About a dozen fifth- through ninth-grade girls from West Oakland’s Jion Academy learned both basketball and life skills at The Club at City Center this week.
On the beautiful second-floor court framed by blocked glass windows, Teamed Up for Good – A Social Purpose Corporation, partnered with the academy to host the first REAL Futures Summer Experience.
Former Golden State Warrior Shaun Livingston and Earn and Learn, a nonprofit supporting learners and educators, sponsor the program, which is designed to help students develop their careers by building their core skills of reading, writing, math, teamwork, movement, expression and self-awareness.
Tuition is $75 per week, but no girl is turned away because of financial constraints.
“It’s fun. I like basketball and I liked all of the mentors coming in and talking about their jobs,” Gabriella Smith, 11, said.
REAL Futures is the inaugural program of Teamed Up for Good, founded by L.K. Monroe, former Alameda County superintendent of schools. The nonprofit aims to expand connections between academic, physical and real-world learning.
“I really believe that taking advantage of programming outside of school time is very important. This has given me an opportunity to get back with kids again and to implement what I’ve learned over three decades,” Monroe said.
The program runs from July 10 to 14 and features five areas of focus, including movement, with girls participating in basketball, golf, and track and field.
Shaun Livingston couldn’t make it on Monday, but on hand to mentor the youth were Erin Sellers, 2023 Oakland Tech state champion girls basketball team captain, and Alexis Gray-Lawson, former Phoenix Mercury player, Oakland Technical High School athletic director and community schools manager.
Sellers, 19, will attend the University of Alaska in the fall on a full basketball scholarship.
“People older than me have always been around, looking out for me and teaching me things,” Sellers said.
“I like being able to share what I know with people who look just like me.”
Ruth Jones, Teamed up for Good’s chief operations strategy officer, center, talks to girls during the REAL Futures Summer Experience camp at The Club at City Center in downtown Oakland, Calif., on Monday, July 10, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group) Saniyah Edwards, 11, takes a shot during the REAL Futures Summer Experience camp at The Club at City Center in downtown Oakland, Calif., on Monday, July 10, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group) Alexis Gray-Lawson, former Phoenix Mercury basketball player, Oakland Technical High School athletic director and community schools manager, right, talks to girls during the REAL Futures Summer Experience camp at The Club at City Center in downtown Oakland, Calif., on Monday, July 10, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group) Ruth Jones, Teamed up for Good’s chief operations strategy officer, center, chooses girls for teams during the REAL Futures Summer Experience camp at The Club at City Center in downtown Oakland, Calif., on Monday, July 10, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group) Girls line up for a drill during the REAL Futures Summer Experience camp at The Club at City Center in downtown Oakland, Calif., on Monday, July 10, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group) Elise Culberson, 11, left, congratulates Olivia McFadden, 14, after she made the winning basket in a scrimmage during the REAL Futures Summer Experience camp at The Club at City Center in downtown Oakland, Calif., on Monday, July 10, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group) Former Alameda County Superintendent of Schools and Teamed Up for Good Principal and Founder L.K. Monroe, right, talks to girls during the REAL Futures Summer Experience camp at The Club at City Center in downtown Oakland, Calif., on Monday, July 10, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group) Erin Sellers, 2023 Oakland Tech state champion girls basketball team captain spins a ball during the REAL Futures Summer Experience camp at The Club at City Center in downtown Oakland, Calif., on Monday, July 10, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group) Girls from the West Oakland nonprofit Jion Academy get ready to scrimmage during the REAL Futures Summer Experience camp at The Club at City Center in downtown Oakland, Calif., on Monday, July 10, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group) Erin Sellers, 2023 Oakland Tech state champion girls basketball team captain, center, gives a talk during the REAL Futures Summer Experience camp at The Club at City Center in downtown Oakland, Calif., on Monday, July 10, 2023. To the right is Alexis Gray-Lawson, former Phoenix Mercury basketball player, Oakland Technical High School athletic director and community schools manager, and to the left is participant Olivia McFadden, 14. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group) Elise Culberson, 11, watches the action during the REAL Futures Summer Experience camp at The Club at City Center in downtown Oakland, Calif., on Monday, July 10, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
