Oakland School for the Arts

Oakland School for the Arts (OSA) is a visual and performing arts charter school in Oakland, California, United States. OSA opened in 2002 with a curriculum that integrated college preparatory academics with conservatory-style arts training. As of 2017, enrollment was 725 students in grades 6 through 12. It is a member of the Arts Schools Network and the National Association for College Admission Counseling. In 2009, OSA was named a California Distinguished School. The school is located in the Fox Oakland Theatre building at 530 18th Street at Telegraph Avenue in Uptown Oakland. Founding and history Oakland School for the Arts is a college preparatory, arts middle and high school. It was founded in 2000 as a charter school in the Oakland Unified School District through the efforts of then Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown. It received 501(c)(3) nonprofit status in October 2001. In September 2002, OSA opened its doors with a ninth-grade class and added another high school grade each subsequent year. Loni Berry was the director of the school for the first four years. The current executive director is Lisa Sherman-Colt. For the 2005–06 school year, a middle school was added. Initially, the middle school and high school were kept separate with different entrances and shorter school hours for the middle school. Some performances combined both middle and high school students. In later years, there has been more integration among grade levels in academic areas.