Frequently Asked Questions

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May I attend your weekly meeting if I am not a member?

If you want to know more about our Club, we invite you to attend a Club meeting. We meet on Thursday at the California Ballroom at 1736 Franklin Street, 2nd Floor and via Zoom. People gather at noon, with the meeting lasting from 12:30 pm to 1:30 pm. 

Our membership process is simple. Submit your application and pay the application fee of $300. Once your application is received, you will have a brief interview with a club leader, and we will publish notice of your application in our weekly e-newsletter. Then, we schedule your induction.

Click here to use our online application form

No. You are welcome to apply at any time if you are established in a career and will commit the time and resources to be involved with our Club.

No. While some members attend every week, we know it is not realistic for many members. We suggest an annual goal of at least 40% attendance, including "make-ups" through attending committee meetings and service events.

Dues are $390 per semi-annual period (payable in a lump sum or monthly $65 installments).  Members 65 years and older may opt to apply a $55 discount each semi-annual period.  Members under 40 may opt to apply a $120 discount each semi-annual period.  We also encourage optional donations to Oakland Rotary Endowment and Rotary Foundation to fund our service work.

You must be a 501(c)(3) nonprofit or associated with a fiscal agent that is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and your intended project must benefit the Oakland community.  Grants usually range from $500 to $3,000. To  access the grant guidelines, click here  To access the application, click here.  Applications are accepted by email only. Email to info@oakland-rotary.org.

Started in 1963, our Club's Saroni-Lena program is one of the largest and longest-continually-running scholarship programs in the Bay Area. We award $6,000 scholarships to Oakland public high school seniors who will be attending a four-year college or university. Our scholarship program is administered through the East Bay College Fund. Applications to the East Bay College Fund are due in March. To find out more, contact the East Bay College Fund at info@eastbaycollegefund.org or (510) 836-8900, and specifically refer to the Oakland Rotary Saroni-Lena Scholarship.

 

Our Club has a speakers committee that generally books speakers several months in advance. If you are accustomed to speaking to groups of 100+ persons and are a recognized expert on your topic, you may send an email to info@oakland-rotary.org, with a brief explanation of your experience and presentation. Inclusion of a short YouTube or other video clip is helpful.