Our Community

Alumni

Live Oak students are lifelong learners who love nothing more than a challenge. With their education as foundation, they pursue passions in a breadth of disciplines.

Live Oak graduates are able to take on the responsibility of helping create a just society. They become leaders with the capacity to meet the challenges and opportunities of their generation.

Do You Know an Alumni Changemaker?

We are seeking nominations for the annual Changemaker Awards, honoring Live Oak graduates who model empathy and responsibility, demonstrate the capacity to create change in the community, and inspire action in others. The Alumni Changemaker Award recognizes alums who are at least 25 years old, while the Young Alumni Changemaker Award is open to junior and senior high school students. Self-nominations are accepted. All nominations are due Tuesday, October 31, 2023. 
Read about this past year's honorees below. Use this form to nominate a changemaker for this year!
For questions about the Changemaker Awards, contact the Advancement Office at development@liveoaksf.org.

Alumni Changemaker Award

The Live Oak Alumni Changemaker Award is given yearly to an alum who models empathy and responsibility, demonstrates the capacity to create change in the community, and inspires action in others. In 2022, we honored our first Young Alumni Changemaker–a junior or senior in high school–recognizing that Live Oak students do not wait to make an impact in their communities. Most recently, we honored three Young Alumni Changemakers from the Class of 2019: Olivia Castillo, Bruno Kai Ong, and Zoe Sokatch. 

2023 Alumni Changemaker

Brendan O’Callaghan ‘02 is the 2023 Alumni Changemaker Award for his outstanding work in public affairs and politics. Currently, Brendan is the Vice President for Marketing, Communications, and External Affairs at Calbright College, California's first and only fully online community college.
With a focus on competency-based workforce training programs for adult learners, Calbright aims to build a more equitable economy for underserved communities across the state. “Higher education struggles to support working-age adults, especially those from already underserved communities. The challenge of building a new kind of public community college from the ground up, to support Californians is exciting,” shares Brendan of this role and Calbright’s mission. 
Brendan's passion for public affairs and politics has always been driven by his dedication to social justice and community development. He is a tireless advocate for historically marginalized communities and has used his platform to raise awareness about issues such as income inequality, access to healthcare, and systemic racism. His work has inspired others to take action and build a more just and equitable society.

2023 Young Alumni Changemakers

Olivia Castillo '19

An advocate for elevating the voices and academic opportunities for people of color on the Lick-Wilmerding campus, Olivia Castillo serves as the Student Inclusion Chair and Student Body President, while spearheading the formation of a new Ethnic Studies course at Lick. 

Read more about Olivia.
Live Oak fosters a community of care and empathy. Live Oak teaches students to be a family and cultivate connections through amazing traditions such as groves. Live Oak prepared me to use empathy and care for other people and fuel it into a motivator for change.
- Olivia Castillo '19

Bruno Kai Ong '19

As the co-chair of the Bay Area Youth Climate Summit (BAYCS), Lick-Wilmerding senior Bruno Kai Ong is committing his energy toward a more environmentally-sustainable future. Bruno’s work with BAYCS involves empowering a network of over 3,000 youth across more than 60 high schools to take action on climate change within their local communities. 

Read more about Bruno. 
My Live Oak education empowered me to think ambitiously, tackling large scale problems with radical but realistic solutions. But more importantly, my Live Oak education taught me to find joy in collaboration.
- Bruno Kai Ong '19

Zoe Sokatch '19

By taking action to raise awareness of the growing mental health challenges many teenagers are facing, Urban senior Zoe Sokatch is building bridges for her peers to get the help they need, while recruiting others to build a support network across her campus and beyond. 

Read more about Zoe. 
At Live Oak, I was taught how to be a leader, and as a female-identifying person, this is a lesson I have never forgotten. This school fueled my voice and taught me to always stand up and be loud.
- Zoe Sokatch '19

Meet All of Our Alumni Changemakers

Keep in Touch!

While our alumni may no longer walk the halls of Live Oak (although some still do!), that doesn’t mean that we want to say goodbye. We pride ourselves on creating meaningful connections with our students, and these aren’t relationships that end with graduation.
We are strengthened by alumni participation in life at Live Oak. We love to know what you are up to, celebrate your successes, and offer support to reach your goals. Every year, we host class reunions to reconnect you to the community as you prepare for life after high school. We encourage all of our alumni to come back to visit or volunteer at Live Oak. As our alumni community grows and becomes increasingly active, we look forward to hosting regional gatherings and relying on alumni leadership to create additional opportunities for engagement. 
The Advancement Office has created a group on LinkedIn (Live Oak School); we encourage all Live Oak alumni, faculty, and parents to take part. LinkedIn is a great way for you to connect and reconnect with fellow classmates and teachers, while expanding your professional network.
Additionally, if you are looking to stay up-to-date on the weekly goings on at Live Oak please follow us on Facebook and Instagram for updates, photos, and videos.
You can also help us keep up with you by filling out this News and Contact Information Form.
Whether you connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook, or by stopping by our Mariposa campus, we look forward to hearing what you have been up to!

Admissions

1555 Mariposa St.
San Francisco, CA 94107

415 861-8840
info@liveoaksf.org
Live Oak School welcomes and admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin, citizenship status, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, and faith to all the rights, privileges, programs and activities of Live Oak School. Live Oak School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin, citizenship status, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, and faith in administration of its educational policies and programs, admissions policies, Adjusted Tuition program, and athletic and other school-administered programs.