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SFUSD board postpones MOU with 'Friends of School of the Arts' pending financial and governance clarifications
Summary
Board members questioned an MOU that would formalize Friends of School of the Arts(FOSOTA) management of Ruth Asawa School of the Arts fundraising and Artist-in-Residence programming. Commissioners requested more transparency about FOSOTA's accounting, staffing funded from private revenue (about $200,000), student involvement, and branding; the board agreed to postpone further action to the Sept. 12 meeting (or the next meeting with a closed session available).
The San Francisco Unified School District board agreed to postpone consideration of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Friends of the Ruth Asawa School of the Arts (FOSOTA) after commissioners raised unresolved questions about transparency, staffing funded by privately raised funds, student involvement, and branding.
Vice President Mendoza McDonald said she was "surprised" to consider another MOU while outstanding questions remained about who oversees revenue and how much is paid to personnel. She noted it was "very unusual" for a nonprofit to own revenue generated by school events and for the district to pay that organization to manage it. The MOU covers administration of the Artist in Residence program and event ticketing and fundraising for Ruth Asawa School of the Arts.
District staff told the board that FOSOTA manages nearly $1,000,000 annually from three primary sources (ticket sales, parent donations and an annual gift campaign) and that staff-related expenses total about a fifth of revenues ("about $200,000" per year) for an executive director, a development consultant and a marketing/PR staffer. Staff said they had reviewed FOSOTA's monthly profit-and-loss statements and itemized revenue and expense lists and concluded accounting practices were "in keeping with the law," but acknowledged community concerns about full transparency.
Commissioners pressed for answers about where non-Artist-in-Residence funds are spent, whether student councils or ASB processes apply, and why schools with similar needs do not have the same arrangement. Chief counsel suggested some employment and contractual questions might require closed-session briefing. Multiple board members and the student delegate supported tabling the item to allow staff and FOSOTA to provide additional documentation and, if needed, a closed-session briefing.
A motion to postpone to the board's Sept. 12 meeting (or the next meeting when a closed session could be scheduled) was made and seconded; the board indicated general consensus to delay action so the district can provide more detail.
District staff said the MOU had been the subject of a year-long review and that the school principal had been working with FOSOTA on branding changes to ensure materials include Ruth Asawa's name. Commissioners requested a fuller breakdown of revenues, staff roles funded by private dollars, and clarification about how student-run and booster/parent funds intersect with FOSOTA's operations.
