SFUSD and Schools
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1 upcoming event · 36 stories · Aug 26, 2026 – Nov 6, 2026
Upcoming events
Stories
Friday, November 6, 20261 story →
Tim Tung, Autumn Brown Garibay win final two S.F. school board seats
Tim Tung and Autumn Brown Garibay won the final two seats on San Francisco's school board, completing a sweep for the slate backed by GrowSF. The GrowSF-backed campaign spent more than $400,000 on the race.
Thursday, November 5, 20261 story →
SF Teachers Union at Risk of Shutout Loss in School Board Election
San Francisco’s teachers union is at risk of losing all three open school board seats. Incumbent Phil Kim and first-time candidates Tim Tung and Autumn Brown Garibay, all backed by moderate group GrowSF, lead the race. Union-endorsed candidates trail in fourth through sixth place. If results hold, it would mark a major setback for the union’s longstanding influence over school board elections.
Wednesday, November 4, 20261 story →
Phil Kim wins school-board reelection, other GrowSF candidates likely to win
Phil Kim won reelection to the San Francisco school board, while two seats remained undecided. Candidates backed by the group GrowSF were likely to win the other races.
Saturday, October 31, 20262 stories →
Advocates Defend Noncitizen Voting in SF School Board Races as Trump Targets Voter Rolls
Advocates are urging San Francisco to keep letting noncitizen parents vote in school board elections as the Trump administration presses California over its voter rolls, KQED reports. Voters approved the program as Measure N in 2016, and a state appeals court upheld it in 2022.
New special education school opens in San Francisco Chinatown
San Francisco Unified opened a new public school at 657 Merchant St. in Chinatown for students in grades 5 through 12 with autism, intellectual disabilities and complex behavioral needs, Sing Tao reports. The school started with two classes of eight students and plans to grow to 32.
Wednesday, October 28, 20261 story →
Feds investigate SFUSD ethnic studies course for possibly violating parental rights
The U.S. Department of Education is investigating San Francisco Unified's ethnic studies course for possible violations of parental rights, the Standard reports. The department said students were asked for potentially protected information about their families.
Tuesday, October 27, 20261 story →
S.F. parents hate the school enrollment lottery. They anticipate hating its replacement more.
San Francisco Unified has promised to overhaul the lottery that assigns children to elementary schools and to invest in all schools, Mission Local reports. Many families doubt the replacement system will work.
Monday, October 19, 20261 story →
California School Test Scores Up, but Just a Little, as Progress Slows in K-12 Classes
California's K-12 test scores rose slightly in almost every category last year, but progress slowed after the post-pandemic surge, according to state data released this week and reported by CalMatters. Math proficiency rose just over 1 percentage point to about 39%, English language arts rose half a point to about 49%, and science rose 3.3 points to 36%.
Sunday, October 18, 20261 story →
Meet the school board candidates: Which enrollment policy direction would you have voted for?
Eight candidates are competing for three San Francisco school board seats. Mission Local asked each of them which of the final enrollment policy options they would have voted for.
Saturday, October 17, 20261 story →
S.F. educators have a new role: Getting families through ICE appointments
Educators from 20 San Francisco schools have been trained to accompany students and their families to immigration appointments, Mission Local reports. The practice began after immigration agents started arresting people who showed up for court dates.
Friday, October 16, 20262 stories →
A late pitch, a split board, and grieving parents: Behind SFUSD’s seismic lottery vote
Superintendent Maria Su pushed hard for neighborhood schools and won the school board over on Tuesday, according to the Standard's account of the meeting. The vote split parents and political allies.
San Francisco elementary school assignment drops lottery for home addresses
The San Francisco Board of Education voted 5-2 on Tuesday night to design a home-address-based enrollment system for elementary schools, replacing the current lottery. The board chose the option that guarantees a seat at a neighborhood school while limiting other choices mainly to citywide programs such as language immersion and K-8 schools. The district will redraw attendance areas and review school capacity before a final policy vote on April 13, 2027, for students entering in the 2028-29 school year.
Thursday, October 15, 20261 story →
SFUSD Moves Closer to Neighborhood-Based Enrollment in Historic Vote
The San Francisco school board voted 5-2 Tuesday to direct staff to draft a neighborhood-based enrollment policy for elementary schools, to take effect in fall 2028. Students would be guaranteed a seat at a school near home, with language immersion and K-8 seats still available by application but not guaranteed, Superintendent Maria Su said.
Tuesday, October 13, 20261 story →
SFUSD to Replace School Lottery With Neighborhood-Based Enrollment System
The San Francisco school board is scheduled to vote Tuesday on a neighborhood-based enrollment plan that would replace the district's lottery by the fall of 2028, as the Chronicle reported. Families have urged the district to slow down, saying the options do not address inequities in underserved neighborhoods. Option B would guarantee a seat at a family's neighborhood school for those who apply on time while allowing other applications citywide; Option C would guarantee a neighborhood seat even for late applicants but limit other choices to citywide programs, per EdSource and the SF Standard.
Thursday, October 8, 20261 story →
SF public schools stopped suspending students. What they’re doing instead is illegal
San Francisco public schools have stopped formal suspensions, but off-the-book suspensions continue and are against the law. Families, researchers, and the district itself say the practice happens anyway, according to the Standard.
Wednesday, October 7, 20261 story →
SFUSD is set to overhaul its enrollment lottery. Nobody can agree on how
The San Francisco Unified School District is preparing to overhaul its student enrollment lottery, and two options remain under consideration. Both would guarantee a seat at a neighborhood school to families who apply on time.
Monday, October 5, 20261 story →
SF schools superintendent warns teachers not to delete records in federal gender-ideology inquiry
San Francisco schools superintendent Maria Su told teachers not to delete any records connected to the federal investigation into classroom "sexual orientation and gender ideology" that began in June, the World Journal reports. The inquiry was opened against the school district.
Sunday, October 4, 20261 story →
Maria Su warns SF teachers not to delete student records as DOJ investigation heats up
Superintendent Maria Su warned San Francisco Unified staff not to delete records connected to a federal investigation into the district's gender and sexuality instruction. The Justice Department opened the inquiry in June.
Saturday, October 3, 20261 story →
Maria Su warns SF teachers not to delete student records as DOJ investigation heats up
Superintendent Maria Su warned San Francisco Unified staff not to delete student records as a Justice Department investigation into the district proceeds. Su told staff the department is probing the district over its gender and sexuality instruction, The Standard reports.
Thursday, October 1, 20262 stories →
SF NAACP Calls on San Francisco Unified to Hold Racist Behavior Accountable
The NAACP San Francisco branch, parents and community advocates accused the San Francisco Unified School District of failing to act on anti-Black rhetoric after several incidents at district high schools. On Sept. 4, a Black student at Lincoln High School was called the N-word during a passing period, according to representatives for the NAACP and Coleman Advocates. A physical altercation followed, and the groups want the district to hold students accountable.
As SFUSD weighs replacing its lottery, a new group pushes a bold overhaul
A new advocacy group called KTAP is pushing an overhaul of the San Francisco Unified School District's student assignment lottery. Its founders include two teachers, a failed school board candidate and a former SF Parents staffer. The district is weighing whether to replace the lottery system.
Monday, September 28, 20261 story →
San Francisco school district labor relations administrator charged with child sex abuse
Apolinar 'Paul' Quesada, 50, a senior administrator who handles labor relations for the San Francisco Unified School District, was charged in New Mexico with first-degree criminal sexual penetration of a child under 13, according to the Chronicle, which cited Mission Local. The charge, filed July 20, concerns conduct alleged to have occurred in Grant County in early 1995, when Quesada was 18. District chief of staff Hong Mei Pang told Mission Local the district learned of the charge this month, placed Quesada on leave and opened an investigation, and said the alleged conduct did not happen in San Francisco and did not involve district students.
Sunday, September 27, 20261 story →
San Francisco to open its first public Mandarin immersion school next fall
San Francisco Unified will open the city's first public Mandarin immersion school for transitional kindergarten through eighth grade next fall, starting at 1670 Noe St. in Noe Valley, where it will share a campus with Mission Education Center. The first year will have one TK class and three kindergarten classes of 22 students each, about 88 seats, with more grades added each year. Families can learn more at the district's enrollment fair on Oct. 24 at the Moscone Center.
Saturday, September 26, 20261 story →
SFUSD exec indicted in New Mexico for alleged criminal sexual activity with child
A San Francisco Unified School District official who leads labor negotiations has been indicted in New Mexico on a charge of criminal sexual activity with a child, Mission Local reports. The official is on leave and previously worked as a principal and assistant principal at two San Francisco middle schools.
Friday, September 25, 20262 stories →
SFUSD exec indicted in New Mexico for alleged criminal sexual activity with child
A San Francisco school district labor official is on leave after being indicted in New Mexico on a charge of criminal sexual activity with a child. The employee worked previously as a principal and assistant principal at city middle schools.
SFUSD Reveals Location of New Mandarin Immersion Campus
SFUSD says its new K-8 Mandarin immersion school will open at the Mission Education Center campus at 1670 Noe St. in fall 2027, then move to a permanent site. The district expects three kindergarten classes and one transitional kindergarten class in the first year and will add grades each year.
Sunday, September 13, 20261 story →
Ethnic studies is here to stay, S.F. school board candidates say in first forum
All eight candidates for the San Francisco school board said at their first forum that they would keep the two-semester ethnic studies graduation requirement. The requirement was the first issue the candidates faced in the school board race.
Thursday, September 10, 20261 story →
A Richmond nonprofit served neighbors for 46 years. SFUSD almost took away its land.
A neighborhood nonprofit in the Richmond District has stayed off the San Francisco Unified School District's list of sites considered for development, at least for now. The group has served the neighborhood for 46 years, and people there say they still fear being displaced.
Wednesday, September 9, 20261 story →
Richmond Neighborhood Center Fights for Lease Extension Amid Development Fears
More than 100 people filled a San Francisco Unified School District board meeting after rallying outside district headquarters to demand a public process over 741 30th Ave., the Outer Richmond building that has housed The Richmond Neighborhood Center since 1980. The district recently told the center it will release a request for proposals to gauge developer interest in the site.
Saturday, September 5, 20261 story →
Meet the school board candidates: Do you support school closures or mergers in 2029-30?
Eight candidates are running for three seats on the San Francisco school board. Mission Local asked each where they stand on possible school closures or mergers in 2029-30; their answers are in this Q&A.
Friday, September 4, 20261 story →
Muni expands service for students returning to school
Muni added a 28R stop at 19th Avenue and Eucalyptus Drive for Lowell High School students and adjusted several other routes for the school year. Busy routes now run more often without added operating costs, and the first new buses with USB ports and more stroller space are expected in October.
Thursday, September 3, 20261 story →
Lowell High Coach Put on Leave, Games Forfeited Following Racist Incident Involving Baseball Team
Lowell High's varsity baseball coach has been placed on leave and games were forfeited after investigators found players directed racist taunts at Black and Latino athletes during a spring championship game, according to SFist. The team had been allowed to finish its season before the penalties were announced.
Wednesday, September 2, 20261 story →
SF Varsity Baseball Team to Forfeit 3 Games, Remove Coaches After Investigation
Lowell High School’s varsity baseball team will forfeit three games next spring, and its coaching staff has been removed after an athletic conference investigation found violations. San Francisco Unified said the coaches had been on leave since May, when the San Francisco Chronicle reported allegations of unsportsmanlike conduct at a junior varsity championship game.
Tuesday, September 1, 20261 story →
How SF’s most powerful mom became a political force
Meredith Dodson, who built a parent organization from a push to reopen schools during the pandemic, is stepping down. The San Francisco Standard looks at how she became one of the city's most influential figures and the allies and critics she leaves behind.
Saturday, August 29, 20261 story →
Meet the S.F. school board candidates: What would you do to reach math and English targets?
Eight candidates are running for three seats on the San Francisco School Board. Mission Local asked each how they would reach math and English proficiency targets. Their answers appear in the story.
Wednesday, August 26, 20261 story →
SFUSD wants 70% of 3rd graders to meet literacy standards by 2028. It’ll be a steep climb.
San Francisco Unified School District leaders want 70% of third graders to meet literacy standards by 2028. The district's most disadvantaged students are the farthest behind.