Two meetings about the school closure process

Two public meetings have been scheduled about the recent school closures, and what comes next. Each was scheduled independently of one another and announced on the sfschools list. The first one on the calendar is a debriefing with Eric Mar and Mark Sanchez:

Join School Board Commissioners Eric Mar and Mark Sanchez at an informal debriefing and discussion about School Closures on

Thursday, Feb. 2 at 6 p.m.
SFUSD Headquarters,
555 Franklin in Room 106.

The discussion will center on the next steps regarding future planning surrounding the projected decline in enrollment. The discussion will also center on the steps that both the School Board and the Community needs to do separately and together to ensure that the planning is done in a thoughtful process that supports all of our students. The discussion will also look at ways that the School Community may want to work with the BOS and the Mayor.

Followed by a community potluck meeting held at the Coleman Advocates center:

Frustrated with the School Closure Process? Think there is a better way? Join us for a Community Potluck Debriefing on the School Closure Process

Wednesday, February 8, 2006
459 Vienna Street @ Persia
6:00 – 8:00 pm

• look at last year's process
• examine this year's process
• create a better process

Childcare with advance reservation 239-0161 ext. 15
Bring ideas and food to share

Hosted by Parent Advocates for Youth, a program of Coleman Advocates, Chinese for Affirmative Action-Center for Asian Advocacy and Parents for Public Schools of San Francisco.

How to get money for schools

OK, I'm just going to have to reverse my previous opinion.

Let's make all our schools charter schools. Suddenly they'll be showered with state money, just like this one:

State provides funds to build charter school
By Andrew Becker
CONTRA COSTA TIMES
Jan. 28, 2006

Antioch's hopes for new campuses and school modernization were boosted this week when the state announced it has agreed to fund a new charter school and expects to do the same for new elementary and magnet schools.

The State Allocation Board approved funding for the approximately $4 million Antioch Charter Academy, which will be built on Hacienda Way. Construction bidding will open in March, and the school will open classes starting this fall, said Tim Forrester, the district's facilities and financing director.

Not only that, there are piles of Gates Foundation money just looking for a school in need — as long as it's a charter school.

And anyone associated with charter schools is likely to get lots of free, gushing press — I assume this is due to the publicity firepower of the California Charter Schools Association and the charter-pushing right-wing think tanks.

Forget the kvetches. Let's just make all our schools charters, grab the benefits and deal with the drawbacks later.

More on this topic soon, needless to say.

— Caroline

Jenny D.: Teach Kids Science Early

Jenny D. is a blog/blogger of note in the Ed blogging world. She reacts to a report that Congress is planning an initiative to increase the number of US science and engineering grads with a bit of straight shooting: Teach Kids Science Early

But the [Ed] Sector says that legislators will propose a familiar mix of scholarships and loan forgiveness to get college students to major in science, which won't actually solve the problem. What might be better, ES writers say, is preparing kids in K-12 to CHOOSE science majors. Right now, a lot of kids never get the foundation to even consider majoring in engineering. What if all those kids in failing schools became proficient, even efficient, in science?

The referenced Ed Sector newsletter includes this comment:

In fact, the richest untapped source of future talent will be found in our underserved cities and among left-behind poor and minority students who get inadequate preparation at the elementary and secondary level. Getting a job in the sciences means first completing a rigorous secondary math and science curriculum, graduating from high school, getting accepted to a four-year college with a quality degree program, being able to pay for college, and finishing a four-year degree. We lose huge numbers of minority and low-income students at each of these waypoints on the path to a science career.

So the best strategy for boosting America's global economic standing probably isn't giving more students a reason to choose careers in science. It's giving more students the ability to choose careers in science.

Based on my anecdotal observations of my kids' schools, I think they are right about the need to tap the potential in low-income, minority students. But I think there is another dimension that needs attention: gender. I hate to frame it as a gender issue, but the fact is that teaching is still dominated by women, and women have not achieved as well in science and math. I think this shows up in the science teaching in the primary schools. So in addition to nurturing the left brain of low-income and minority students, can we also clone a few thousand more Ms. Frizzles?

2006 Newbery, Caldecott awards

This article from the Christian Science Monitor caught my eye: Some top 2006 awards conferred

In the crowded field of books for children, a single award can make or break a career. So aficionados of children's literature were eager for last week's announcement from the American Library Association which, at their midwinter meeting in San Antonio, announced the winners of some top children's book awards.

So here are the award winning books, with links to the San Francisco Public Library and Amazon included.

The winner of the 2006 Newbery Medal is

• "Criss Cross" by Lynne Rae Perkins SFPL (Amazon)

The 2006 Newbery honor books are

• Whittington, by Alan Armstong SFPL (Amazon)
• "Hitler Youth" : growing up in Hitler's shadow, by Susan Campbell Bartoletti(SFPL) (Amazon)
• "Princess Academy", by Shannon Hale (SFPL) (Amazon)
• "Show way", by Jacqueline Woodson (Amazon)

The Caldecott Medal 2006 winner is

• "The Hello, Goodbye Window" illustrated by Chris Raschka and written by Norton Juster SFPL (Amazon)

All of which will be found in a Scholastic book order soon, I'm sure. I'm not clear if these awards are a good thing or not — I'm sure many good children's books languish while lesser books that get the award thrive. Yet they do make it easy for busy parents (and educators too, I'm sure) to find good books for their kids without having to read reams of children's lit.

School Board Notes 1.24.06

School Board Notes
1.24.06
By Nicole Achs Freeling
GreatSchools.net Correspondent

• Ackerman Bids Farewell, Chan to Take Helm
• Prop H Spending Plan Adopted
• Proposals Address School Closure Process

Ackerman Bids Farewell, Chan To Take Helm

Outgoing Superintendent Arlene Ackerman addressed the public at what will be her last board meeting before leaving the district February 1. Gwen Chan, who was named interim Superintendent, will assume leadership of the district while it undertakes a search process for a new chief executive. Ackerman is headed to New York's Columbia University where she has accepted a professorship teaching school district management.

"Though I have known defeat, I leave knowing I left the district better than I found it," Ackerman said. Commissioner Jill Wynn's voice broke as she thanked Ackerman for her service. "Six years ago, it seemed impossible that we could not only get out of the financial hole we were in, but have a district founded on integrity, honesty and (operating) for the right reasons. Having served through the previous administration, it seems miraculous to me."

Many of the speakers said her departure would create a lack of African-American leadership at the district. "Your leadership style has been called autocratic," Reverend Roland Gordon told Ackerman. "The bottom line is, you got the job done."

Earlier in the day, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed a resolution urging Ackerman to forgo her controversial $375,00 severance package. Several speakers at the BOE meeting took umbrage at the Supervisors' suggestion, saying she had earned the money with the work she had done for the district. NAACP leader Amos Brown pointed out that the departing UC Chancellor received a $350,000 severance and hadn't been asked to give that back.

Prop H Spending Plan Adopted

The board approved the spending plan for next year's Proposition H funds put forth by a Community Advisory Committee, with the caveat that several of the Council's suggestions would be tentative pending salary negotiations with the teachers union and other bargaining units. The board adopted unconditionally a plan for more elementary school librarians and more per-pupil funding for art and sports. It tentatively adopted a plan that would bring over $1 million to high school Site Councils for violence prevention programs, art teachers and additional education support staff. Educational support staff includes nurses, counselors and social workers.

Proposition H, which voters approved in 2004, allocates millions for schools with a third going to free preschools, a third going to SLAM programs, and a third that can be spent essentially at the discretion of the school district. The district will receive $13.4 million in Prop H funds for 2006/07 school year. Of that, $3.3 million will go to maintain existing programs already begun through Prop H. An additional $1.1 was taken from the 06/07 budget for use this year, in order to fill in cuts that had been made to the Weighted Student Formula.

District employee groups have suggested that the discretionary portion of the funds, the so-called third third, could be a possible source of funds for salary and benefit increases. Union employees have not received a cost of living raise in over three years and have threatened to strike if their new contract doesn't include adequate wage increases.

The Prop H funds will be allocated as follows:

Elementary Schools: SLAM Funds (definite):

• Adds 14 librarians for a total of 29
• $10 per student in arts materials, up from $5 this year
• Adds Elementary arts coordinators

Other Educational Support (tentative)

• Maintains an existing program that gives each elementary school a half-time nurse, social worker, learning support consultant or counselor

Middle Schools: SLAM Funds (definite)

• 24 per student in Intramural and Athletics support, up from $20 this year
• $10 per student in arts materials, up from $5 this year
• Provides professional Development for school principals in the arts

Other Educational Support (tentative)

• Continues an existing program to provide peer resources teachers
• Provides for a quarter-time counselor for every 500 students

High Schools: SLAM Funds (definite)

• $25 per student in Intramural and Athletics support, up from $20 this year
• $20 per student in arts materials, up from $5 this year
• Provides professional development for school principals in the arts

Other Educational Support (tentative)

• Continues an existing program to provide peer resources teachers
• Provides for a quarter-time counselor for every 500 students
• Provides $1.3 million in funds to School Site Councils for the following:
  • Violence and truancy prevention
  • Custodians
  • Counselors
  • Librarians
  • Art Teachers
  • AP Test Funds

All Schools: SLAM Funds (definite)

• Continues to fund a physical education content specialist
• Continues a program of centrally-funded athletic support
• Adds a Central Librarian for recruiting and supplies
• Adds an AEMP Manager for recruiting and supplies

In total, the plan allocates $4.6 million for elementary schools, $1.8 million for middle schools and $1.4 million for high schools. Some speakers, including some members of the Prop H council, criticized the plan for allocating too much to elementary schools while "shortchanging" middle and high school students. The disparity is due largely to programs for elementary school librarians and learning support personnel, which together amount to $3.1 million.

Speakers also expressed concern about the possibility of using the Prop H funds for salary increases. Community Advisory Committee members said they had found little or no support from the public for using the funds for this purpose. Teachers union representatives, however, urged the board to keep its options open. "I thank (the committee) for giving of themselves," said Linda Plack, vice president of United Educators of San Francisco. "That is what we do every day."

Proposals Address School Closure Process

With rancor still fresh with regard to the recent round of school closings and mergers, commissioners and community members discussed continuing concerns about the process.

District 5 Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi told the board he had submitted two resolutions to the Board of Supervisors calling on the district to change the process. One called for the creation of a blue ribbon task force charged with developing both short- and long-range plans for dealing with school consolidation. The task force would include representatives from the Mayor's office, the Board of Supervisors and the Board of Education. The other resolution urged the BOE to revisit its decision to merge John Swett into John Muir. He criticized the decision as "myopic," saying John Swett was 81 percent occupied, had decent test scores and was highly diverse.

In response to criticism that public input on school closure decisions was inadequate, Commissioners Mark Sanchez, Norman Yee and Sarah Lipson submitted a resolution to create a Community Advisory Council that would help craft a long-term plan for addressing enrollment declines. The Committee would gather public input regarding school closings and mergers, while working to address the problem of under-enrollment at some schools and over-enrollment at others. The Council would consult with PTAs and School Site Councils at potentially affected schools and study the placement of enrichment and community programs within the district. Speakers cheered the proposal and the move toward more community involvement. As it was a first reading, no action was taken on the proposal.

Email comments to sfschoolnotes@greatschools.net

SF Schools Map Updated

The SF Schools information Map has been updated based on the recent school closures, mergers, and moves. The new version of the map allows you to see the current year school information, next year's realignment, and indications of schools that are changing.

I have some ideas and ambitions for another map showing more clearly what is changing between this year and next. We'll see if I get around to that. For now, the main map page allows you to flip between the current year school roster and next year's realigned roster. As always, feel free to contact me with ideas, comments, or even bug reports!

Update on UESF negotiations

Hot on the heels of the school closure "finale" comes this volley from UESF. As painful as the school closure process has been, the savings ultimately fell short of expectations, making the upcoming teacher contract negotiations all the more difficult.

I hate to say it, but if you thought the school closure decisions were difficult, hang onto your seat. The ride is about to get really rocky.

From a UESF email we have:

Impasse likely if no additional movement from district

On January 17th, the union met with district negotiators and received their response to our January 5th compensation proposal. The district made some movement, raising their offer on the table to 7%. However, this offer included an unfavorable implementation structure that is unacceptable to UESF negotiators.

Furthermore, the district has refused to remove several damaging concessions that they have put on the table ­ including stripping the power of Union Building Committees.

If further movement is not forthcoming at the next negotiating session, the negotiations may reach impasse. As a sign of good faith, we have restructured our salary compensation package to the following:

• 3% retroactive to July 1, 2005
• 3% July 1, 2006
• 4% January 1, 2007
• $500 for an advanced degree;
• $400 in acknowledgement of Professional Development growth (certificated)
• $200 in acknowledgement of Professional Development growth (classified)
• Increment "E" for schedules currently lacking it
• A COLA-based formula to trigger additional salary negotiations in 06-07

The Board of Education will formally receive this counter proposal on compensation on Tuesday, January 24th. The Board's response will determine the union's next steps. A tentative meeting the morning of February 2nd was put on the calendar.

PLEASE PRINT, COPY, POST AND SHARE WITH UESF COLLEAGUES WHO ARE NOT RECEIVING UNION EMAILS.

UNITED EDUCATORS OF SAN FRANCISCO
2310 Mason Street
San Francisco, CA 94133
415.956.8373

From today's Chron comes this word on the contract negotiations: Budget Ax To Fall Again

The district is offering teachers a 7 percent raise over 18 months, while the union's offer is 10 percent over two years plus a 1 percent, onetime bonus.

The teachers haven't had a raise in 3 1/2 years.

While the two offers sound fairly close, they would have very different financial outcomes for the school district. The district's proposal would mean cutting an additional $2 million for next year, while the union's proposal would mean cutting an additional $18.5 million next year, according to Myong Leigh, the district's chief of policy and planning.

Dennis Kelly, president of the teachers' union, said Friday he doesn't think teachers will agree to a raise of less than 10 percent.

More reports on the School Closure Meeting

Kim Knox once again provides an excellent report, including a record of each vote, in her column on LeftInSf: School Closures-The Real Story

In the Examiner, Bonnie Elsinger reports: Board of Ed votes to close three schools

Although the San Francisco school board voted to spare some schools from closure, several schools were merged and three were closed late Thursday to help balance a budget that continues to lose revenue due to declining enrollment.

Beyond Chron's Schoot Beat column reports on the meeting and offers an excellent look ahead: Closing Schools Again

It’s time to examine what went wrong over the last many years in our planning and decision making processes at both the level of the school board and the administration. This is not a moment to point fingers, but to look at what happened, what didn’t happen and what we need to do to move forward constructively. It’s time to tap into our pool of principals and teachers and have some honest and creative dialogue with the people who know our schools the best about how to combine programs and share space. It’s time for us to find more effective ways to work with City to get the many kinds of support our schools need and deserve.

Finally, Teaching in the 408 makes the connnection between closing schools and opening ever-more charters: Charters and School Closures

This is one of the logical results of combining 1) under-enrolled urban school districts and 2) a lemming-like rush to institute school 'choice' by opening as many charter schools as fast as you possibly can.

GreatSchools.net: Board Closes Some Schools, Spares Many

1.19.06
By Nicole Achs Freeling
GreatSchools.net Correspondent

The School Board voted to close three schools, relocate five and merge two into existing programs, but spared the majority of the 26 institutions that had been proposed for consolidation.

The board's actions included relocating Newcomer High School, currently in Pacific Heights, to the current site of Edison Charter Academy in the Mission; merging John Swett into John Muir and JBBP West into Rosa Parks; and closing Enola D. Maxwell Middle, Luther Burbank Middle and Cabrillo Elementary schools as of the coming school year.

The board's complete actions were as follows:

Closed

• Enola Maxwell Middle School
• Luther Burbank Middle School
• Cabrillo Elementary

Merged

• John Swett into John Muir
• JBBP West into Rosa Parks

Relocated

• Newcomer High School, to 3531 22nd Street (current site of Edison Charter Academy)
• Edison Charter Academy, to a site as yet to be determined
• International Student Academy to current Enola Maxwell site
• Downtown High School to 689 Vermont Street, current ISA site
• Aim High to 325 LaGrande Ave., current Luther Burbank site

Spared any change

• New Traditions Elementary
• Grattan Elementary
• Daniel Webster Elementary
• Starr King Elementary
• Willie Brown Elementary
• Gloria R. Davis Elementary
• County Community programs
• Peabody Elementary School
• Jose Ortega Elementary
• Sheridan Elementary
• McKinley Elementary
• Malcolm X Elementary

The meeting was packed with frustrated, tense parents and community members. Angry outbursts and booing from the audience brought the meeting to a halt on several occasions. Board decisions to remove schools from the list met with whoops of joy; decisions to close or merge schools were greeted with shouts, jeers and tears.

Board members estimated the actions it took tonight would save SFUSD around $2 million annually. Additionally, City College has offered the district a one-time payment of $4 million for the long-term lease on the space currently occupied by Downtown High School, which will move to the site of International Student Academy. City College has also offered $700,000 a year for use of the current Newcomer site while it renovates its John Adams campus.

The district expects to lose $5 million in revenue next year due to declining enrollment, which fell 1,000 this year. It's total budget shortfall is projected to be as high as $12 million, not accounting for any savings to be had from decisions the board made Thursday night.

Students in closed schools will be given top priority in next week's Round 1 enrollment process, while students in merged schools will be given second-highest priority. All affected students will be considered before those in the general population.

The Board rejected by six to two a proposal to halt the consolidation process and take an advance of Proposition H funds from the City. Board of Supervisors representative Ross Mirkarimi proposed advancing the district up to $5.3 million in Proposition H funds contingent on the district developing a long-range plan to reverse declining enrollment and engage in a "more well-measured approach" to closing schools that would solicit extensive community input. Mirkarimi called the proposal before the board Thursday a "rush job (that) excludes communities wholesale."

Board Members Eric Mar and Mark Sanchez supporting halting the process, which they said would disproportionately impact African- Americans and residents of the Western Addition and Bayview-Hunters Point. Other members, however, said that halting the process now would only mean a greater number of consolidations next year. They also said using Prop. H funds – intended largely for arts, libraries, sports and music programs – could hurt the district's credibility with voters at a time when it is hoping to launch bond measures and a parcel tax. Commissioner Dan Kelly observed that the board was already under intense pressure to use some of the discretionary funds available under Prop. 39 for salary increases. The teacher's union, currently in negotiations with the district for a new contract, has asked for a 12 percent increase, and has said it will consider a strike if it receives less than 4 percent. Teachers have not received cost-of-living raises in three years.

Public testimony before the meeting indicated strong opposition to the process the board used to develop its candidates for consolidation. Speakers said the process had taken place over too short a time, with too little community input and with too great an impact on low-income neighborhoods and communities of color. "One minute to stand before you and state your case is not community input," one speaker commented.

As it made its decision, the board then considered each proposed merger, closure or relocation individually. The final resolution represented a compromise in which few if any board members had supported every aspect of the proposal.

The closest vote, by four to three, was whether to move Newcomer from Pacific Heights to the Mission, to the current site of Edison Charter Academy. Families at both Newcomer and Edison have voiced strong opposition to the move. However, the district stands to gain $700,000 a year in lease revenues from City College, funds which were already being considered in the district's budget projections, according to Commissioner Jill Wynns. Eddie Chin, Eric Mar and Mark Sanchez voted against the relocation.

About the decision to move JBBP West to Rosa Parks, supporters spoke of the need of JBBP to have a larger facility and the advantage of locating it close to Japantown. Opponents – Sarah Lipson and Eric Mar – said they were concerned about possible segregation within the school and the district's ability to successfully integrate disparate programs.

The decision to merge John Swett into John Muir was strongly opposed by Sanchez, who said that John Swett was at 81 percent capacity if one didn't count the bungalows which are used not as classroom but art workshop space. "Closing John Swett and moving it to a school that is struggling mightily is not the answer," Sanchez said. Mar and Lipson also voted not to merge the schools. Supporters said the merger could create a program that would incorporate the best each school had to offer.

The decision not to make any changes at Daniel Webster and Starr King came partly as a result of an extensive and well-organized drive by Potrero Hill residents, many of them white, middle class families with small children who have pledged to enroll in their neighborhood schools. The effort involved a well-organized campaign including T-shirt sales, development of Web sites and e-mail lists, glossy fliers and extensive presentations to the Board.

A motion by Norman Yee to merge Jose Ortega and Sheridan elementaries was not seconded; instead, the board voted unanimously to retain both schools in what is seen as an under-served part of the city with a growing number of working-class families. Board members expressed the need to enrich programs at the schools if they are to remain off the merger list next year. They asked staff and members of the schools to explore options including creating a K-8 program, adding a pre-K, and adding language and arts programs.

The decision not to merge Willie Brown and Gloria R. Davis was made largely based on the schools' status as Dream Schools. "These two schools are part of a reform effort that's been very controversial and I think we have to give them the opportunity to have this year and next to develop without the disruption of relocation," Dan Kelly said.

Email comments to sfschoolnotes@greatschools.net

First reports from School Closure Meeting

The Chron is the first to report: Many S.F. schools closed or merged

San Francisco's Board of Education Thursday night voted to close, merge and relocate more than a dozen public schools to save some of the millions that the district says it lost this year due to declining enrollment.

The following schools are affected:

• Enola Maxwell closed
• Luther Burbank closed
• Cabrillo closed
• JBBP West merged into Rosa Parks
• John Swett merged into John Miur
• ISA moved to Enola Maxwell
• Aim High moved to Luther Burbank
• Downtown High School moved to ISA
• Center for Independent Studies moved to JBBP West
• Newcomer moved to Edison.
• Edison Charter relocated to TBD
• Leadership moved to TBD

These schools are spared:

• Peabody, Malcolm X, McKinley, Ortega, Rosa Parks and Sheridan will not be closed
• New Traditions and Grattan will not be merged
• Willie Brown will not be relocated
• The county programsz will not be relocated
• Starr King and Daniel Webster will not be merged

More to come, I'm sure.

Examiner Op-ed: S.F. schools valued, but need help

Lorraine Woodruff-Long, the executive director of SF PPS, wrote this excellent op-ed for the Examiner: S.F. schools valued, but need help

If there is one thing the recent strife over school closures proves it is that public schools matter to San Franciscans. This was demonstrated last week by the thousands of parents protesting school closures. Speaker after speaker shared stories about hard-working teachers, parents, and entire communities coming together to help students achieve. They told of the positive impact schools have on children, on neighborhood connections and, for many, on their family’s ability to remain in San Francisco.

These testimonials — and the facts — dispel the myth that our schools are failing. San Francisco is the highest-achieving urban school district in the state. We have many unique school communities and programs that are attracting and keeping families in our city. Yes, we have lots of work to do: Most importantly, the achievement gap between the performance of African-American students and their Asian and Caucasian counterparts is significant and needs to be vigorously and creatively addressed. However, this is successfully happening in numerous schools across our district. There are successes to be replicated.

continue reading...

That is good news indeed — and not surprising to many of us who send our kids to public schools.

Contrary to the opinions of the oft-heard armchair critics of the school system, the major problems are not the teachers’ union, not the school board, not a top-heavy administration, not uninvolved parents and certainly not the kids, who every day make us all proud. The major underlying problem is that California is 45th in the nation when it comes to per-pupil spending, when our high cost of living is factored in. And the formulas that control SFUSD revenues not only fail to take into account our extraordinary cost of living and aging facilities, but are structurally unfair to our city. Our governor’s recent budget additions are welcome, but still don’t come close to giving public education what is needed to prepare all California children for the future.

Let’s take this opportunity to band together to take constructive steps in San Francisco.

I appeal to the local business community to step up its support through the donation of goods, services and cash, by supporting employee volunteerism and by helping parents get information about and enroll their children in our schools.

I appeal to our community organizations and motivated neighbors to work with us as we continue to enrich our offerings to our students. Let’s work together to make the district more accessible to agencies wishing to help.

I appeal to our city officials to continue to provide additional funding for our public schools, and to coordinate city, state and federal resources for nonacademic needs such as health and social services so that our principals and teachers need only focus their resources and energy on education.

I appeal to my fellow parents: Try the public schools. Talk to public school parents. Come join us in helping create the best school system in the nation. Your child will not only have the benefit of dedicated school personnel, but your school has San Francisco at its doorstep. Students learn not just from the classroom, but from our wonderful museums, arts groups, community based organizations, dedicated and creative volunteers, and partnerships with our outstanding educational institutions. Our family stayed, and we are happy we made the choice to keep San Francisco our home.

Most importantly, let’s aim our collective frustration — so often misguided at the local level — at the state’s woefully inadequate funding and finance structure for public education, the hope of our future.

Summary of School Mergers presentation

The following text was taken from the School Mergers presentation (.17MB PDF) to the Board of Education during the Committee of the Whole meeting on December 6, 2005

The report has been greatly condensed with all tables and graphics removed. It is being offered in this shortened form for those readers who cannot access large PDF documents. For the information included below, I have attempted to preserve the original text intact. For the complete report please follow the link to the full document.

continue reading...

School & Program Consolidations

Board of Education
Committee of the Whole Meeting
December 6, 2005

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Fiscal Context

• Preliminary projections for FY 2006-07 reflect a netincrease in resources of $0.5 million, excludingcollective bargaining costs
• SEIU agreement will cost $1.9 million
• Wage increases for all other employees will cost:
• 1% -$3.4 m (requiring cuts of $4.8 million)
• 2% -$6.8 m (requiring cuts of $8.2 million)
• 3% -$10.2 m (requiring cuts of $11.6 million)
• 4% -$13.6 m (requiring cuts of $15.0 million)
• SFUSD must consider school closures as well as other expenditure priorities to develop a balanced budget

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Criteria for School Mergers

1. Increase utilization and enrollment capacity of school buildings
   School’s enrollment capacity compared to enrollment size of proposed schools
2. Complementary educational programs
   "Magnet" programs (e.g. arts, language focus)
   Viability of strands of programs within schools (e.g. language programs)
3. Diversity of current school populations
   Consideration of obligations under Desegregation Consent Decree
4. Long-term financial savings
   Preliminary assessment of savings from closure of buildings, reduction of personnel, and opportunities for potential revenue
5. Surrounding school configurations
   Consideration of the growth in charter or other schools in the area to project future enrollment trends
6. Accessibility of newly merged schools
   Facilities should be accessible to all students, including those withmobility or vision impairments
   Consideration of scheduled modernization through the Prop A Bond
7. Geography
   Proposed merger schools are within close proximity to oneanother
8. Academic Performance
   Eligibility of merged school for state and federal sanctions
9. Co-location of other programs at building sites
   Community uses of buildings
10. Program Placement Committee Recommendations

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Other Considerations

• Prop 39 Requirement
• The District must make formal offers to charter schools to provide teaching and non-teaching station space for the exclusive use of the charter or to be shared with District-operated programs. The following charter schools require placement:
• Leadership High School – Has deferred placement for two years
• Currently located in non-Field acted building next to James Denman MS
• Edison State Charter – Charter is currently up for renewal
• Currently has full K-6 and one 7th grade classrooms, but seeking to expand into a full K-8 program (additional 7th and two 8th grade classrooms)
• Envisions Charter – Looking for a site to build w/state grant

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Other Considerations

• Other Property Relocation Needs
• Downtown Continuation High School
• Need for expanded capacity at continuation high schools
• Center for Independent Studies
• Newer facilities required
• County Programs
• Community Scholars of Success (CSOS)
• Current site no longer available
• Real Alternative Program (RAP)/Hilltop
• Seeking expansion of pregnant minors program
• Phoenix High School
• Needs improved learning environment

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Other Considerations

• Issues discussed in Buildings and Grounds Committeemeeting
• Impact of bungalows on capacity utilization data
• John Swett – one bungalow for arts programming
• Jose Ortega – two bungalows (one for after-school program and one unused)
• New Traditions – one bungalow for grant-funded arts program
• Impact of Special Ed classes on capacity utilization data
• Continued support for newcomer students
• Location and growing populations of small schools
• Geography location and impact to African American and Latino student populations
• Relocation of School of the Arts in order to generate lease revenue
• Addition of George Peabody ES to the merger list

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Potential Mergers

• Daniel Webster and Starr King at Starr King site
• School named Starr King Elementary School (K-5)
• Strong programmatic alignment with multiple language programs (Spanish bilingual, Mandarin immersion and ELD at Starr King)
• Daniel Webster’s Cantonese bilingual program will continue to be supported at Starr King
• Decrease the percentage of special needs students at Starr King
• Impact to incoming Daniel Webster student: Gr K (46),Gr 1 (46), Gr 2 (45), Gr 3 (44), Gr 4 (44), total 225 students
• Webster is PI school, Starr King has exited PI
• Long-term implications:
• As population of Mission Bay grows, there is limited choice for elementary schools in the area

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Potential Mergers

• John Swett and John Muir at John Muir site
• School named John Muir Elementary School (K-5)
• Potential magnet program (arts, primary IB program) depending on cost
• Impact to incoming John Swett students: Gr K (38),Gr 1 (36), Gr 2 (42), Gr 3 (35), Gr 4 (30), total 181 students
• Both are PI schools
• Other issues:
• No dedicated rooms for Beacon after-school program currently at John Muir

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Potential Mergers

• ISA and Enola Maxwell at Enola Maxwell site
• School named Enola Maxwell Secondary School (6-12)
• Potential magnet program (arts, international studies, or IB program) depending on cost
• Filipino Enrichment Program placed here as well
• Impact to incoming ISA students: Gr 9 (162),Gr 10 (123), Gr 11 (98), total 383 students
• Both are PI schools
• Other issues:
• Impact on DAER

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Potential Mergers

• JBBP West and Cabrillo at Cabrillo site
• School named Cabrillo Elementary School (K-5)
• Impact to JBBP West students: total 194 students in Gr K-5
  –or –
• JBBP West and Rosa Parks at Rosa Parks site
• School named Rosa Parks Elementary School (K-5)
• Greater distance from current site to Rosa Parks than to Cabrillo, but closer proximity to Japantown
• Rosa Parks could potentially lose Title I status

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Potential Mergers

• New Traditions and Grattan at Grattan site
• School named Grattan Elementary School (K-5)
• Due to Grattan’s high Special Ed population, as well as capacity constraints, New Tradition’s two SDC classes will be placed at another site
• Impact to incoming New Traditions students: Gr K (42),Gr 1 (20), Gr 2 (19), Gr 3 (28), Gr 4 (33), Total 142 students
• Other issues:
• Although George Peabody has very similar numbers to New Traditions (currently 177 students with capacity for 198), nearby schools are either near or over capacity (Claire Lilienthal, Frank McCoppin and Sutro)

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Potential Relocations

• Newcomer School and Everett and Francisco newcomer programs relocated to current Edison site
• School named Newcomer Education Center or NEC (6-12)
• Current enrollments
• Newcomer – 303 students
• Everett Newcomer – 71 students (Spanish)
• Francisco Newcomer 122 students (predominantly Cantonese/Chinese)
• Total: 496 students (capacity at Edison site is 650 students assuming 26 classrooms @ 25 students/classroom)
• Need analysis of potential uses and financial value of Newcomer’s current Pacific Heights campus
• Only Newcomer School relocated to current Edison site
• Also named Newcomer Education Center or NEC (6-12)

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Potential Relocations

• Aim High and June Jordan at Luther Burbank site and close Luther Burbank Middle School
• Schools keep their respective names
• Two small schools on one campus with excess capacity to accommodate growth
• Aim High will eventually have to move from DeAvila, because the building’s capacity (490) cannot support Aim High’s projected growth into 6-12 grade program
• Impact to Aim High students: Gr 6 (69),Gr 7 (82), Gr 8 (82), total 233 students
• Impact to Luther Burbank students: Gr 6 (56),Gr 7 (86), total 142 students
• Schools to choose from include Aim High, James Denman and Visitacion Valley

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Potential Relocations

• Willie Brown and Gloria R. Davis at Gloria R. Davis site
• Schools keep their respective names
• Willie Brown continues as Grades 4-6 and Gloria R. Davis becomes Grades 7-8
• Enables continued support for Dream Schools while saving the costs of operating the Willie Brown site
• Other resources may be shared (AP, IRF, nurse, site support substitute, parent liaison, etc.)
• Impact at Willie Brown if school moves: Gr 4 (48),Gr 5 (44), Gr 6 (74), Total 166 students
• Other issues:
• Would it increase segregation? Need to examine impact of combining two late stage PI schools

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Summary of School & Program Consolidations

The following text was taken from the School consolidations presentation (12MB PDF) to the Board of Education during the general meeting on December 13, 2005. Much of the tabular and graphic content of that document was removed, resulting in the following shortened text.

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San Francisco Unified School District

School & Program Consolidations

Board of Education Meeting
Tuesday, December 13, 2005

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Key Considerations: Daniel Webster & Starr King @ Starr King

• Starr King can provide Cantonese bilingual program for current students Daniel Webster, but not incoming students (Mandarin immersion and Spanish bilingual programs are available)
• Daniel Webster students are concentrated in the Mission, Potrero Hill, and Bayview/Hunters Point
• Starr King potentially receiving 17 students from Treasure Island in January 2006

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Key Considerations: John Swett & John Muir @ John Muir

• Adequate building capacity to accommodate both schools
• Access to K-5 Spanish bilingual program at John Muir
• John Swett has 8 students who would be affected by school closures two year in a row

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Key Considerations: John Swett & Rosa Parks @ Rosa Parks

• Adequate building capacity to accommodate both schools
• $4.7 Prop A bond construction has started at Rosa Parks
• Rosa Parks has large pre-K class and CDC program totaling 186children who would need accommodations
• John Swett is closer to Rosa Parks (6 blocks) than to John Muir (10 blocks)

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Key Considerations: ISA & Enola Maxwell @ Enola Maxwell

• Building capacity can accommodate both schools as well as the addition of the Filipino Enrichment Program

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Key Considerations: JBBP West & Cabrillo @ Cabrillo

• Cabrillo closure would result in the relocation of two SDC classes for the second year in a row
• A large majority of Cabrillo’s students live in the Richmond district within a mile of the school, and other schools in Richmond district are near or over capacity
• Cabrillo’s API decreased from 766 to 751

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Key Considerations: JBBP West & Rosa Parks @ Rosa Parks

• Building capacity can accommodate both schools
• Rosa Parks could lose Title I funding due to influx of students from JBBP West, and potential program segregation issues are a concern
• Rosa Parks closure would result in 18 students from Golden Gate ES being affected by school closures two consecutive years

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Key Considerations: New Traditions & Grattan @ Grattan

• New Traditions
• Increased enrollment this year from 158 to 169 with larger Kindergarten class and 7 students from William DeAvila and Golden Gate (4 of whom would be affected by a second year of closures)
• New Traditions has two SDC classes that would need to be relocated
• New Traditions API increased from 677 to 721

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Key Considerations: Newcomer Education Center @ Edison Site

• Newcomer School students are scattered throughout the city with small concentrations near Chinatown, the Mission, and Excelsior districts
• The proposed site (22nd Street and Dolores) provides a central location to students easily accessible by Muni (J line is one block away) and Bart (24th Street station is five blocks away)

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Key Considerations: Aim High & June Jordan @ Luther Burbank

• Luther Burbank site can accommodate both Aim High and June Jordan once the schools reach full enrollment
• Aim High originally wanted to be placed in the south/east part of the city, but no sites were available
• Although AIM High students live throughout the city, there are concentrations of students in the Western Addition, Hayes Valley, and Inner Mission neighborhoods

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Key Considerations: Luther Burbank

• Continued decline in enrollment and number of requests
• API decreased from 587 to 585 (state rank 2:1)
• Has two SDC classes (one LD and one SLI) that would be displaced
• Impacted students could choose from several nearby schools, including Aim High, James Denman, Martin Luther King, and Visitacion Valley

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Key Considerations: Willie L. Brown & Gloria R. Davis @ Gloria R. Davis

• Two separate schools at Gloria R. Davis site
• Willie Brown will continue to be grades 4-6 and Gloria R. Davis will reconfigure to grades 7-8

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Key Considerations: Remaining Schools on Closure List

• Malcolm X
  • Continued decline in enrollment and number of requests
  • Improved API from 553 to 620; state rank remained the same 1:1
  • District and UESF staff currently planning redesign of school
  • McKinley
  • Increased enrollment from 201 to 241 this year (includes 18 students from William DeAvila and Golden Gate)
  • Improved API from 717 to 771
  • Has one pre-K and 2 SDC classes

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Key Considerations: Remaining Schools on Closure List

• Jose Ortega and Sheridan
  • Jose Ortega
  • Has K-3 Cantonese bilingual program and has expressed strong interest in adding Mandarin immersion program next year
  • Improved API from 711 to 732 (state rank from 4:3 to 5:5)
  • Sheridan
  • Improved API from 710 to 785 (state rank from 2:1 to 5:6)
  • Oceanview, Merced, and Ingleside (OMI) are fastest growing neighborhoods in the District
• 18 Percent of SFUSD students reside in zip codes 94132 (Ortega) and 94112 (Sheridan) based on October 2005 CBEDS
• Jose Ortega, Sheridan and Dianne Feinstein will be the only three schools in the area next year

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Key Considerations: George Peabody

• Does not meet original criteria for closure
• Limited merger possibilities
• Large concentration of Peabody students live in the InnerRichmond near the school and nearby schools (Frank McCoppin, Sutro, Argonne and Alamo) are near or over capacity
• Lafayette and Cabrillo (Outer Richmond) have capacity, but Peabody has three SDC classes (two SLI and one LD) that wouldrequire placement
• Improved API from 753 to 796

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Key Considerations: School of the Arts

• Currently has 752 students, including AAS
• AAS projected to expand to grades 9-12 (320 students)
• With an expected 900-1000 students, no vacant sites able to accommodate future growth

This week's education articles

Here's another smorgasbord of education articles from the past week. Enjoy!

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Parents, teachers fight for schools Chron, 1/13/06

Several hundred angry parents, students, teachers and principals crowded into a middle school auditorium in San Francisco on Thursday night to demand that their schools stay open.

A Year At Malcolm X: Second Chance at Success Chron, 1/12/06

The San Francisco Board of Education plans to decide tonight whether Malcolm X Academy in the Hunters Point neighborhood will be open to see its 50th birthday next year -- or whether this year will be its last.

School closures opposed Chron, 1/12/06

Scores of parents and students joined city officials on the steps of City Hall on Wednesday afternoon to demand an immediate halt to school closures in the San Francisco Unified School District.

The Governor’S Budget: A Closer Look At What The Numbers Mean, K-12 Schools Chron, 1/11/06

PROPOSAL: The governor would spend $39.9 billion from the general fund for K-12 education next year, up from $36.3 billion this year. This translates to $8,052 per pupil for classroom spending, up from $7,248.

School district extends application deadline for next year Examiner, 1/9/06

The San Francisco Unified School District is giving families two more weeks to send in their school choice applications for next year, in response to concerns that an expected decision on school closures this Thursday would not give them enough time to make an informed choice by the deadline.

Supervisors urge board to delay school closures Examiner, 1/12/06

Members of the Board of Supervisors demanded Wednesday that San Francisco’s school board postpone decisions scheduled for tonight that could close and merge some district schools.

Mayor hints at regrets over role in sparing Bayview school Examiner, 1/11/06

As decisions again loom over whether to close public schools, Mayor Gavin Newsom admitted he wasn’t sure he did the right thing last year by advocating saving one school — Malcolm X Elementary — over others.

Dialogue stalls between supes, school board Examiner, 1/9/06

As some members of the Board of Supervisors publicly criticize San Francisco’s school board for a lack of input into school closure decisions, a joint committee made up of supervisors and school board members that was created to build communication has not met since the beginning of the school year.

S.F. Should Hire Asian School Czar AsianWeek, 1/5/06

San Francisco Unified School District Superintendent Arlene Ackerman’s departure in 2006 leaves the S.F. Board of Education with the opportunity to hire its first Asian Pacific American schools chief.

School closings: another approach Bay Guardian, 1/11/06 By Lisa Schiff!

Great things are happening in the San Francisco public schools, but the current school-closure process is putting them at risk.

SFUSD gets an 'A' in gentrification SF Bay View, 1/11/06

On the eve of Martin Luther King Day and two weeks before Black History Month begins, the School Board of the city known as "America's most progressive" is likely to vote against Rosa Parks, Malcolm X, June Jordan, Enola Maxwell, Gloria R. Davis and even Willie Brown - closing nearly all the schools in San Francisco named for Black luminaries and several other schools located in Black neighborhoods.

Preschool funding plan on ballot SJ Merc, 1/13/06

Friends and foes of Rob Reiner's ``Preschool for All'' initiative got word from the secretary of state's office late Thursday afternoon that the initiative has qualified for the June 2006 ballot. The measure proposes taxing the state's wealthiest residents to provide a year of free preschool to California 4-year-olds.

District awards raises to school support staff SJ Merc, 1/11/06. Nice to see how the other half lives... Compare and contract with out SEIU negotiations.

For at least one local school district, it's a sign that the good times are nearly back. Support staff in Palo Alto schools won a 1 percent raise Tuesday evening, an increase almost certain to multiply soon.

Making an impact

30% - Teachers who quit the profession within four years
50% - Teachers who quit the profession within five years

SJ Merc, 1/10/06

Charter schools OK'd; districts have no say

This is really alarming. The state BOE has approved 10 new charters run by this chain, without approval of local school boards. The closest is in San Mateo County.

(Of course these schools have attracted "international recognition" because of the massive PR firepower of the Bush Administration-connected right-wing think tanks that are pushing them, and the gullible, unquestioning compliance of the press.)

Even charter school advocates acknowledge that new charters may force districts (which, again, have no say over whether these charters pop up in their district) to close schools. Their attitude is "tough beans for those losers."

State OKs High Tech charters
San Diego Union-Tribune
By Helen Gao
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
January 13, 2006

Leaders of the High Tech High chain of charter schools that have attracted international recognition received state approval yesterday to open 10 more campuses in California, without having to get permission from local school boards.

Six of the schools are proposed for San Diego County.

The decision by the state Board of Education represented a major victory for charter school supporters, who complain that some local boards are biased against them because they compete for students with district-run schools.

San Diego-based High Tech is the first charter management organization in the state to be granted the right to expand in such a way.

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Charters are public schools operated by parents, educators and community leaders. Typically, they must obtain approval of their charters, or education plans, from local school boards to open and are overseen by school districts.

Designated yesterday as a "statewide benefit charter school," High Tech can have its new schools approved administratively by Sacramento.

It has proposed opening the schools in the next five years in poor and low-achieving areas of Escondido (two schools), central San Diego, Chula Vista, East County, National City, Hesperia in San Bernardino County (two schools), San Mateo County and San Jose.

"We are going to be able to have rapid growth of the high-quality charter schools that are doing very unique programs with statewide benefits up and down the state," said Caprice Young, president and chief executive officer of the California Charter Schools Association.

Some see a downside.

Stephanie Farland, a senior policy consultant with the California School Boards Association, is worried that the lack of local school board approval would lead to a lack of local accountability.

"The local community where these charter schools will locate will have no local body to turn to if issues arise with the charter school," she said.

Jed Wallace, chief operating officer for High Tech, said the charter schools will build close ties with their community. In San Diego, High Tech has worked with the San Diego Unified School District to improve secondary education, he said.

Each new High Tech charter school would have its own advisory board to handle local matters, Wallace added, and each will also develop a local theme. But all High Tech charter schools would be based on the model developed at The Gary & Jerri-Ann Jacobs High Tech High.

High Tech opened its first campus, the Jacobs school, in 2000.

Since then, five more High Tech high schools, middle schools and one elementary school have been added at the former Naval Training Center in Point Loma. A seventh campus is in Redwood City.

Students learn through projects, internships and interactions with professionals, rather than relying heavily on textbooks. The schools are kept small to promote close working relationships between adults and students.

A number of schools across the country have adopted the High Tech model, although they don't all carry its name. School officials from China, Spain, the United Kingdom and elsewhere have studied the model.

To open the 10 campuses, High Tech must show success with the first two in Chula Vista and Escondido in the next two years.

These schools have to achieve certain rankings on the California Academic Performance Index, which is based on standardized test scores. Their student bodies are to be composed of at least 40 percent disadvantaged students.

Wallace said High Tech needs the statewide benefit charter school designation for several reasons. Among them, it would improve its chances of obtaining federal tax credits to build new schools in low-income areas and would allow it to expand its teacher credentialing program, he said.

High Tech has been training teachers in partnership with the University of San Diego.

More important, High Tech needs a statewide network of schools to support its graduates' college education, Wallace said. Its goal is to ensure that at least 60 percent of its graduates complete college in six years.

— Caroline

School Board Notes 1.12.06

School Board Notes
1.12.06
By Nicole Achs Freeling
GreatSchools.net Correspondent

• Board puts off closure decisions
• City may supply additional funds
• Citizens raise issues over safety, inclusion

Board puts off closure decisions

After hearing five hours of public testimony, Board members voted to postpone making any decisions on school closings for one week. The Board is now scheduled to reconvene Thursday, January 19 at 6 p.m. at Everett Middle School to take up the issue of school closings.

Earlier in the evening, some members of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, who urged the Board not to close any schools, pledged to cover the district's $5 million budget shortfall while it developed a long-range consolidation plan.

Board members said they wanted to see what kind of funding the city could provide them with, and also to have more time to process the information they had received during the lengthy public testimony. Board Member Eddie Chin, who made the motion for postponement, said he was concerned about conducting public business at 12:15 in the morning. "A large amount of audience has left for the evening and I think that creates a problem of transparency," he said.

"I came in ready to vote on the closings," Board Member Dan Kelly said. "But now that I've been here for six hours and heard all of the testimony, I'm not ready. I've seen many cases where schools that were struggling and under-enrolled made a huge turnaround and now they're very popular and strong. I see that happening with some of the schools on this list."

Board Member Mark Sanchez pointed out that an average of 15 percent of the students at the schools closed last year did not return to the district. "We would lose hundreds of students just doing this alone and we'd be put in a position next year of having to close even more schools."

While board members were united in their desire to delay a final vote on all schools to be closed, Dan Kelly and Jill Wynns called for a discussion about schools which their might be agreement to spare. "I think we could take a few of the schools of this list in the next 10 or 15 minutes," Kelly said. Chin, however, repeated his concern that any discussion conducted at that hour was not taking place in a fully open forum. Speaking after the meeting, Board President Norman Yee said he understood the desire not to prolong parents' agony, but that he wanted to be able to "look at the whole package, to make as fair a decision as possible."

Next week's meeting will be treated as a continuation of the meeting that began January 12. Board members agreed to take up to an hour of further public testimony, limited only to comments about the consolidation process in general.

City may supply additional funds

Urging the board to forgo closing schools until it could come up with a long-range plan shaped by extensive community input, Supervisors Ross Mirkarimi of District 5 and Sophie Maxwell of District 10 said they believed they could deliver a $5 million loan to the district to cover its shortfall. The loan has the clear support of five members of the Board of Supervisors, according to Maxwell. It would need six votes to pass.

Board members were emphatic, however, that a loan would not be sufficient to forestall school closings. "Supporting us is not giving us a loan that next year we have to make the same cuts to pay back," Yee said. Just the day before the meeting, Supervisors and city officials had been discussing the possibility of providing the district with the funds outright. Several board members confided they were surprised and disappointed to hear Mirkarimi and Maxwell speaking tonight of a loan proposal. "We need a gift, not a loan," Lipson said.

Citizens raise issues over safety, inclusion

Large, spirited contingents from almost every affected school appeared at the meeting waving signs, chanting and cheering, and urging the district to save their school. Speakers expressed concern that some of the proposals created unsafe conditions. The proposal to merge ISA with Enola Maxwell, for example, would create a school of grades 6 – 12. Numerous speakers spoke out about the potential problems in putting 11-year-olds and 18-year-olds together in a school. Speakers also voiced concern for merging community programs at Daniel Webster on Potrero Hill. Such a plan would put members of rival gangs together at one school in a neighborhood that, with a large housing project, already has problems with gang activity. Locating Downtown High School on Potrero Hill would put three high schools with potential gang issues within an extremely short distance of each other, some speakers said.

Representatives of Edison Charter School expressed outrage that they had not been made more aware of the move to relocate their school. Edison has not been listed as an effected school in any of the district's proposals, and letters were not sent to families at the school. The current proposal before the district would move Newcomer, currently in Pacific Heights, to the spot now occupied by Edison. Such a move would force the charter to find an alternate location. A member of Edison's legal counsel said the district did not have the legal authority to require the charter to move, since its charter is with the State Board of Education and not the district. The district stands to gain $4.7 million in lease revenues from City College if it moves Newcomer and Downtown High School to alternate locations.

Families involved in special education programs and community education centers worried about the fate of their programs should their school be closed or merged.

Speakers criticized what many said was a lack of community involvement in the process. Although community meetings were held in late December and early January at sights in effected neighborhoods, many people expressed doubt that the opinions collected at the meetings, just days before the scheduled vote on school closure, would actually have any effect. Many chastised the district for not having a long-range plan and phasing out schools over a multi-year process.

Email comments to sfschoolnotes@greatschools.net

S.F. charter operator in financial hot water

Envision Schools, which in SFUSD runs City Arts & Tech off Ocean and the new Metro Arts & Tech on the north side of Bernal, is in trouble in Marin over the financial situation at its flagship school, Marin School of Arts & Technology in Novato.

The Marin Independent Journal article below describes MSAT as "high achieving." But actually it was notably low-achieving -- especially far below Novato's other two high schools in Similar Schools scores -- until the most recent year, when the API shot up just as MSAT was put on stern notice from the chartering school district.

This should serve as a big red flag to SFUSD!

Charter school lashed over deficit
Jeff Mitchell
Marin Independent Journal
Jan. 12, 2006

For the second time in less than a year, Novato school board members grilled officials with the high-achieving Marin School of Arts and Technology over concerns about the charter school's shaky financial condition.

During a tense three-hour session Tuesday, school board members lambasted Daniel McLaughlin, Envision Schools president and chief executive officer, for failing to keep the Novato charter school out of a deficit and for failing to ensure that the school maintain a 3 percent reserve fund.

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Several board members said they supported filing a legal "notice of cure" with San Francisco-based Envision — the first step the district would need to take in the process of revoking the school's charter and shutting down the school.

Currently, MSAT serves 240 ninth-, 10th- and 11th-grade students.

"We understand that MSAT's deficit is of serious concern to Novato Unified," McLaughlin told the board. "(However) we will be in the black by next year. We are shooting for a 3 1/2-percent reserve."

Envision runs MSAT and two other charter school operations in the Bay Area.

MSAT students have distinguished themselves academically, posting some of the strongest test scores in the county recently.

Charter schools are publicly funded, independently operated institutions whose curriculums have been tailored to the needs of individual communities. Like other public schools, charter schools receive the bulk of their funding based on attendance formulas determined by the state. Parents and other private interests also often donate funds in support of a given school.

At issue Tuesday was the charter school's projected deficit — expected to exceed $300,000 by the end of the 2005-06 fiscal year — and the absence of a reserve fund.

The 3 percent reserve fund requirement was part of the charter school's original memorandum of understanding signed with the district in December 2001. The school first opened its doors at the College of Marin's Indian Valley campus in fall 2003.

But since its opening, the charter school has neither climbed out of deficit mode nor established the required reserve fund.

"We have a (multiyear) pattern of noncompliance with our (memorandum of understanding)," said board member Jennifer Treppa.

Last summer, the board took Envision and MSAT to task not only over its concern about finances but also because of the way the school deviated from district and state special education and student discipline procedures — allegations Envision officials denied at the time.

The board voted to issue a "notice of cure" letter related to the special education and student discipline dispute. Since that time, district officials said the school has complied with the regulations.

At Tuesday's meeting, the board — concerned that an MSAT financial failure could leave the district on the hook and disrupt the lives of a large number of students — turned up the intensity of its public comments.

It didn't help matters that, during the discussion, board members Cindi Clinton and Leslie Schwarze remarked that a financial accounting report provided by MSAT was filled with errors.

"These numbers don't add up," Clinton said. "I don't have any confidence in these numbers. If our (chief financial officer) presented a report like this, I would be talking to our superintendent about (seeking) a replacement."

Board member Derek Knell agreed and said it was time the district assert itself legally again.

"I would support (issuing) a notice of cure as soon as possible," he said.

McLaughlin, joined by a cadre of Envision executives and supporters, acknowledged the school's financial difficulties but said that he expected that a surge in student enrollment (between 75 to 110 new students) for the 2006-07 school year would drive the school into the financial black enough to establish the reserve fund.

On Wednesday, McLaughlin noted that MSAT already has received 50 new student applications for enrollment for the 2006-07 school year.

"Let me assure everyone that this isn't a matter of MSAT going under - far from it," he said.

McLaughlin said Envision, a nonprofit corporation, remains financially viable, has a $1.1 million cash reserve and has been the recent recipient of money from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

He noted that charter schools commonly struggle financially in their first five years of operation due to costly one-time expenditures for equipment, computers, books and supplies.

At the end of the session, board members decided to avoid issuing a "notice of cure" to MSAT, fearing the action would place a "chilling effect" on the school's efforts to recruit students that would doom its financial rehabilitation.

However, the board directed district staff to set up a schedule of frequent "checking points" to determine whether the school is making adequate progress to establish financial solvency.

The board also asked Jim Cerreta, the district's chief financial officer, to regularly report back on the results of those so-called "checking point" meetings.

— Caroline

SF actions: Open Letter to SFUSD Board, Supervisors, Mayor

Winslow Warrrn, a parent at New Traditions ES, has prepared a wealth of thought provoking analysese of the proposed school closures and published them on a website titled SF actions. Here is his Open Letter to SFUSD Board, Supervisors, Mayor

From : Winslow Warren
To : AAckerman@muse.sfusd.com, gchan1@muse.sfusd.edu, dkelly@muse.sfusd.edu, echin@muse.sfusd.edu, yeen@muse.sfusd.edu, jwynns@muse.sfusd.edu, sarahlipson@muse.sfusd.edu, msanchez@muse.sfusd.edu, ookeeffe@muse.sfusd.edu, lmyong@muse.sfusd.edu, nwaymark@muse.sfusd.edu, hydra.mendoza@sfgov.org, letters@sfbg.com, letters@examiner.com, letters@sfchronicle.com, gavin.newsom@sfgov.org, board.of.supervisors@sfgov.org, Ross.Mirkarimi@sfgov.org

Date : 1/8/2006
Ttitle : Preserve Schools: Oppose SFUSD Consolidations/Closures

Dear School Board, Board of Supervisors and Mayor Newsom,

As we are faced with significant school closures for the second year in a row, I urge you to consider the following before making the final closure decisions.

San Francisco — the least family friendly city in America

The drastic reconfiguration of our elementary schools will have a significant impact upon one of the key challenges facing the City, the exodus of families from San Francisco.

We must look forward to how we want our City to dictate the direction of our public policy. If we want to create an environment where families can survive, we cannot deprive these families of an essential tool for survival, affordable child education. It is most important to focus our battle upon K-5 schools because, frankly if we lose small children, we will have even fewer older children. From 1990 to 2000, our City lost families. But since 2000, birth rates have increased, creating more families. Will we keep these families?

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Concerning District 5, the SFUSD has already compensated for the loss of 446 District 5 families in the period between 1990 and 2000, with the closure of 3 schools in 2005. The current elimination of nearly all District 5 schools will make it nearly impossible for the remaining low, median income families to survive there.

These school closures and mergers just don’t make sense!

A leaner, healthier district is an imperative. But, does this mean that the City should eliminate most of the schools in a few districts.

Isn’t this the equivalent of cutting off one’s left arm to lose weight?

Sure, one might use the right hand more than the left, and a significant weight loss would be guaranteed, immediately.

Yes, the weight loss target may be achieved but at great sacrifice; severe blood loss, excruciating pain, physical impairment. Most importantly, the rest of the body would still be overweight.

Why not grow the top line revenue

Any smart business plan in the face of fiscal pressures, addresses both the bottom line (costs) and the top line (revenue). Why haven’t we discussed the revenue side at all? Why has there been no attempt to increase enrollment? Why hasn’t the impact of lowering costs on future revenue been discussed? Cutting costs through closures is short sighted and amounts to an incomplete solution.

The public’s "objective" response

Board member Jill Wynns stated in an Examiner article that final decisions concerning closures should be based upon data, not emotions. She says, "It’s important to have as much objectivity as possible".

Well, I have some questions for Ms. Wynns, the District and the City about the factual basis for these closures and the objectivity of the closure process:

• Is it objective to disproportionately impact African American students with closures (35% affected, 14% of the school population)?
• Is it the result of objective reasoning to close 5 out of 6 District 5 schools?
• Does not closing most of the schools in a particular district impact families’ decisions to live in that district? Will families locate in a neighborhood without schools? Won’t families be more likely to leave a district where schools have closed?
• Should the School Board be making the long term decision as to whether families should live in a particular district?
• Can objective decisions be made based upon faulty data, such as the understatement the actual enrollment capacity of several schools?
• Is it objective to assume that only small schools should be considered for closure?
• Is it fair or balanced to expect only certain districts to shoulder most of the burden of the budget cuts?
• If the criteria for closures produce results which disproportionately impact one ethnic group, or a few districts; isn’t that proof that the criteria are flawed and shouldn’t be used. Why are we continuing an unfair selection process?
• Does it really make sense to say that since we have smaller enrollment than in 1986 and the same number of schools, that schools should be closed?
• What about the fact that class size limits have been changed?
• What about the fact that there are more special education classes, which require smaller class size?
• What about the fact that we have more students than in 1980, but the same number of schools? Should we then be opening more schools?
• What about the fact that the percentage of students enrolled in public schools has declined from 1986? Wouldn’t it be rational to attempt to increase this percentage rather than harm the system?
• When the board says that your quality school is to be closed, isn’t it reasonable to expect an emotional response?
• Does it make sense to take a posture which is critical to the public’s natural emotional response to school closures, when such antagonism only further discourages public school enrollment?
• Can objective decisions be made when there has not been a forum within which the "facts" that the district produces cannot be debated? Shouldn’t the district and the board have to directly answer the facts presented by the public?

I have attached a presentation entitled, "Preserve Schools: Oppose SFUSD Consolidations/Closures" [found here] to rebut the SFUSD closures proposal upon factual grounds. I beg you to review the case it presents. This document is the result of the New Traditions community’s feedback. The facts contained therein have been obtained from:

• CA Department of Education
• CA Department of Finance
• SF Unified School District
• Ed-Data Education Data Partnership
• NCES — National Center for Educational Statistics
  

Thank you for your time and consideration,

Winslow Warren
New Traditions Parent

School Board Notes 1.10.06

School Board Notes
1.10.06
By Nicole Achs Freeling
GreatSchools.net Correspondent

• Public on edge about imminent school closings
• Yee becomes Board President
• Board adopts new sunshine policy

Public on edge about imminent school closings

While absent from the Board's discussion Tuesday, impending school closures dominated the public comment period. Downtown and Leadership High Schools, both of which have been suggested as possible new tenants of the site of International Student Academy (ISA), each brought delegations to lobby for why their school should be awarded the site should ISA move.

DHS's current site is located in the middle of a major construction project. "We have no heat, no hot water," DHS teacher Catherine Salvin said. "Yes, the construction is disruptive. The building shakes, the is a lot of noise, we get a lot of strange smells." DHS representatives stressed that they did not want to be the cause of displacing another school, but asked that it be given priority over charter schools or other entities. Leadership High School representatives discussed the school's diversity and the need to be located in a place that would be accessible to its far-flung population with some students who commute from as far as Vallejo. They also reminded the district of its legal obligation to provide the school with a Field Acted building with such facilities as a library and auditorium, requirements which the district is not meeting currently.

San Francisco NAACP President Amos Brown proclaimed "disgust" over the disproportionate impact of school's targeted for closure on the city's African-American population. "That is wrong. We want to be conciliatory and work with you, but if can't do something about the disproportionate fallout" from the district's budget woes on black students, "We will pull these children out of the schools and teach them in our churches," Brown said.

A number of speakers from Potrero Hill argued against the Daniel Webster/Starr King merger and advocated for the ability of the neighborhood, which has a growing population of young children, to support both elementary schools. Another group from Newcomer urged against moving that school from Pacific Heights to a proposed location in the Mission.

Yee becomes Board President

Norman Yee was unanimously elected to succeed Eric Mar as President of the Board, with Sarah Lipson elected as Vice President. "This is not going to be an easy year in 2006," Yee commented upon his election. "We are going to need to resolve budget issues, consolidate a bit so we can function more effectively, look for a new superintendent, as well as tackling such difficult issues as student assignment. I'm grateful we have such a passion board, with very passion members who have strong opinions. I hope to be able to harness that passion to make this district one of the best of nation."

Board adopts new sunshine policy

The board unanimously adopted an open government policy aimed at enhancing public access to meetings and district information. Among the provisions adopted was a measure that stated that requires special meetings to be called with a notice period of 72 hours in business days, which could be reduced to 24 hours if decided by a supermajority of the board. Closed session meetings would continue to be called with no less than 24 hours notice.

The resolution also calls for disclosing collective bargaining agreements 14 days before the public meeting at which the agreement would be voted on for approval. It requires the district to maintain a publicly available file, current to 30 days, of all correspondence circulated to a quorum of the board and to maintain a calendar with the time, place and subject matter of all public meetings. It also calls for placing a link on SFUSD's Web site to link to archives of KALW's radio broadcasts of the meetings.

The board unanimously approved the resolution in spite of a lengthy discussion over a measure in the policy that requires the board to record closed session meeting. The tapes would be made available only in the context of a court order issued by a judge as part of ongoing litigation, such as a lawsuit alleging that the Board was conducting in closed session business that should be done in an open forum. The highest-cost part of the policy, the practice also raised concern among some members that extremely sensitive information regarding students and staff could be released to the public. Ultimately the board approved the resolution with direction to staff that it investigate an effective way to safeguard the tapes.

In other business, the board directed staff to look into a process for making more successful use of after-school tutors and for more effectively vetting the companies that provide these services. Many of the services are fly-by-night operations that get money up front and don't follow through with the services they have promised, according to Commissioner Jill Wynns.

Email comments to sfschoolnotes@greatschools.net

Left in SF - School Closure Meetings

Kim Knox has been publishing excellent reports from each of the community meetings on school closures this week. She has been publishing them on our list and on the Left in SF blog:

• D-10 School Closure Meeting
• School Closure Meeting in D-1
• School Closure Meeting in District 5

Thanks for the first-hand reports, Kim.
There is one more meeting scheduled for Monday at Balboa.

Bump and run: Kim has posted her report on the 4th and final community meeting here:

• D-11 School Closure Meeting

Edwize » “Framing Dropouts” Revisited

EdWise, the NYC teachers' union blog, recently ran an interesting post about the drop out problem: "Framing Dropouts" Revisited

Fifteen years ago Michelle Fine, at that time a professor at University of Pennsylvania published a transformational work entitled "Reframing Dropouts: Notes on the Politics of an Urban Public High School." [...] She paints a chilling portrait of a school organized around "efficiency and control" in which a caring staff was "disempowered," ignored and marginalized by the school administration. [...]

In spite of convoluted BOE statistics Fine shows that in the mid eighties only 20% of an entering cohort earned a diploma after six years.

What happened to the dropouts?

Incarceration, out-of-wedlock births, single parenthood, staggering AIDs rates, persistent unemployment and the continuing pathology of poverty in era when a high school diploma only assures a minimum wage.

Fifteen years later has anything changed?

They dive into the details of NYC school policies, and conclude:

Unfortunately, in the large urban high schools, fifteen years later, nothing has changed. Heroic teachers struggle in a school system that ignores a structure that allows generations of students to drift into a life of poverty and despair.

After reading that SFUSD just spent $400K on a program that didn't do much, maybe the UFT bloggers are onto something. Instead of district inspired programs, are there other ways of supporting "heroic teachers" in schools, that know these kids and work with them?

Grants not Taxes? Is all this grant writing sane?

Another PEN newsblast email, another deluge of information. The January 6th email includes stories about: BOE battles, Florida's voucher defeat, Bring teachers to the table, Ads on schools busses, Braggardly parents, 10 years of ed standards... and that's just the ones that interested me.

One dull-sounding note jumped out at me. It modestly posits grant writing as the cure for inadequate tax funding. Does Your District Office Need Its Own Development Office?

Over the past few years, budget shortfalls have forced many school boards to make tough decisions about what education programs must go, rather than about what new programs to support. At the same time, these districts are attempting to raise test scores to meet the demands of the No Child Left Behind Act, which often requires the kind of specialized programs they've just cut... Frye outlines the rationale for raising additional funds from non-tax sources. In addition, he highlights his own grantwriting efforts that led to $1.3 million in grants last year alone. In his view, establishing a grant-writing function in a school district is a key strategy for increasing funds dramatically without increasing taxes.

I've heard this argument before on the sfschools list. The district is leaving money on the table for lack of adequate grant writing... The district should only do such and such if it can get grant money... And there really are millions to be made in grant writing. Each PEN newsblast is filled with notices for dozens of them. I included this week's listings below the fold as graphic evidence.

I have to ask, why are we putting so much money into this type of funding? Do we really think grant writing is an essential skill for an educator? Or a school system? There must be a better way of directing philanthopy to schools. There must be a better way to raise and manage this money. This seems insane to me. Am I the only one that thinks this?

continue reading...

The following is quoted at length from the January 6th PEN Newsblast

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Grant and Funding Information

"Zaner-Bloser National Handwriting Contest"

The Zaner-Bloser National Handwriting Contest is expanding its prize categories to include honoring the teacher of the nation’s best handwriting student. Maximum Award (for student): a new computer system and Zaner-Bloser handwriting software; (for teacher): a trip for two to Boston. Eligibility: students grades 1-8 whose school uses Zaner-Bloser Handwriting. Deadline: Mar 1, 2006.

"National Teach-In celebration of National Youth Service Day and National Law Day"

Youth for Justice, the national coordinated law- related education (LRE) consortium funded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention of the United States Department of Justice, invites 100 middle and high school classes across the United States to teach others about the fundamental ideas of American democracy through the Third Annual National Teach-In celebration of National Youth Service Day and National Law Day. Maxim