After 15 years of relocating across Alameda County, Yu Ming Charter School is celebrating a significant milestone in our facilities journey this year. We now own two more permanent campuses that will serve our community for generations to come.
Since our founding in 2010 as California’s first dual-immersion Mandarin charter school, finding stable facilities has been our greatest challenge. Even as we earned multiple National Blue Ribbon and California Distinguished School honors, ranking in the top 1% of California public schools across student demographics, we have had to move students no fewer than ten times in 15 years. Each relocation disrupted commutes for hundreds of families traveling from 37 cities across four counties.
This year marks the beginning of a more stable chapter. With the purchases of our Adeline campus, a former school site in Oakland, and our Carolyn campus, a former church property, we are finally able to set deeper roots in the communities we serve. While we still need one last permanent site, these campuses mean that our students are no longer in borrowed space and that we can continue planning for the future with more confidence.
We deeply appreciate the ongoing partnership with Blueprint, our non-profit real estate partner, who has stood with us since 2018. Blueprint helped guide negotiations on both property purchases and navigate a complex process we could never have managed alone. They saved us countless hours and allowed us to stay focused on what we do best: serving students well.
The demand for our program has remained high over the years, with approximately 2.5 applicants per kindergarten seat and over 1,000 students enrolled this school year. As students move through grades each year, this added capacity is an investment in our ability to ensure reliable, continuous access to a rich TK-8 Mandarin immersion education for students across Alameda County, including those from historically underserved communities who have often faced barriers to high-quality schooling.
Ultimately, these campuses are a direct continuation of the whole-child, global citizens education we offer to students and families across the county. They strengthen our mission by creating permanent environments where all students can flourish socially, emotionally, and academically. After years of instability, these campuses give us a stronger foundation to focus on what matters most: educating the multilingual global citizens who will build a better tomorrow.
Author’s Note
This blog is written by Emily Wood, COO, Yu Ming Charter School. Emily is a former Head of School and longtime educator, she brings deep experience in school operations, personalized learning, and whole-child education. Emily is passionate about creating stable, student-centered environments where children can thrive academically, socially, and emotionally.
Photography by Jerry Yoon Photographers















