Now that summer break is just around the corner… Wait a minute… Errrr…
If your January has felt even longer and more grueling than in past years, you’re not alone. There’s a lot going on right now. Read below for updates:
First, for the newbies: If you’re applying to enroll your kid in K or TK by January 31st, congrats! Hopefully you were able to attend one of our “Lunch and Learn” Zooms on Demystifying the Enrollment Process and found it helpful.
Next, what’s upcoming for SFUSD families: School budgeting season is now upon us. Does your school have a plan? February kicks off the season of school planning and budgeting for the upcoming school year. First, School Site Councils meet and discuss priorities for student achievement. Next, schools receive their budgets from SFUSD Central Office. Finally, sites match those priorities to the funds coming down, and make choices about staffing and other expenditures. Every school has an SSC, and even if you’re not a voting member, you can attend the meetings! Ask at your school to find out when the next one is.
Don’t miss: If you’re new to how school budgets work, or you’d like a refresher, RSVP for our monthly meeting on February 13th at 12pm over Zoom to learn more. Our monthly meeting will focus on School Site Council planning and budgeting, and we’ll be joined by parent SSC leaders and special guest, Superintendent, Dr. Maria Su, to learn more about how SFUSD’s budget cuts will impact our schools next year.
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Tonight’s (1/28) Board of Education meeting is jam-packed with something for everyone: Literacy, Math, and Budget. In other words, this is a good one to pay attention to! If you’re looking for all the details, check out our Cheat Sheet (here), and read below for a summary:
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STUDENT OUTCOMES PROGRESS
Quick Backstory: In 2022, the S.F. Board of Education began following principles of effective governance, including by adopting a Vision, Values, Goals and Guardrails plan with clear and ambitious goals to increase student proficiency in reading, math, and college/career readiness by 2027. Since then, and in big part thanks to SF Parent Coalition and others’ advocacy campaigns, SFUSD adopted new literacy programs in PK-8, began piloting the return of 8th grade algebra, and also began piloting elementary math programs.
LITERACY: SFUSD’s implementation of an evidence-based literacy curriculum this school year is a great start and over time will increase student literacy proficiency at SFUSD. We commend SFUSD on their progress, and we hope parents are appreciating the massive effort by school principals, instructional coaches, and most importantly, classroom teachers, to make this adoption successful. Of five schools visited by external evaluators in November, 84% of classrooms were using the new materials. For an enormous systems-change effort to replace its PK-8 literacy programs, this is a very strong start and positive indicator. Questions we’re still wondering are:
- What is the plan for reading interventions for students not meeting grade level standards and who need additional support? (e.g. Tier 2 and Tier 3 instruction)
- Is SFUSD providing differentiated unit and lesson plans support for the new reading curriculum to support teachers in implementation, given the additional burden on their time of mastering a new program?
- What is SFUSD’s plan to support more focal students to ensure that every student who needs high-quality, high-dosage tutoring can access it?
MATH: SFUSD is piloting new math programs across K-8: iReady Classroom Mathematics and Imagine Learning Illustrative Mathematics in schools, and Desmos Math by Amplify in middle schools. We’ve learned that district-wide implementation of new curricula is on track to begin this upcoming school year.
Though SFUSD is meeting some of its targets for proficiency in math across all student subgroups, SFUSD is falling far short of meeting its goals for certain focal populations. Currently 15% of SFUSD’s African American 3rd grade students are proficient in math, falling short of SFUSD’s interim goal of 24% proficiency. And, 14% of Latino/x 7th graders are proficient in math, falling short of the interim goal of 19% proficiency. Given how off track SFUSD is in supporting these students, we are asking:
- What is being done currently to provide math support and interventions for every student not achieving grade-level milestones, especially focal students? (e.g. Tier 2 and 3 interventions, tutoring)
- How is SFUSD encouraging more students to use math tutoring supports during or after the school day?
- How do we know if these tutoring programs are working well for the students who are using them?
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As part of the Resource Alignment Initiative and in response to SFUSD’s structural budget deficit, in 2023-24 SFUSD began designing a new “staffing model” with updated school budget allocations. The implementation of the staffing model for 2024-25 was confusing in its rollout, inconsistent, and not fully implemented. Superintendent Su promised to review and strategically revise the staffing model for school year 2025-26.
That revised school staffing model is ALSO on tonight’s (1/28) Board of Education meeting agenda, but on first and second glance, it’s still not clear what’s in it. Will schools still have assistant principals, social workers, literacy supports for kids, a full choice of electives? SFUSD’s base funding for schools is not clear. We also do not yet see an analysis of staffing cuts, how those choices were made, or details of how core funding might vary by elementary vs. middle or high school, or by the size of the student population.
We heard from many principals this month that they were not given opportunities for input as SFUSD revised the staffing model. With budgets going out to school sites in February, we’re concerned about the lack of detail and communication about what, specifically, the new school staffing model will look like and how it is different from the model for the current school year. Questions we’re asking:
- What is the baseline of excellence and equity SFUSD will commit to across each and every elementary, middle, and high school?
- What analyses were done to decide the new staffing model, when will the public be able to review those analyses, and when will SFUSD explain any impacts to teaching and learning?
- How will the new staffing model and budget cuts impact SFUSD’s goals in math, literacy, and college/career readiness? How will the cuts impact focal populations, English Learners, and Special Education students?
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So yes, there’s a lot going on right now.
If you’ve never been to a Board of Education meeting before, or if it’s been a while, consider joining us tonight. Email [email protected] to learn more about “BOE & Burritos”, which makes BOE meetings a little more accessible (have a burrito on us!) and fun (being in community together). Public meetings are far less intimidating when in good company with fellow parent advocates.
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Special education compensatory services: Following a recent Board of Education meeting and learning more about how nearly 130 families of kids in special education were impacted by a significant compensatory issue, we reached out to SFUSD to ask how they were resolving it and ensuring that students received the ~$1M of compensatory services. SFUSD shared that, to address gaps in special education services caused by unfilled special education teaching positions:
- SFUSD sent individual letters to affected families, offering options such as matching students with district-paid providers or reimbursing families for securing services themselves.
- Throughout the semester, SFUSD worked with school leaders to minimize disruptions by redistributing caseloads, securing substitutes, and, when necessary, hiring non-public agency teachers.
- SFUSD posted an FAQ on compensatory services on the SFUSD website, developed with input from the Community Advisory Committee for Special Education (CAC) Chair, and partnered with Support for Families to provide informational sessions.
- Their goal is to ensure students receive required services, and if not, families have cost-free options. To improve staffing, SFUSD holds weekly meetings with HR to address recruitment, onboarding, and teacher support, emphasizing the importance of adequate resources and staffing solutions.
SF Parent Coalition continues to follow this situation; please let us know if you’re concerned about your child not receiving their SPED services from SFUSD, or contact the CAC directly.
In light of policies coming from the Trump administration: We recognize the fear and uncertainty that many non-citizen families and families of LGBTQ+ and transgender children are feeling right now. SF Parent Coalition is committed to connecting families to information and resources that will protect their rights during these times. Please reach out if we may help with connections, for example to other schools that are grappling with the same concerns, working to understand SFUSD’s and local policies, and trying to protect students and families.
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Not to miss
As we wrap this newsletter, make sure you don’t miss:
📅 SF Parent Coalition’s February Monthly Meeting on School Site Councils & the Budget (with guests: Parent Leaders and Superintendent Dr. Maria Su) (Thurs 2/13)
📅 Our Parents’ Night Out at ANINA (Thurs 2/20)
📅 Your own School Site Council (SSC) meeting! Don’t know when yours is? Ask your school’s family liaison, school secretary, or PTA leader! Every school has an SSC and they’re required to meet and produce the budget, together with teachers and families.
📅 DCYF’s Summer Resource Fair (Sat 2/22)
The Summer Resource Fair is a free event featuring representatives from 100 summer programs, camps, and services for youth in grades K-8.
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SF Parent Coalition is a 501c3 nonprofit that centers the needs of children and youth in San Francisco public schools by bringing together a diverse network of parents and caregivers to advocate for a thriving, equitable school system.
Join as a member, volunteer, or donate to support our work!
SF Parent Action is our affiliate 501c4 organization that empowers public school parents in San Francisco to advocate for policy change and local candidates who support public school families and students. (www.sfparentaction.org)
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