- 8th-Grade Algebra – What We’re Hearing from Families: Last week we surveyed families about SFUSD’s potential rollout of 8th-grade Algebra as an elective, and more than 350 parents responded. We shared the results in a letter to the Superintendent and Board of Education highlighting what families are experiencing and what they want to see moving forward. More than 85% of respondents opposed the proposed “double math” approach, with only 20 respondents indicating support for this model. Parents expressed concern that this approach places an excessive academic burden on students and would require many to give up electives such as music, arts, or language classes.
- Budget: SFUSD’s budget returned to the Board of Education agenda this week, where staff reported that revenues are declining while costs continue to rise compared to projections made in December. Lower enrollment and a smaller-than-expected increase in state funding, combined with new labor agreements and other expenses, mean the district still faces significant long-term deficits. An updated Fiscal Stabilization Plan is expected in June. For broader context, Ed100 recently published a helpful explainer on why California school districts like SFUSD are facing such financial pressures: state funding hasn’t kept pace with rising costs, and enrollment declines are reducing revenue for many districts.
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School calendar extension: In a letter to families last Friday, Superintendent Su announced a proposal to add 5 school days to this year’s calendar, extending the last day of school to June 10. The Board of Education will vote on March 24. Graduation dates will remain the same, but many parents still have questions about how the extra days will be used for learning, especially for students who have already completed finals. Families have also raised concerns about summer plans and whether all make-up days must be added this year if many families may not be in town. We’ll share updates after next week’s meeting.
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Middle school schedules: SFUSD has now confirmed that all middle schools currently using seven-period schedules will be able to keep them next year. The district says it will work with school leaders to adjust bell schedules to increase instructional minutes (finally working towards meeting the minimum required by CA education code), especially in English and math. More details on how schools will implement and pay for these changes are expected as adjusted budgets and master schedules for the 2026–27 school year are developed.
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Post-Strike Solutions: Since the SFUSD teacher strike ended, parents have been working hard on next steps towards fixing some of the issues that led to it in the first place, from funding solutions to calls for greater collaboration. SF Parents board chair Jennie Herriot-Hatfield penned an op-ed in The Frisc promoting a collaborative district-union relationship to help solve problems and prevent future strikes. She asks SFUSD to “hit the reset button” on union-district relations, in the hopes that working together in the future can solve problems more quickly and keep students at the center of all decision-making.
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City Funding streams and opportunities: We know some parents have raised questions about the Public Education Enrichment Fund (PEEF). Our understanding is that these restricted funds for arts, library, sports are NOT being targeted for greater flexibility. There might be other city funding streams that could bring more money to SFUSD to afford teacher salaries and benefits, 80%+ of our district’s costs. Parents and teachers are working on these solutions through our workgroup and we continue to meet with district and city leaders to outline paths forward. Stay tuned for more updates on this work.
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Enroll in SFUSD! Lottery decisions will be announced next week, and we are excited to welcome a whole new cohort of students to our district’s public schools. If you want to pick up 20 of our I  Our Public School signs to distribute in your community, and show your pride in our public schools, email Michael at michael@sfparents.org. Now available in Spanish, Chinese, Rainbow, and fun team colors including the Valkyries
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