Full Service Community Schools in the Oakland Unified School District

A longitudinal, multi-methods research project examining early outcomes and ongoing implementation of Oakland Unified School District’s Full Service Community Schools Initiative.  Findings inform district leaders’ efforts to scale-up and develop implementation strategies to achieve OUSD’s long-term ambition to become the nation’s first full service community schools district.

Youth Action Research Internship

In a collaboration designed to advance OUSD’s commitment to elevating youth voice, the Gardner Center partnered with OUSD in Spring 2022 to implement a participatory youth action research internship. The Gardner Center team supported seven high school students to engage in original research, from the forming of a set of research questions, through data collection, analysis, and final reporting. The research questions addressed OUSD’s Office of Community Schools and Student Services’ interests in understanding students’ experiences with the district’s health and wellness programs, as well as the interns’ own interests in students’ perceptions of barriers to academic success, sense of belonging, inclusion, and equity. The interns developed an interview protocol and conducted more than 50 interviews with other high school students. The interns then analyzed the data, synthesized the main points​, identified key findings, and ​​develop recommendations. The internship culminated in a written report, and a presentation to district and school site​ leaders. In addition, the interns will have opportunities to share their presentation and insights with broader audiences who are interested in their findings and recommendations specifically, and with those who are interested in the internship process more broadly.

Project Partner(s)

Oakland Unified School District

Key Words

Community schools

Policy area

Families, Communities, and Schools