a classroom for a good amount of time. Good luck.

I am a teacher who used to work at Emerson elementary school in Oakland. One writer stated that kids at Emerson are bussed in from West Oakland. That is misinformation that is disturbing to me. Oakland busses about 30 kids to Emerson, all of whom attend special day classes for severely handicapped. Some of the children come from elsewhere in Oakland, but quite a few live in the neighborhood and are not able to get to school indpendently because of their special needs.

Few if any of the children in regular classrooms come from families that live outside your neighborhood. Many of these African American and Latino families care about their children's education as much as you do. Why not go to a PTA meeting and see if you can work together with them to save your neighborhood school?

Through my earlier posting., I have connected with some other parents who are interested in building community support for Emerson Elementary School in Oakland. (Emerson is in the Temescal neighborhood, and its district extends north to Clifton St in Rockridge, and south to 36th St near Mosswood Park.) The school has its share of challenges, but it also has some things going for it including its small size, a decent facility and a new principal who is dynamic, experienced and committed. We hope to generate interest in and support for the school by bringing together neigborhood families -- will you join us? Christie

If you are interested in builiding support and a positive cirtical mass for your local Oakland school (Emerson) amongst the families with young children (pre-elementary age) I suggest that you speak with at least the following two nieghborhood groups. The Glenview nieghborhood organized a community group among young families to encourage more local families to send their kids to the public school. I beleive they even worked with the school's PTA. The Maxwell Park neighborhood association may be organizing a similar effort. I beleive their neighborhood association has built up a lot of momentum over the past couple of years, with many young families moving into the neighborhood. You can try google-searching, contact the PTAs, or call someone at the City of Oakland who works with neighborhood associations to try to track down the right contacts. Anon

March 2005

It's in the heart of Temescal -- I'm surprised there aren't parents on this list who've considered this school or who even send their kids there. I'd love to hear any comments about it. Thanks! Anon

As part of the Marcus Foster Institute-OUSD ''Principal for a Day'' program, I was recently the ''principal'' at Emerson. I shadowed the real principal, Wendi Caporicci, for most of the day. If I lived in this neighborhood, I would have no problem sending my daughter to Emerson. So far, I have visited the school twice, visited all the classes, been a story-time reader and a homework helper. The classes are small, the principal and teachers dedicated, the grounds and facilities well maintained. I would recommend visiting the school to see for yourself. Liz

The issue I see with Emerson is that the kids who attend the school do not live in the neighborhood and so the resources of the parents in Temescal go to Peralta and Chabot schools which everyone tries to transfer into and Private schools which are the option if Peralta and Chabot don't come through. As the parent of a soon to be kindergartener in the Emerson district I am extremely frustrated by the Oakland Public Schools, the only good ones it seems are in the expensive neighborhoods like Rockridge and the Hills and as a result the resources come from the families in those areas, I am stunned at the disparity between elementary schools within the same school district. And am distressed by the walling off of schools like Hillcrest, one of the only schools that runs through junior high. It appears to me that if you want a good public education in Oakland you need to be loaded with time and money or you need to live in a terrible neighborhood so you can transfer your kids to a good school. feeling stuck in Temescal

Nov 2004

Hello: I am looking for parents' reviews/experiences with Emerson School in Oakland (on Lawton St in Temescal). It is the default neighborhood school for my children (who are currently pre- school age). Thanks. anon

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