For Immediate Release
June 16, 2000

The Port of Oakland Employees' Scholarship Program along with the Port's Asian Employee Association will announce at the June 20 meeting of the Board of Port Commissioners, the award of $48,000 in scholarships to deserving local high school students from Oakland. The Commission meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, June 20th, at 3:00 p.m. in the Port of Oakland Board Room, 530 Water Street, Jack London Square.

Joining the Port in recognizing the award of these scholarship recipients will be Dennis Chachones, Superintendent of the Oakland Unified School District. The annual scholarship awards are granted by the employees of the Port to students who will be attending either a four-year college, university, community college or vocational school. The scholarships of $2,000 and $1,000 each are given to students based on academic performance, community service, extracurricular activities, and a written personal essay about their goals and life experience. Several of the students plan to major in engineering, architecture, environmental science, or construction management, all important components of the Port's major expansion program.

Port employees began the scholarship program in 1995 and have since awarded 57 scholarships for a total dollar amount of $86,000. The funds are raised through a number of ways, including an annual golf tournament, employee contributions made through the Port's annual United Way Giving Campaign, and a special Job Fair sponsored by KPa Consulting Engineers. The Asian Employees' Association program began in 1993 and has awarded 33 scholarships totaling over $25,000. Terry O'Rourke, Chair of the Port Employees' Scholarship Program, expressed great pride on behalf of the other employees. She stated that "The awards from both programs are funded entirely by individual contributions and fundraising efforts -- no public funds are used."

The purpose of both scholarship programs is to grant scholarships to deserving local high school students in Oakland as well as to children of current Port of Oakland employees. The program attempts to assist students financially with entrance to the post-secondary institutions best suited to meet their individual goals and ambitions and to contribute to the betterment of the Oakland community.

Port employees have established a reputation within the local community for their participation and involvement in numerous community projects and activities. Regular participants in the annual Christmas in April program, more than 40 Port employees helped this year to renovate the home of a local West Oakland resident. Having adopted eight local schools in the city, Port employees volunteer their time mentoring, reading to students, and participating in a number of school initiatives. The scholarship program is led, maintained, and administered exclusively by Port employees and represents, according to Chuck Foster, Executive Director for the Port of Oakland, a true representation of the Port's employee attributes of teamwork and commitment to our community.

The Port of Oakland, established in 1927, is an independent department of the City of Oakland employing some 580 people. It encompasses three significant enterprises: the international seaport known as the Port of Oakland, the Oakland International Airport, approximately 19 miles of waterfront property from the Bay Bridge south, as well as a variety of commercial real estate developments, including the popular Jack London Square.

Contact:
Harold P. Jones
(510) 627-1564
hjones@portoakland.com

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