“Brocade is a unique consulting firm. Rather than coming to the project with a set of templates and predetermined ‘cookie-cutter’ processes, they dove deeply into the context, the problem to be solved, and our long-term needs and crafted something powerful, meaningful and useful. Brocade demonstrated a commitment, interest, and passion for our work in the spirit of true shared accountability and responsibility. It was hands down one of the best experiences of partnering with a consulting firm in my 25 years in the education space.”
–Curtiss Sarikey, Chief Partnerships Officer in the Office of the Superintendent, Oakland Unified School District
Over the last five years a team within the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) in California developed best-in-class environment, food, and gardens programs. The programs operate out of a facility called “The Center” that serves as the hub for a district-wide school food program network that connects nutrition, education, and community programs at OUSD's schools, kitchens, and gardens. [1]
OUSD faced tough questions about how to sustain these programs, given that they were largely piloted with external, private funding sources (foundation and government grants). By the time our work began, funders were actively expressing a desire for the District to take a larger role in sustainably funding the programs. But charting a path toward financial sustainability became even more important as state and federal funding changes emerged in early 2025.
Historically, large fractions of the programming had been funded by Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education, USDA Farm to School grants, and the Sugar Sweetened Beverage Tax. With all of these funding sources eliminated or imperiled by mid-2025, it was clear that OUSD would have to navigate a number of devastating disruptions to the food systems funding landscape. [2][3][4]
Brocade was tasked with identifying a path forward. To forecast and plan for financial sustainability, we did three things:
First, we conducted stakeholder interviews to understand what people most needed from the programs and what was likeliest to be funded. Thanks to the generosity of a constellation of community members, district leaders, funders, and national practitioners, we were able to gather a rich picture of the challenges and the important role these programs play in assuring school nutrition.
Second, we looked carefully at the ongoing programmatic costs and built forward-looking projections. By working line-by-line through historical budgets, crawling public records for funding opportunities and analogs, and diving deep into district policy, we collaborated with District leadership to chart a course to financial sustainability. The chart below shows the impact of funding cuts on programming at The Center, along with the path to financial sustainability designed during our engagement.
Finally, to understand potential funding sources and costs, we looked at the funding landscape and worked through the careful process of tying specific funding sources to concrete priorities and line items within the new projected budget. One of the outcomes of this careful budget development work was the graphic (below) that the team came to call the “upside-down pyramid.”
This project equipped OUSD’s Environment, Food, and Garden team to advocate for formal inclusion within OUSD’s budget. Brocade was proud to support the District in navigating this period of funding disruption and charting a more financially sound course for the future.
“I retained Brocade's analytics team to support the sustainability of a comprehensive initiative within a large, urban school district. The team supported me as detailed product developers and wise, caring advisors. Leaving the engagement, I have end products and newly developed skills that will be useful for years to come.”
–Michelle Oppen, Director of Programs at The Center, Oakland Unified School District
However, the hard work is far from over. School districts across the United States, as well as public administrations in general, will be doing more with less in response to cuts at the federal level. We're proud to have helped Oakland Unified School District chart a course through this uncertain time.
[1] https://www.ousd.org/nutrition-services/the-center
[4] https://apnews.com/article/e55dbdab8855474788d370aa02244cc8
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