OAKLAND FUND FOR THE ARTS

Our mission is to raise funds for hands-on, curriculum integrated arts programs for kids in underserved Oakland public schools. We are proud to say that since its inception in 1996, Oakland Fund for the Arts has funded more than 75 arts education programs with grants totaling over $320,000 and benefiting over 11,800 students in Oakland. It was determined early on that OFFTA be a privately funded nonprofit, not tax-supported, so that opportunities for local artists and arts organizations would not be impacted. Our focus is the Oakland Unified School District, which has 64 elementary schools, 20 Middle Schools, 23 High Schools, and 34 small Public Charter Schools. The total student enrollment is 39,705; over 90% of whom are children of color. African-American students comprise 38.3% of the population, Hispanic/Latino make up 32.5%, and Asian/Pacific Islander/Native American/Other students represent over 20%. Significantly, over 28% of all students are considered to be English Language Learners. Students in the Oakland Public School system can be considered at-risk according to a range of measures:

•    Based on the indicator commonly used to denote low-income status—eligibility for federal free- or reduced-price meals—over two-thirds of OUSD’s children do not have the resources of children in other districts in Alameda County.

•    Across all grade levels, OUSD students scored significantly lower than students in other Alameda County school districts on the California Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) test.

•    Recent studies show a high school drop out rate in California of 20%, which School Superintendent Jack O'Connell calls "unacceptably high."  In Oakland, the rate is 28%. Most of these students are consigned to a future of low wages, little career advancement, no post-secondary education, and diminished opportunities to provide for themselves or their families.

Since its inception, OFFTA has targeted schools in Oakland’s low-income districts, using measures such as those listed above. In schools where OFFTA has funded arts programs, income and ethnic data reveal students whose access to arts education is limited or non-existent because of cutbacks in funds for public schools and limited opportunities for private fundraising by parent and community groups.

OFFTA funds programs in a variety of disciplines, including visual art, music, drama, creative writing, and performance. We partner with teachers, parents, local artists, museums, theater groups, and community service organizations to offer children the hands-on experience of making art and to educate children about the essential role art plays in our culture and in our lives.

OFFTA's vision is a city in which every citizen has a life-long love of the arts, participates in abundant arts education opportunities beginning as a child, and enjoys the benefits of personal creativity in all parts of community and civic life. We consider funding requests from all types of organizations, from the grass roots to the well-established. We have worked together with institutions such as the Museum of Children’s Art in Oakland and Berkeley Rep, as well as with parent groups and inspired teachers whose funding needs might otherwise fall through the cracks and never qualify for major funding. In every case, we support programs that specifically benefit communities where inadequate financial resources have limited our young peoples' access to a full range of opportunities. OFFTA is a unique, active, hands-on link between underserved students and the opportunity to make and experience art in Oakland schools.

Artistic Disciplines:

- Youth
- Education

Services:

- Other: Funding for hands-on arts programs in public schools.