Aspire Public Schools

We are Aspire ERES Academy, a big-hearted TK-8th grade public charter school in the Fruitvale neighborhood of East Oakland.  Here at ERES, our students love playing a lively game of soccer or basketball during recess or P.E.  Unfortunately, our lower play yard is both dangerous and unattractive.  Kids are constantly injuring themselves on the rocky ground or accidentally kicking balls over the fence.  In addition, the wall behind the yard is dull and faded.  

The good news is that many of the dads in our community are in the construction field and we have an enthusiastic Dads' Club that is committed to doing all the necessary work to improve our play yard -- for free!  Here's what the ERES Dads' Club has in mind:

-Cover the lower yard with a self-draining, smooth surface that will lead to more exercise, more fun, and fewer owies!

-Raise the net over the fence to prevent run-away balls 

-Repaint the wall to provide a bright, cheerful backdrop for our games and maybe lead the way to a mural by the middle schoolers

Please support these enthusiastic dads.  They are eager to donate their time, effort, and expertise.  They just need the materials!  Any amount is greatly appreciated.  Thank you for your generosity!


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Somos Aspire ERES Academy, una escuela pública chárter de grado TK-8th en el vecindario de Fruitvale en East Oakland. Aquí en ERES, a nuestros estudiantes les encanta jugar un animado juego de fútbol o baloncesto durante el recreo o P.E. Desafortunadamente, nuestro patio de juego inferior es peligroso... Los niños se lastiman constantemente en el suelo rocoso o accidentalmente patean pelotas sobre la cerca. Además, la pared detrás del patio está opaca y desvaída.

La buena noticia es que muchos de los padres de nuestra comunidad están en el campo de la construcción y tenemos un Club de Papas que se compromete a hacer todo el trabajo necesario para mejorar nuestro patio de juegos, ¡gratis! Esto es lo que tiene en mente el ERES Dads' Club:
 
-¡Cubra el patio inferior con una superficie lisa y autodrenante que conducirá a más ejercicio, más diversión y menos owies!

-Levante la red sobre la cerca para evitar pelotas que se escapan

-Pintar la pared para proporcionar un fondo brillante y alegre para nuestros juegos y tal vez guiar el camino hacia un mural de los estudiantes de secundaria

Por favor, apoye a nuestros papás entusiastas. Están ansiosos por donar su tiempo, esfuerzo y experiencia. ¡Solo necesitan los materiales! Cualquier cantidad es muy apreciada. ¡Gracias por tu generosidad!

A great public education set the trajectory of my entire life. I saw first-hand growing up in Idaho how schools and teachers can lift students from rural beginnings to big dreams; after college, I started working to understand how the same can happen for students growing up in cities. Since I moved to San Francisco, I’ve been captivated by the work Aspire Public Schools is doing to make change possible for low-income students. Aspire operates community-based charter schools that serve over 16,000 students from transitional kindergarten through high school. Three-quarters of Aspire students come from low-income households, 95% are people of color, and every single one is reminded daily of Aspire's guiding light - College For Certain. Without Aspire, 70% of these students wouldn’t graduate high school; with Aspire, over 80% of them go to college. Here are some of those incredible scholars - graduating seniors from each of Aspire's high schools, celebrating where they're going this fall: 

Aspire Ollin University Preparatory School will be graduating their second class of seniors, sending them off to the next stage of their lives. Some will attend small liberal arts colleges like Mount Saint Mary's University, Woodbury University and Whittier College. Some will go off to CSUF, University of Oregon, Humboldt State, and many others. 

Named in honor of the former CEO of Aspire Public Schools, James Willcox, the OUP James Willcox Service Scholarship will honor the students who most embody OUP's vision (below) and James Willcox's commitment to community service and education.

OUP Vision: 
OLLIN believes in caring and authentic relationships among students and adults that support academic excellence, college readiness, lifelong learning, reflection and social consciousness. We believe that all students are scholars. We honor the community, culture and family background of our students.
 
Through this GoFundMe, we hope to raise the money for multiple scholarships, as well as money to purchase the honorees brand new computers. 




Candidates will apply to the scholarship via an application process done through our College Counseling Office. Exemplary candidates will have engaged in volunteer / community service activities between grades 10 and 12. 

By donating to our scholarship fund, you are paving the road for our scholars' next stage, one that will surely be ripe with knowledge. You will be helping them to better transition to tackling the rigors of university life. 

Help spread the word!

Last year, Aspire Richmond Cal Prep's Adult Staff ran "The Town's Half Marathon/5K" in efforts to raise money for an HBCU (Historically Black College/University) Tour, after a number of our African-American scholars expressed our need to do so. During our annual trips to Public and Private Universities here in California, our young people voiced that while they greatly enjoyed these college tours, many of them felt it difficult to imagine themselves on campuses that were home to so few that reflected their own images and experiences. (Note: African-American Students comprise between 2-5% at the UCs, CSUs, and Private Universities that we visited.)

Due to the incredible generosity and solidarity of so many of our friends, family, and community members,  a group of students--accompanied by our wonderful Assistant Principal, Mr. Michael Ray--were able to visit Spelman College, Clark Atlanta University, Morehouse College, Tuskegee University, North Carolina A&T University, Norfolk State University, Hampton University, and Howard University towards the end of last year. Each young person who attended claimed this was an unforgettable experience and was something that our school should work to ensure happens every year.

With your backing and support, we hope to not only give another group of students this opportunity, but to  work towards making this HBCU Tour an annual tradition for our powerful African-American scholars at Richmond Cal Prep. Every donation, no matter how small or large, is deeply appreciated(!) and helps tremendously.

With many thanks and much love,
The Aspire Richmond Cal Prep Community & Staff