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Students, parents and union leaders urge SFUSD board to preserve pathways, arts and planning time
Summary
Students and union leaders told the San Francisco Board of Education not to cut common planning time, arts and pathway programs, saying those changes would hurt internships, integrated projects and supports for English learners and special education students.
Dozens of students, parents and union representatives urged the San Francisco Unified School District board to protect career-technical pathways, common planning time for teachers and arts programs as the district considers staffing reductions.
"These pathways helped me grow and become more confident in speaking with people and also learn how to be a leader in the kitchen and outside," said Amberlynn Martinez, a senior in the entrepreneurship and culinary arts pathway at John O'Connell High School, describing internships, capstone pop-ups and school lunches that provided hands-on learning.
Parents and teachers described how cuts would affect real programs and students. "When you reduce positions, you are reducing reading support for a struggling 3rd grader. You're reducing behavioral support for a student in crisis," said Tianna Tilley, vice president for paraeducators with United Educators of San Francisco, urging the board not to approve workforce reductions.
United Educators of San Francisco executive vice president Frank Lara framed the community mobilization behind recent labor actions and pushed for a vision of enrollment growth rather than budget-driven cuts. "We recently carried out the 1st strike in over 50 years," he said, urging the board to pursue expansion and community-based strategies to increase enrollment and revenue.
Speakers repeatedly asked the board to use reserves and to pursue alternatives to layoffs — including phased adjustments and aggressive revenue advocacy — and asked staff to prioritize supports that help the district close achievement gaps for English learners and socioeconomically disadvantaged students.
The public-comment block preceded staff presentations and a lengthy board discussion about budget projections, enrollment and next steps in the staffing-notice timeline.
