MSEG Overview
Real Engagement Shaping the Future of OUSD.
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What is MSEG?
We are the Multi-Stakeholder Engagement Group (MSEG); an independent, all-volunteer group of OUSD parent leaders, teachers, principals, classified staff, district staff, and community members preparing for the work of reshaping our district. We’re building a unified voice that will actually impact decisions, not react to them after the fact.
What is meant by "Independent"?
We connect to different groups (e.g. district committees, labor partners, School Board). We are not controlled by any one of those groups.
We support our district as an institution. Our district as an institution does not direct what we do.
You can think of us as a collaborative with a continuous working relationship where members who have distinct stakeholder group identities come together to help all of our groups unite in pursuit of a goal. We are not a district-run program. We are not paid advocates. We are not affiliated with any political organization. We are community members who believe that the citizens of Oakland shouldlead the decision-making process, and that those who will be most affected by board and district actions must be at the table when those decisions get made.
Why we exist
Past community engagement efforts by OUSD have too often fallen short. Feedback has been collected and lost or ignored. Input has been gathered after key decisions were already made. Each cycle has eroded trust in the process a little further, leaving the community with no faith in its decision-makers to put input into action.
Simply put, we're trying to set different conditions before the real restructuring begins.
MSEG exists to build the four things that make engagement real instead of performative:
Shared facts the whole community can trust
Real transparency about what's being decided, by whom, and when
Follow-through that's visible and verifiable, not promised and forgotten
Meaningful inclusion of the families most affected by district decisions
These are the real themes that have been surfaced time and time again at our initial public engagements, and they're the standards we're holding ourselves to.
What we're doing
We held our first community meeting on March 31, 2026 at the Santa Fe Campus, with over forty participants and the superintendent in the room. Since then, we've been building the infrastructure for a different kind of engagement:
A public participation platform at ousd-mseg.org where community input, goals, and follow-through results will live transparently, open to the public eye
Direct, in-person outreach to community members across OUSD
Coordination with parent and community governance bodies (SSC, PSAC, CAC, DELLS, site PTAs, and other CBOs) already doing this work at school sites
Outreach to historically underrepresented school communities, with a focus on the families that a district restructuring will most affect
What we are not
To be clear, we are not the body that will decide what happens during Phase 4. District leadership will be responsible for those decisions, and the OUSD Board of Education will need to approve those plans.
Our commitment is to see our process through regardless of election results and staffing changes. To that end, our goal is to create a community voice so strong that the powers that be will find it impossible to make decisions without real consideration of our input, no matter who they are.
How to participate
We know you're busy; choose any level that fits your available time and interest:
Register + sign up for email updates — Your privacy is our first concern, and we will only communicate when it matters. You will also be able to easily track and follow proposals and results as they take shape.
Participate in a community event — Virtual or in person. See what's on tap and register at ousd-mseg.org/meetings
Bring MSEG to a meeting you're already part of — Reach out and we will try to send one of our core members to brief SSCs, PTAs, CACs, DELLS, and really any group of interested people. Five minutes plus Q+A.
Forward this URL to one person who should be in this conversation but isn't.
Adopt-a-Service — We are currently completely self-funded, but providing accessibility to the community costs money. If you'd like to contribute to anything we do: Professional interpretation, snacks, meeting space, etc. we are so grateful for your generosity and will strive to tell you exactly what we're spending your donation on.
Help us organize - If you have time to spare and would like to volunteer in our outreach efforts, please reach out to us via email and let us know what you're good at. Many hands make light work!
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this an official OUSD or board program?
No. MSEG is an independent volunteer group. We include district staff and board liaisons as participants because their expertise and access matter. MSEG is not run by OUSD and doesn't speak for the district. Our independence is the point of our organization: it means we can't be shut down by a board election or staffing turnover.
What is "Phase 4"?
Phase 4 refers to the next major phase of OUSD's Financial Stabilization Plan, a multi-year restructuring effort scheduled to begin in Fall 2027. It will include significant decisions about a permanent, sustainable vision of the district. The decisions made during Phase 4 will shape OUSD for years to come.
Why now, if Phase 4 doesn't start until Fall 2027?
Because by the time Phase 4 formally begins, many of the most important decisions will already have been made, and much like past engagement efforts, we'll be reacting to options that were narrowed down without our input. Starting now gives our community time (albeit very limited time) to build the shared facts, the networks, and a strong voice to shape what comes no matter who is running the show.
What does "Real Engagement" mean?
It primarily means engagement where input is visible after it's given — where you can see what happened to what you said, who talked about it, and whether anything changed because of it. Real engagement closes the loop. Performative engagement collects input and lets it disappear. That distinction is the standard we hold ourselves to.
Who is paying for this?
MSEG is an all-volunteer effort, funded by ourselves and anyone who supports what we're doing. We pay for things like web hosting, event and meeting space, and printed materials out of pocket or through small donations from members. We are not funded by the district, by any political organization, by any advocacy group, or by anyone with a financial interest in Phase 4 outcomes. While we believe OUSD should be funding our engagement efforts, we currently depend on lovely folks like you to help us out. Adopt-a-Service today!
Will MSEG make decisions about Phase 4?
No. The school board makes Phase 4 decisions through the district's formal processes. MSEG's role is to build a strong, informed voice to inform those processes, via shared facts, organized voices, and transparent follow-through. We want this community to have meaningful influence on the outcomes.
How is this different from official district engagement?
MSEG is specifically not a replacement or stand-in for attendance at school board or advisory committee meetings, or one-on-one contact with representatives and officials. Our belief is that the independence and strength of our voice will be an effective concentration of effort towards those channels. A community-backed set of organized networks, shared facts, and clear questions will be difficult for anyone in a leadership position to ignore.
What if I don't have much time?
The lowest-effort thing is to register and sign up for the email list. Protecting your data and privacy is our first concern. You can engage when something specific lands that matters to you, and track our progress towards specific goals as a group. Coming to one community event is the next step up. Inviting someone from MSEG to a meeting you're already attending is another good low-lift option.
How do I bring MSEG to a meeting I'm part of?
Email us at [email protected] with the meeting and the date. One of our core members will try to attend and give a five-minute presentation and take questions. Our main goal is to make it easy for your group to know what's happening and how to be part of it.
I have real concerns about Phase 4. Can MSEG do something about it?
Reach out, register, and bring it; this is what we're here for. Our platform is meant to be a meeting place for everyone's ideas, out in the open, with real feedback about what you're concerned about. The more specific you can be, the more useful it is to the entire community.
I disagree with something MSEG is doing. What do I do?
Tell us directly as soon as possible. Send an email, post your disagreement on the platform, come to a community event. We are not building this to be free of critique, and we welcome any input that comes respectfully and thoughtfully. Our believe is that giving space to internal disagreement is how a community group like ours can avoid becoming the thing it was trying to fix.
Last updated: May 18th, 2026