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Parents press SFUSD over terminations and alleged racism at SOTA; community demands answers
Summary
A series of public commenters at the board meeting demanded explanations after district terminations of two after-school counselors and raised broader concerns about alleged racialized incidents at the Ruth Asawa School of the Arts; district HR offered to speak with individual complainants after the meeting.
A large group of parents, students and community members told the San Francisco Unified School District Board of Education on Tuesday that the district owes transparency and accountability after the departures of two well-known counselors and amid complaints of racialized treatment at the Ruth Asawa School of the Arts (SOTA).
Tarquin Gaines, who spoke at the podium, said he had been "terminated from my position last school year" and continued, "I was never given a reason." He asked the district for clarity and complained he had not received direct communication despite repeated outreach.
Several former students and parents described Gaines and his colleague Samson Agbona as mentors who ran after-school sports and youth programs and who had deep ties to Claire Lilienthal and other neighborhood sites. "Tarquin and Sampson were probably the most favorited counselors in the whole school," said former student Forrest Page.
Other public commenters addressed a separate matter at the Ruth Asawa School of the Arts, where parents and students said a four-month investigation led to the termination of a vocal-department teacher and, they allege, a hostile aftermath including alleged retaliation and racialized confrontations. "We feel that it's a reflection of systemic conditions of racism in SFUSD," said Linda Parker Pennington, who urged the district to provide resources and a facilitated meeting with the Office of Inclusion and Equity.
District administrators offered immediate, limited responses: the head of HR told the speakers that staff would meet individually and privately after the meeting "to speak to you"; board and superintendent representatives reminded the public that personnel deliberations occur in closed session and that formal processes constrain what can be discussed publicly.
Board members and staff acknowledged the seriousness of the complaints and directed that appropriate staff follow up. Several commissioners noted the need for due process and the district's obligation to both investigate and to support affected students and families.
The board did not take immediate personnel action in public session; multiple staffing decisions and notices that emerged from the meeting's closed session were read out at adjournment.
