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SFUSD board hears Indian Education Program report, community urges more funding and curriculum representation
Summary
Parents, students and the Indian Education Parent Advisory Committee presented program successes and asked the San Francisco Unified School District to improve identification of Native students, increase culturally grounded supports and require cultural competency training for staff.
The San Francisco Unified School District board on Jan. 26 heard a formal presentation from its Title VII Indian Education Parent Advisory Committee and extensive public comment urging increased support and recognition for American Indian and Alaska Native students.
Paloma Flores, the Indian Education coordinator, told the board the program now has a permanent location at Sanchez Elementary and runs tutoring, cultural workshops, summer science programming and college-access activities. Flores said the program’s priorities include identifying students who are not on track to graduate and routing that information to the Indian education coordinator for targeted intervention; ensuring Native perspectives and indigenous languages are represented in the curriculum; and sustaining program funding in compliance with state and federal mandates. “The number listed on the PowerPoint is not an accurate number of those who identify as American Indian or Alaska Native who live in San Francisco,” Flores said, adding the true number is “upwards towards 400 plus.”
Parents, tutors and student delegates described the program’s cultural and academic benefits. April McGill, a board member at Thomas Edison Charter Academy, pressed for districtwide cultural competency training so staff will not mistake cultural behavior for behavioral diagnoses. “Cultural competency is so important,” McGill said. Student speakers credited the program with mentorship opportunities and visits—such as a UC Berkeley tour and the Bioneers conference—that broaden college aspirations.
Board members asked staff and Indian Ed leaders for follow-up data. Commissioner [unnamed board member] asked for free/reduced-price lunch and special-education (IEP) rates inside the Native student population and whether the number the district reports accurately captures students who self-identify. Flores and staff committed to assembling more detailed counts and data checks and said the Title VII funding level is tied to the number of valid 506 forms submitted to the district.
Superintendent Carranza and several trustees praised the program’s growth and emphasized the district’s obligation—both legal and moral—to serve this student population. Trustees asked the curriculum and planning departments to work with Indian Ed staff to identify ways to strengthen Native representation in A–G coursework and recommended closer, faster data-sharing so Indian Ed staff can intervene when students fall off track.
Next steps: staff agreed to provide a follow-up report with the requested disaggregated data and to outline how the district will improve identification and supports for Native students.
