KPIX CBS News Speaks with Youth Alive Following Shooting at Skyline High School
Last Wednesday, a Skyline High School student was shot—an act of violence that shook the entire Oakland community and struck painfully close to home for Youth ALIVE!.
Our Executive Director, Joseph Griffin, spoke with KPIX CBS News Bay Area to offer insight, reassurance, and a reminder that no one in our community has to process trauma alone.
“This isn’t an easy thing for any of us to understand and deal with,” Joe said in the interview. “You’re going to feel a lot of different emotions. Just know that what you’re feeling and going through, you’re not going through it alone.”
As Oakland’s community-based violence prevention, intervention, and healing agency, Youth ALIVE! plays a frontline role across the city and especially at Skyline High School. We currently operate three violence prevention programs on the Skyline campus, where our team works every day to de-escalate conflicts, address trauma, and build a safe and supportive environment for students.
Our work at Skyline—and at schools across the city—focuses on two critical goals:
1. Preventing violence before it happens
Through relationship-building, counseling, mediation, and youth leadership development, our staff help young people resolve conflicts early and find healthier paths forward.
2. Supporting students and families after violence occurs
When harm happens, our role becomes even more crucial. We work to prevent retaliation, ensure survivors receive emotional and practical support, and help the school community feel safe again.
As Joe emphasized, “Today is really hitting our team hard.” Behind every news story are real young people, families, and school staff coping with shock, fear, grief, and uncertainty. And behind the scenes, our frontline workers—many of whom grew up in these same neighborhoods—are showing up with compassion, skill, and deep connection to the communities they serve.
Youth ALIVE! remains committed to the long-term work of breaking cycles of violence, building trust, and offering hope. In moments like this, when the pain feels overwhelming, the strength of our community—and the dedication of our staff—shines through.
We stand with the Skyline students, families, educators, and neighbors, and we will continue showing up to help Oakland heal.