We deeply appreciate your interest in our school and public Montessori programming. While we are unable to accept applications for our charter program next year due to the non-renewal of our charter petition, we wanted to keep you informed about possibilities for public Montessori in Oakland as you explore other school options for your students. Please fill out this survey to share your interest and feedback and continue reading below for more information regarding our efforts to provide free Montessori programming to all families and students in Oakland.

Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) and Urban Montessori Charter School (UMCS) are in negotiations regarding a possible school merger and creation of a public Montessori program within OUSD, supported by UMCS staff and administration. Currently we are considering a partnership with Brookfield Village Elementary School. In this partnership, UMCS would become an OUSD program on the Brookfield campus during the ‘25-’26 school year and during the '25--26 year, UMCS staff and families would collaborate with the staff and families of Brookfield to design a new, merged OUSD school at Brookfield offering Montessori programming in the Fall of ‘26 and beyond. 

Brookfield Village Elementary School is located at 401 Jones Ave, Oakland, CA 94603 in a residential neighborhood in East Oakland. Brookfield currently serves students in preschool through 5th grade.  Brookfield is a physically large school campus, originally designed to hold 677 students with 143 currently enrolled. Brookfield has a library as well as STEAM focus with a robotics program and Lego lab for students to access during their day. In their extended day students access enrichments like dance, literacy programs and a soccer team. The school has a new playground and soccer field, including trees, garden boxes and green space. In proximity are the Brookfield Village Community Center and Senior Center, the Brookfield Branch of the Oakland Public Library, and the East Oakland Sports Center. Located within walking distance to public transportation and near the 98th Ave. exit of the 880 freeway, Brookfield, while not centrally located in Oakland, is accessible to commuting families. Brookfield is a Title 1 school with 99.1% of students identified as socioeconomically disadvantaged. There are a number of families that identify as unhoused and many of the families are newcomers to the United States. The majority of students (56%) are Latino with 46% of those families speaking Spanish as their home language. 19.6% are African American students, 10% Asian/Pacific Islander, 5% Arabic, and the remainder are mixed race identified students.

We believe that Brookfield Elementary provides the best opportunity for public Montessori programming to continue in Oakland. Its facilities, proximity to community resources, and the staff’s enthusiasm for a Montessori model, provide an excellent framework for ongoing Montessori teaching and learning within OUSD. Please fill out the survey linked here [Spanish version here] to express your potential interest in an OUSD Montessori program. Your voice is vital in shaping the future public Montessori in Oakland. 

We thank you for your time and support and wish you the best of luck in your school search journey!

Sincerely,

Daniel Bissonnette
Head of School
Urban Montessori Charter School