UPA's "D.C. 10" Brings Oakland Spirit to Capital!

Over Spring Break, our kids embarked on this year's amazing Washington, D.C. trip. Check out the pictures here!

In preparation for their trip, the "D.C. 10" (pictured above outside City Hall) recently took a meeting with Oakland Mayor Jean Quan. As 7th-grader Monique writes in her blog, "We visited to make our voices heard." For 45 minutes, the 10 students discussed a range of issues with Mayor Quan, including violence in Oakland, immigration rights, and course the state of education.
 
As 7th-grader Linda puts it, the mayor also "shared with us all her ideas on what she planned to do as mayor, to make our beautiful city of Oakland a better place to live in." In all, the kids considered the visit a fitting run-up to the Close Up D.C. trip, "where students and teachers experience democracy in action."

"We took a BIG step towards that trip when we went to meet Oakland's Mayor Jean Quan in her office," reflects 7th-grader Angeles.
 

We leave you with one more favorite quote from our D.C. 10's blog entries, this from 7th-grader Laura:

I really would like to say that our mayor is the best person that Oakland could have chosen as a mayor. It was really generous of her to give us time out of her busy day. It is unbelievable to know how much she has done to help our community with the conflicts that not only affect adults, but also children. I strongly think that Jean Quan is the best person to represent Oakland and also women!

 LOVE,

LAURA (the next mayor of Oakland)

Stay tuned for more from their blogs, including a recap of their time in D.C.!