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SFUSD task force and students press board for stronger LCAP supports on placement, IEPs and wellness
Summary
Student leaders and LCAP task force members urged the San Francisco Unified School District Board of Education to adopt recommendations that prioritize student placement equity, full delivery of IEP services, and expanded mental-health and restorative-practice supports; board members asked for follow-up data and a written staff response.
Student leaders and members of the district's Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) task force told the Board of Education on May 28 that stakeholders repeatedly raised three priorities: student placement, resources, and interruptions to services.
Cyrus Quan, the Student Advisory Council's budget advocate, introduced student presenters and described the student-centered engagement process, which used a student voice survey across 17 high schools, outreach fairs and focus groups. Leticia Irving of the African American Parent Advisory Council summarized the task force's finding that many site budgets have reduced purchasing power, forcing difficult trade-offs and staff cuts at the schools with the highest needs.
"We practice equity at the school, but it isn't being practiced on us in any sustainable way," Irving said, summarizing parents' and families' feedback that promising classroom practices are not always scaled or shared with families.
Task force members urged the district to ensure individualized education program (IEP) minutes are delivered and properly recorded, expand social-emotional learning and mental-health supports, and calendar professional development up front for the new Wonders ELD curriculum so training is not an afterthought. Student presenters recommended strengthening direct student consultation on policy decisions and improving access to credit-recovery options.
Board members pressed for more disaggregated data and implementation details. Commissioner Maliga called for finer data for smaller populations such as Samoan and Filipino students; Commissioner Collins asked where stakeholder groups diverged and what unique needs surfaced. Deputy Superintendent Myung Lee acknowledged gaps and said staff would produce a point-by-point response to the task force's recommendations in the coming weeks and return to the CAL Committee of the Whole in June.
The presentation concluded with a set of requested actions the task force asked the district to pursue, including a person-first approach to language, improved onboarding for students who transfer mid-year, and piloting co-teaching in highest-need (tier 3) sites.
Next steps: staff said it will circulate the full findings report and a written response; commissioners asked for additional data on transfers, foster-youth outcomes and IEP compliance to inform budget and implementation decisions.
