Call-to-Action:
Call In to Tonight’s Special Meeting and Beg the BOE to Prevent State Takeover
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- Get ready to press that “Raise Hand” button on Zoom: Things took an unexpected turn with the budget balancing efforts when a couple of non-budget expert commissioners (Alexander and Sanchez) went rogue with their own approach to solving the massive and complex deficit. In short: their plan is less than half-baked, not to mention is based on a flawed analysis which compares apples to oranges. Why this is being proposed just one week before SFUSD’s deadline for submitting a plan to the state, well, is a bit beyond us. We’ve learned that Mr. Duchon, our district’s state budget babysitter, is advising SFUSD against adopting this flawed plan. [There was already a solid plan being worked on for months and which included budget expert input as well as community input.] We’ve also learned that if this last minute alternate plan is adopted, Mr. Duchon would be likely to recommend that our district enter “Advisory” (one step closer to “Takeover.”) 😫
Call in tonight at 5 pm & tell the School Board:
Please don’t send us into state takeover by adopting the Sanchez/Alexander proposal
Tues 12/7 at 5 pm
Meeting Zoom link here
password: 149157
- Another item of interest at tonight’s meeting: SFUSD School Board’s rushed Lowell admissions change decision in February 2021 was the subject of litigation, and subsequently found to be “null and void” after it was determined that the resolution authors did not follow Board policy: they violated the Brown Act and failed to give proper notice. We understand Superintendent Matthews’s rationale to extend the current admissions policy for this school year and that it would be “logistically impossible” to do differently for the coming year, but/and, we are simultaneously interested to see what kind of opportunity this all brings for further, more open discussion on how to best address the ongoing, systemic racism at Lowell through admission policies. We were disappointed that the Board had failed to adequately public notice, not allowing for normal public input process and important discussions.
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- Parents/caregivers can volunteer and be on school sites! Thanks to YOUR parent advocacy, parents started speaking up about how many are still not allowed on school site to volunteer in classrooms, drop off their kids in the building, etc. SFUSD responded and thanked us for raising this! They clarified that– yes, you should absolutely be allowed on school site, and, it was never district policy that you wouldn’t be. They are following up with individual schools who are still not following the policy. Here’s their policy and it can also be found here. If your school doesn’t update their policy within a couple of weeks, please reach out to [email protected] and we’ll try to help– SFUSD is looking to us for this information.
- Will visitors be allowed on school sites?
- Yes. The protocol in Fall 2021 for visitors at sites, including family drop-off and pick-up and volunteers, will be the same as the protocol before the pandemic. Everyone at a school site, including staff, students, and visitors will have to wear a mask when indoors. Please note that volunteers should follow vaccination requirements.
- This week is Inclusive Schools Week at SFUSD! Check out resources and register for virtual events including a Special Olympics/49ers workout. Students can also submit artwork by December 10 for the SFUSD Online Inclusive Arts Showcase.
- Literacy & student learning update.
- We’ve learned that SFUSD has completed their fall student assessments and will be linking to the outcomes data by the end of this month. They’ve been slicing and dicing the student learning and well-being data, looking at everything from: in-person to the online learning program; unexcused vs. excused absences; identification of low SES status where parents did not have to complete a meal form. We don’t doubt this is a huge task at hand and we’re eager to see where our students are at. We’ve been inspired by OUSD and how they started releasing their fall assessment reading and math data back in October, regularly sharing updates with the community based on a student progress monitoring plan that they launched this past August.
- SFUSD’s literacy curriculum audit is underway and we can expect to learn more about the first phase of work and findings in late January. Stay tuned! Interested in joining our literacy committee to connect with other parents and educators who are paying close attention to this work? Email us at [email protected]
- CONGRATS to newly elected SSC parent leaders! 🙌 💪 We’ve been hearing from many of you that you were recently elected to your School Site Council. CONGRATULATIONS, that is a wonderful and important way to be a strong advocate for students at your kid’s school. Interested in connecting with other parents across the district who are also on their SSC? Join our #ssc Slack channel today. Email [email protected] to get added to the channel and enter the conversation.
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From School Board budget meetings to holiday parties, there’s a lot to put on your calendar! Hope to see or hear you at some/all of the following!
- Wednesday 12/8 at 7:30 pm: Second District PTA is hosting a “411 Wednesday” on Advocacy 101. Right up our alley! Join here.
- Tuesday 12/14 at : Regular School Board meeting. This one will be a biggie… with the final budget balancing plan to be voted on, due to the state the very next day on Wednesday 12/15. Fingers crossed!
- Wednesday 12/15 at 6:30pm: 🥳 SF Parent Coalition’s first ever holiday party! 🥳 RSVP today! Can’t wait to celebrate our wonderful community of families and year of impact, together.
- Looking ahead to 2022: SF Parent Coalition will be co-hosting an AD 17 Candidate Forum on Public Education on Monday January 10th, 2022 at 7 pm, with Candidates David Campos, Matt Haney, Bilal Mahmood, and Thea Selby! Hybrid virtual/in-person at TogetherSF offices. Mark your calendars, and stay tuned for more details– including an official RSVP next week!
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