About

Oakland Unity High School is a charter school that serves the educational needs of students in East Oakland and the surrounding areas. Currently, there is one high school, Oakland Unity High School and one middle school, Oakland Unity Middle School.

Oakland Unity High School is a comprehensive college prep, four-year public high school for students in grades 9–12. The school opened in the fall of 2003 and graduated its first senior class in the spring of 2006. Oakland Unity High School is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges and the California Charters School Association.

As a school, Unity has high expectations and a safe and nurturing environment for teaching and learning. The school currently has an enrollment of 353 students: 90% Latino, 5% African American, and 2% other. Over 90% of Unity students qualify for free or reduced price lunch on the basis of family income level and over 75% come from immigrant families whose home language is not English. Unity offers a rigorous curriculum and intensive support responsive to the individual developmental and academic needs of students, which allows them to achieve academic success and positive social/cultural development.

Academics

The academic program is organized on a weekly block schedule. Seven classes per semester is the maximum course load for a total of 70 credits. The curriculum is aligned with the California A-G requirements. Students who meet the graduation requirements also meet the A-G requirement this way becoming eligible to apply to the California University system. At the core, Oakland Unity High School offers an advisory curriculum that assigns a group of students with an advisor that becomes their advocate and supports them towards meeting their personal and academic goals. Learning experiences both within and outside of the classroom allow students to achieve their leadership and academic potential and become creative critical thinkers, compassionate human beings, and effective participants in a multicultural democratic society.

The School

Oakland Unity High School is a high expectation school with a safe environment, rigorous curriculum, and intensive supports that are responsive to the individual needs of students and allow them to achieve academic success and positive social and cultural development.

Unity was founded in 2003 as an independent charter high school open to all students in Oakland and serves 350 9th-12th students. Over the past several years, Unity’s student body has been approximately 93% Latino, 5% African American, and 2%  other. Nearly 90% of Unity students have qualified for free or reduced-price lunch on the basis of family income level and a majority of students come from families whose primary language is not English. Over 20% of our students are English Learners and more than 70% are Redesignated Fluent English Proficient. Poverty, unsafe neighborhoods, as well as lack of familiarity with American public schools and college entrance requirements, are some of the barriers our students face.

All students are offered a curriculum that allows every graduate to meet the University of California A-G requirements. In addition, all students participate in the Information Technology and Digital Media CTE Pathway, which prepares students for careers and educational options in the technology sector and is funded by Measure N. Furthermore, Unity students are assigned advisors from the teaching staff who serve as student and family advocates and mentor students, most of whom will be the first in their family to attend college, towards high school graduation and college admission. Learning experiences both within and outside of the classroom allow students to achieve their leadership and academic potential and become creative critical thinkers, compassionate human beings, and effective participants in a multicultural democratic society.