We trust by now you are familiar with our plans to merge Laney College and Merritt College into Oakland City College. The Peralta community—including faculty, classified professionals, administrators, and especially students—has been actively driving this process forward through our established Shared Governance process for the past year.
In the California Community Colleges (CCC) system, shared governance is a legally mandated system. It ensures that administrators, faculty, classified staff, and students collaborate in shaping institutional policies, procedures, and resource allocation.. The creation of Oakland City College is not a sudden executive decree; it is a success story of community college shared governance, and of the democratic process in action. Here is the timeline of how we got here.
One of the most vital conversations surrounding this transformation centers on history. Some community members have rightfully raised concerns about honoring the profound legacy of our institutions—most notably, the origins of the Black Panther Party, which was founded by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale at Merritt College in 1966.
It is important to remember that structural change is a natural part of our District's long history, and evolution has never meant erasure. In fact, institutional shifts have paved the way for our legacy before:
Through all of these massive physical and structural transformations over the decades, the deep cultural history, identity, and radical pride of both Laney and Merritt have not just been retained—they have been fiercely protected and celebrated.
As explicitly reaffirmed in the District's Unification FAQ, these irreplaceable cultural histories will be fully preserved. Unification does not dilute our past; it strengthens our infrastructure so we can continue to teach it to future generations.
For the past year, representatives from across the District have been hard at work developing PCCD’s comprehensive Transformation Plan, which maps out the reorganization of the District from four colleges to three. This wasn't done behind closed doors. Dedicated shared governance bodies and special taskforces were established to analyze every angle of this transition:
The dedication of these groups cannot be overstated. In fact, Chancellor Dr. Tammeil Gilkerson recently recognized the immense hard work on the Transformation Plan by the faculty senate presidents, SSEMC, and the students who stepped up to serve on these taskforces by awarding them the prestigious Peralta Flying Pig Award, celebrating those who achieve what others deem "impossible."
Shared governance does not mean total unanimity from day one; it means providing an open forum for rigorous debate and democratic processes.
Over the course of the year, the Merritt College Faculty Senate drafted a resolution opposing the merger. In alignment with our governance structure, this perspective was brought to the broader District stage. In March 2026, the District Academic Senate (DAS)—the governing body representing faculty from all four Peralta Colleges—thoroughly considered the matter. Following a democratic debate and vote, the DAS overwhelmingly voted down the opposition resolution in a 12-1 vote.
District Academic Senate President Dr. Leslie Blackie commented on the process during her DAS report to the Board of Trustees on June 23, 2026, saying, "...that Merritt resolution came to DAS and was voted down with one yes vote and 12 no's...I do encourage these folks to continue to participate within the process so that we continue to develop robust solutions to our complicated problems." Dr. Blackie's full report can be watched in the video below.
Two months after the March DAS vote, in May 2026, the Planning and Budgeting Committee (PBC)—the highest body in our shared governance system—reviewed the structural and financial merits of the strategy. The PBC voted to officially recommend to the Chancellor that PCCD move forward with the Transformation Plan.
Only after a full year of taskforce research, faculty senate debates, and the highest-level shared governance recommendations did the matter come before the District's leadership.
At the June 2026 meeting, the Board of Trustees listened to comprehensive presentations, reviewed the detailed data slides, and ultimately voted to approve the official resolution to proceed with the Transformation Plan—including the historic unification of Laney and Merritt into Oakland City College.
PCCD Chancellor Dr. Tammeil Gilkerson has made it clear from the start of the project that the Transformation Plan is about better serving students. She notes, "For years, our District has been managing budget deficits, enrollment declines, and operational challenges. Much of the work over the past two years has focused on stabilizing our finances, improving operations, and creating a stronger foundation for the future. That work has been necessary, and I am proud of what we have accomplished together. What is different now is that we finally have the opportunity to look beyond the next budget reduction and ask a larger question about what we want Peralta to become. Balancing budgets is important. Enrollment matters. Fiscal sustainability matters. But balancing budgets alone is not a strategy for the future. For me, the transformation effort is about creating the conditions to better serve students, strengthen pathways, and build a district that can plan, invest, innovate, and grow rather than continually reacting to the next challenge in front of us."
Unifying two historic institutions is an enormous undertaking that naturally sparks passionate discussion. However, characterizing a year-long, heavily documented, and democratically vetted process as "hasty" does a disservice to the hundreds of Peralta faculty, staff, and students who poured their time and expertise into this planning effort.
The road to Oakland City College has been paved with transparency, intense collaboration, and adherence to the democratic principles of shared governance. As we take these next steps together, we do so on a foundation built by the Peralta community, for the Peralta community, particularly for the students we serve.