The OUSD / Oakland Athletic League Middle School Girls Volleyball Champions, the Bulldogs of Roosevelt Middle School.
Oakland – Oakland Unified School District and the Oakland Athletic League (OAL) now have newly crowned champions in multiple sports at the middle school level, and one of the District’s biggest supporters, the Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation, has announced a major donation to support middle school sports. One week before the end of the Fall 2021 semester, athletes from middle schools across the city came together at multiple locations for the championships.
The OUSD / Oakland Athletic League Middle School Cross Country Champions in the Girls Division.
On Saturday, December 11, the day started with the Cross Country championships at Skyline High School. The winners in the girls division were: in first, Chloe Leduc from Hillcrest, Paloma John-Baptiste from Edna Brewer in second, and in third place, Sophia Espinoza from Montera. In the boys division, Nico Leduc from Hillcrest took first, Micah Ogden from Bret Harte took second, and Izzy Brown from Edna Brewer came in third. With support from the District’s indefatigable partners from Eat. Learn. Play., Curry Brand, and Under Armour, all cross country participants received a pair of Under Armour shoes, gifts, and books from the Eat. Learn. Play. bus.
The OUSD / Oakland Athletic League Middle School Cross Country Champions in the Boys Division.
Soon after Cross Country ended, Madison Park Academy hosted the Middle School Girls Volleyball Championship with Roosevelt winning the title. Also there was the first OAL Middle School Girls Volleyball All Star Game featuring 32 players.
Then the competition moved to McClymonds High School for the league’s Co-ed Middle School Flag Football Championship game between Edna Brewer and Montera. Edna Brewer reclaimed the Championship this year.
The OUSD / Oakland Athletic League Middle School Co-ed Flag Football Champions from Edna Brewer Middle School.
To top off an amazing day, Eat. Learn. Play. announced that it would be making a $150,000 donation to support OUSD’s Middle School Sports. “Helping to build middle school sports in Oakland is a major priority for Eat. Learn. Play. in 2022 and beyond,” said Chris Helfrich, President and CEO of Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation. “We’re excited to kick this off with a $150,000 contribution to support the Oakland Athletic League and the work they do making sure all middle school students in our community have access to high quality sports programming and facilities. We believe that every kid should have the opportunity to experience the joy of playing youth sports.”
“It is wonderful to see our middle school students getting to compete interscholastically in the sports they love,” said Superintendent Kyla Johnson-Trammell. “We know sports foster countless important qualities in our student-athletes including dedication, teamwork, and leadership skills, and we are excited that our middle school sports offerings are robust and ready to accept more athletes. Of course, we couldn’t do what we do without the amazing support from the Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation and Curry Brand/Under Armour. I want to thank Eat. Learn. Play. and its founders, Stephen and Ayesha Curry, for this amazing donation, on top of the ongoing support they have given to our students and schools over the years.”
That support includes a new effort in which Curry Brand will be unveiling new uniforms it is providing to all middle school boys and girls basketball teams at 17 different OUSD schools. That unveiling will happen at a special event in January 2022.
About the Oakland Unified School District
In California’s most diverse city, Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) is dedicated to creating a learning environment where “Every Student Thrives!” More than half of our students speak a non-English language at home. And each of our 80 schools is staffed with talented individuals uniting around a common set of values: Students First, Equity, Excellence, Integrity, Cultural Responsiveness and Joy. We are committed to preparing all students for college, career and community success.