Launched in 2020 as a program under Mayor Libby Schaaf, Teachers Rooted in Oakland initially targeted candidates in the Oakland Teacher Residency Program, who take on student-teaching assignments in OUSD schools and are partnered with a veteran mentor teacher while working to earn a teaching credential. In exchange for a four-year commitment to teach in OUSD, resident teachers would receive up to $1,500 a month for housing. The goal was to make it a bit easier to become a teacher in Oakland, especially for teachers of color and those interested in working in harder-to-fill roles, like special education or math.