Chron Series: SF Schools In Crisis

The Chronicle has been running a series of articles about San Francisco schools this week titled Schools At a Crossroads. Nanette Asimov, Heather Knight, and the other contributors to the series do an admirable job. Here is a complete table of the articles in the series:

• Sun.: The education
• Sun.: Intricacies of choosing a school
• Mon.: School assignments and resegregation
• Mon.: Shifting numbers tell story of S.F. schools' makeup
• Tue.: Lots of toddlers, fewer school-age kids
• Wed.: Many reluctantly choose private school
• Wed.: Diversity lacking at many private schools
• Thu.: Dollars don't add up
• Fri.: The politics

The series covers a lot of ground that is familiar to those of us who've been in the trenches over the years. I think they have chosen their topics well and focused their attention on the really important issues, the most salient issues facing San Francisco. The historical decline of school age kids in SF, the changing demographics of the city, the impact of our insane housing market, the unusually high private school enrollment figures, the history of school desegregation in SFUSD... are all given a thorough treatment. After reading through the entire series I'm impressed.

Where the series falls short (so far, the Friday installment is yet to arrive) is in explaining the challenges and dangers ahead. The new enrollment system, more school closures on the horizon, and enormous budget challenges are issues that are sketched in, but in very broad strokes that fail to convey the dangers that lie ahead. They've done a good job of setting the stage and filling us in on the history and background behind these issues—useful work that sets the stage for the challenges ahead. But the real stories will have to be written in the coming months as we choose the new leaders in the district and in the city who will have to face these challenges and find creative solutions for the problems they have so ably described.