Good governance update.
Starting with what we’re not celebrating: Tuesday night’s Board of Education (BOE) meeting did not need to be *8* hours long. Our school board needs to commit to shorter, more effective and efficient meetings.
But moving on to governance news worth celebrating: Last week the BOE began an ongoing series of governance trainings, thanks to the leadership of President Jenny Lam. [Today they are in FINANCE training!]
We reached out to a couple of the new commissioners to hear how its going. Commissioner Hsu shared that it was excellent, adding, “The facilitator led us to explore fundamental questions like: why do school systems exist, why do school boards exist, what should school board members do to help achieve good student outcomes, and how to recognize and distinguish inputs (programs), outputs (measurements) and outcomes (for students).” We also asked Commissioner Weissman-Ward how it went, who shared that she’s excited about the potential for positive shifts in governance and to engage in discussions around the importance of student outcomes-centered decision-making. She added, “The governance training highlighted and affirmed that we will only succeed in supporting our students and schools if we are intentional, thoughtful, and holding ourselves to clear and delineated accountability metrics.” π
Tuesday (4/12) regular board meeting:
An emotional start, with students, families, & teachers begging to prevent teacher and staff layoffs, and families from Cobb elementary asking to rescind the kinder classroom cut. Public comment also included concerns about the omission of the Eid holiday from the SFUSD 2022-23 calendar.
During the Parent Advisory Council report discussion there was conversation around the LCAP (Local Control Accountability Plan) and how we as a district can engage more families in participating in that important process. The DELAC (English Learners Advisory) made four important recommendations, including principal and site leader trainings on family liaisons, and included specific desired outcomes in very clear and excellent presentation.
π¨ Budget update! The state financial analysis team (FCMAT) presented their latest report on SFUSD’s financial status, which identified SFUSD still in the “high risk” category. Though SFUSD has managed to budget for the next three years using a combination of cuts and one-time funds, FCMAT advised that we will fall short in later years due to a continued drop in enrollment and increased retirement benefits costs. The state advised that SFUSD needs to make important, hard decisions in order to maintain solvency, and was told to “live within your means.” Mr. Fine, our semi-permanent budget babysitter, explained that it’s critical for the BOE to have the mindset of downsizing over time. He warned: “Please, please, look down the road. This is a great district and it can continue to be. You can’t bring emotion into your decisions but you do have to deal with the emotion of those impacted.”
Pictured below: SFUSD School Board gets training in good governance, April 2022. π
