Send Oakland Youth to Hidden Villa!

Our students, nearly 100% of whom are free-reduced lunch eligible, are proud of their cultures and languages, and come to school ready to embrace their heritage while breaking though to become  often the first in their family to attend college.

Along that journey, we see it as our mandate to provide students with the multi-sensory, multi-media stimuli which will engage their curiosity and imagination. Only through hands-on learning can students truly know that whether what they read in books and see in videos is true, and relevant to their own lives.

Each year, our scholars travel for three days away from the industrial pollution of East Oakland to the verdant Hidden Villa Outdoor Education School. Here, students have peak experiences that turn into life-long memories. They learn first hand the sweet and tender tastes of organic vegetables that they themselves have harvested. They walk on forested trails and pause to hear the musical language of yipping coyotes. They remove their shoes and feel the delightful exhilaration of walking barefoot into a fresh mountain stream. They pet the silky coats of newborn lambs.

This field trip then becomes a cornerstone of an entire spring filled with thematic learning and action for environmental justice.  Returning students of ours always share that this experience was by far the climactic experience of 4th grade, and often of their entire elementary education. 

The trip is just around the corner.: we leave for Hidden Villa on March 20th. We unexpectedly were rejected from a grant which has previously supported us in making this trip feasible. We are reaching into our own pockets and asking you to do the same. Please forward this on.  If 50 people can each give 50 dollars, we will be well on our way. No donation is too small!