COMMUNITY

FOR OUR NEIGHBORS

We are grateful to be located in this beautiful neighborhood and deeply value our shared community spaces. This page is dedicated to all our neighbors, providing a calendar of school-sponsored events and information about our local presence. 

 

Redwood Day and Our Neighbors

We recognize that neighborhood impacts such as noise, traffic, and parking can sometimes be a challenge. We are actively committed to mitigating potential disruptions through continuous management and planning. We address these concerns through ongoing efforts and strategies, including:

  • Dedicating staff to monitor and control curb-side traffic flow
  • Regularly reviewing and communicating parking policies and traffic patterns
  • Utilizing valet services for large community events
  • Hosting smaller events or utilizing off-site locations whenever possible
  • Encouraging carpooling and “park & walk”

We also invite you to discover our program and the positive impact our students have across the city. You can learn more about the Redwood Day experience, including our Lower School, Middle School, and Summer Camps. Please refer to the Calendar and Updates section below for details on upcoming events and key dates. For any questions or comments regarding traffic, parking, enrolling at the school and summer camp, or other topics, please contact the Front Office at 510-534-0800 or email communityrelations@rdschool.org.

Partnership with the Greater Oakland Community

Extending our commitment to shared community spaces, we are proud of how our students contribute to the vitality of the broader Oakland community. Through service learning and key partnerships, Redwood Day extends its mission beyond our campus with contributions that include:

  • Local Service: Students participate in community clean-up efforts in the Dimond District as part of our service learning curriculum.
  • Addressing Food Insecurity: Our students and staff annually pack 40,000 meals through our school-wide event, which is distributed by City Team Oakland to combat local food insecurity.
  • OUSD Partnership: We support Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) through the free, tuition-free Design, Build, Innovate (DBi) Summer Institute for OUSD students (including those from schools like Manzanita Community School) and by offering grant-funded professional development for OUSD teachers.


If you or your organization would like to partner with us on a community initiative, please contact us at communityrelations@rdschool.org.

Important Contact Information

It is important that all of our neighbors can readily contact us if they need assistance. Neighbors can contact Redwood Day in a variety of ways:

For Non-emergencies:
8:00-4:00 pm: 510-534-0800 
4:00-6:00 pm: 510-213-8436 (text available)
Email: mezoe@rdschool.org (Marina, Executive Assistant to Head of School)

Emergencies:
Call 911

After Hours Alarm Concerns:
To help minimize disruptions to our neighborhood, we have taken steps to limit both the use and duration of audible security alarms on campus. Our alarm company immediately notifies designated School staff when an alarm is triggered, allowing us to respond as quickly as possible. 

All emergencies after hours will be handled via our alarm company and designated Redwood Day staff. For non-emergencies after hours, please email Marina Ezoe, Executive Assistant to the Head of School at mezoe@rdschool.org.


Updates From Redwood Day

Please check here for important updates from the School.

Please don't hesitate to reach out with any questions to communityrelations@rdschool.org.

TRAFFIC & PARKING

Pick Up for Students Not Attending X-Care/X-Plus or After School Activities (Athletics, Office Hours, Drama, etc.)
  1. If your student is not attending any programming after school, pick-up times* for each grade level are as follows:

    Kindergarten        2:50-3:05 p.m.
    1st & 2nd Grade    3:05-3:25 p.m.
    3rd-5th Grade       3:10-3:25 p.m.
    8th Grade              no earlier than 3:25 p.m.
    7th Grade              no earlier than 3:35 p.m.     
    6th Grade              no earlier than 3:45 p.m. 

    Please use the SchoolPass app. This will make everyone’s life easier - yours and ours!

    *Please do not arrive any earlier than the times listed above. If you do arrive earlier, you will be asked to leave the pick-up line to make room for cars that are picking up at the correct time. Please be sure that other adults designated to pick up your students know this expectation as well. 
     

  2. If you are picking up your child in the pick-up line of cars, please pull all the way to the front (do not stop to pick up your child in the middle of the pick-up zone). Staff will make sure your child walks to your car. Please keep pulling all the way to the front of the white pick-up zone (as far as you can drive up), even if it looks like there aren’t many cars behind you. The line is dynamic and fills up fast.
     
  3. If you are picking up your child in the pick-up line of cars, please do not get out of your car while in the line. If your child requires extra assistance securing seatbelts, for example, please plan accordingly to park and walk to the front of the school to pick up your child (parking options include MacArthur Boulevard, Sheffield Avenue on the school’s side of the street beyond the white pick-up zone, or the school’s back parking lot (not the front lot). Another option is to have your child enter the car in the pick-up line and drive safely to a spot beyond the white pick-up zone to buckle your child in.
     
  4. If you prefer to pick up your child by walking up to the front doors or by waiting in the Gallery, please park in the back parking lot (not the front lot). If there are no spots available, please park on MacArthur Boulevard or on Sheffield Avenue (on the school’s side of the street) beyond the white pick-up zone.
     
  5. At all times, between 2:45 p.m. and 6:00 p.m., please do not park your car in the white pick-up zone and leave it unattended, even if it appears that there are no other cars in the vicinity. Always use our back parking lot, MacArthur Boulevard, or Sheffield Avenue (beyond the white pick-up zone) for parking during these hours.
     
  6. If you are in the pick-up line during another grade level pick-up time (e.g., you are picking up a Kindergarten student during 7th/8th grade pick-up time), you need to use the SchoolPass app. If you don’t use this app, you will be waiting a very long time for your child to come to your car from X-Care or other after-school programming. By using the app, X-Care staff will know your child is ready to be picked up, and someone from the X-Care program will escort your child to your car (this process will still take 5-10 minutes, so please be patient). Alternatively, if you are picking up your child during another grade level pick-up time, you can park in the back lot, MacArthur Boulevard or Sheffield Avenue (on the school’s side of the street beyond the white pick-up zone), walk to the front doors/Gallery and wait for your child there. In this case, you will still want to use the SchoolPass app; this will make your life way easier, and your child will reunite with you much faster. For any support with our app, please contact Rob Eifler (reifler@rdschool.org) directly.
Pick Up for Students Attending X-Care/X-Plus or After School Activities (Athletics, Office Hours, Drama, etc.)
  1. The same rules and expectations apply for pick-up during these times as outlined above.
     
  2. Please use the SchoolPass app. This will make everyone’s life easier - yours and ours! Using the SchoolPass app, our after-school staff will know you are here to pick up your student, and staff will escort your child to your car (please be patient; this can take 5-10 minutes).
     
  3. Please don’t park your car in the white pick-up zone and leave it unattended; if you are walking into the school, park your car in the back parking lot, on MacArthur Boulevard, or on Sheffield Avenue (on the school’s side of the street beyond the white pick-up zone). 
     
  4. Please keep moving your car as far up in the pick-up line as possible; do not stop midway through the pick-up line to wait for your child.
     
  5. If your child requires extra assistance securing seatbelts, etc., follow the expectations in #3 above.
     
  6. Please do not block the driveways of homes on Sheffield Avenue or the School’s main parking lot driveway.
     
  7. If you park your car in the designated areas listed above to walk inside the school to pick up your child and you are using the SchoolPass app, please see the TV in the Gallery to note if your student’s name is listed. If it is, you are good to go! Your student is on their way. If their name is not listed, please see Rob, Chris, Kassandra, or another X-Care staff member in the Gallery to let them know you are present to pick up your student. 
Other Important Traffic Reminders
  1. Please do not make U-Turns in the middle of Sheffield Avenue at any time. 
     
  2. Please be aware of your vehicle and its proximity to our driveway and those of our neighbors to allow people to enter and exit from campus or their homes as needed.
     
  3. Please stay in our line of cars and be patient in pulling as far forward as possible to keep traffic flowing.
     
  4. Please do not pull out of the pick-up line midway through once your student is in the car. It creates confusion on Sheffield Avenue and a higher risk of an accident. If everyone follows the expectations outlined above, the car line should move fairly swiftly, and you’ll be on your way in no time. 
     
  5. All students must enter their vehicles on the passenger side for their own safety. If you have something in your car obstructing safe entry on the passenger side, please remove it to make it possible for your child to enter the vehicle on the passenger side. 
     
  6. In the morning, when dropping off, please be mindful of Redwood Day cars making a left-hand turn onto Sheffield Avenue - especially if you are making a right-hand turn onto Sheffield Avenue. If it is safe to do so, please allow a few cars to make the left turn to alleviate the traffic congestion in that area. We continue to work with the City to lobby for a left-turn signal at that light, along with other safety measures to make the area safer for our students.
     
  7. There is NO PARKING on the following streets: Sausal (the small street just after the freeway overpass), Morrison (the street that intersects Sheffield at the stop sign), or on the opposite side of Sheffield. 
     
  8. Please do NOT park across from Redwood Day and walk your child(ren) across the street.
     
  9. If you park on Sheffield Ave. to walk your child(ren) into school, please park on our side of Sheffield only. This expectation extends all the way down Sheffield to E. 29th Street. This is part of our agreement with our neighbors and the City of Oakland.*
     
  10. Please observe the STOP sign just after Redwood Day on Sheffield Ave. when you make a U-turn to head back out toward MacArthur. 

*see our Sheffield Avenue Neighborhood Parking Agreement section below

Sheffield Avenue Neighborhood Parking Agreement
In partnership with our Sheffield Avenue neighbors, Redwood Day works diligently to preserve a positive relationship and remain mindful of parking and the number of vehicles we bring into the neighborhood. Redwood Day has a long-standing parking agreement with our Sheffield Avenue neighbors, which is as follows:
 
  • We agree to never park on Sausal Street
  • We agree to never park on the opposite side (to Redwood Day) of Sheffield Avenue
  • For major events, faculty/staff are encouraged to park off-site to create additional spaces in our lot
  • For major events, we highly encourage families to park off-campus on MacArthur Boulevard
Please consider carpooling whenever possible to help alleviate traffic on Sheffield, address limited parking for major events, and help us comply with our neighborhood agreements.

EVENT CALENDAR