Our Programs

ASCEND Afuera Summer Camp

WHO: ASCEND students entering grades K-8 in fall 2022

WHEN: June 27-July 22, 2022*

WHERE: ASCEND is home base, 3709 E 12th Street, Oakland, 94601

WHAT: This is a summer camp meant to offer fun, creative and transformative outdoor experiences for youth. Literature shows that all of us learn through self-direction and play which is why campers will be engaging in lots of creative and project-based activities. Camp will feature a menu of weekly expeditions facilitated by experienced Oakland educators and paid local youth counselors. Campers will travel outdoors to learn more about self, culture and their communities through collaborative adventure. Local artist-athlete-chef-gardener-carpenter-biologist in-residence will lead workshops like “Books by the Bay” and “Watercolor in Nature”, and we’ll travel to local Oakland and East Bay Regional Parks. Camp will provide daily breakfast, lunch and healthy snacks.

ASCEND Families REGISTER HERE

EXPANDED LEARNING SPRING BREAK & Weekend Enrichment Camps

February 25, March 11, March 25, April 7-8, April 22, 2023

Literacy & Math tutoring 8:30-11:30am

FREE LUNCH AND SNACKS

Outdoor enrichment activities 11:30-4:30pm

Families Afuera

We gather regularly in East Bay locations to hike, paddle, pedal and more while learning about the native peoples and plants of the region. Check our newsletter for local events in the garden, on the trail and beyond!

Plant Seeds, Grow Futures

We help operate a school based garden at ASCEND, and are in partnership to help develop another plot in East Oakland. Food sovereignty and the ability to access and grow healthy food is a basic human right. And kids love to spend time outdoors during the school day digging in the soil and tasting the fruits of their labor.

Cultivate the Conditions: School Design & Coaching

We collaborate with educators to ideate and create meaningful learning experiences-- designing ways to sustainably try outdoor learning, project based learning, expeditions, advisory, restorative practices and more. We work with with you to design toward your wildest aspirations.

Food Distribution

Starting this fall, we’ll begin a weekly fresh food distribution with families in the Fruitvale.

The People

Youth Design Team

During the peak of the pandemic, we met monthly via zoom with high school students and graduates to consider what the future of school could be. This rockstar team created the what and how to take learning outdoors, consider the mental and physical health of young people, and find ways to connect to resources nearby in the community. From MetWest, Oakland School for the Arts, Unity High, Cristo Rey and post-secondary programs, our design team: Ariana Corona Ramos, Juan Rubio, Breanna Barboza, Ramses Moreno, Brianna Díaz, Ruth Garcia

Board of Directors

Check back soon for bios from our board, and an opportunity to join as a future board member.

Community Partners

This work is only done in community. We’re updating our partner list so that you can see the giant interdependent web of what it means to raise the next generation.