Superintendent Dr. Vincent Matthews Announces Retirement

Press Release

San Francisco (March 10, 2021) - San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) Superintendent Dr. Vincent Matthews shared the following statement this morning. 

“With a heavy heart, I want to share the news that I plan to retire from SFUSD on June 30, 2021. I am eternally grateful to the community and the school board for allowing me to have had the opportunity to serve the community that raised me and made me who I am. 

"When I first began serving as superintendent in May of 2017, I started by listening and learning. I met with thousands of staff, families and students to understand more about what was working and what we most needed to improve. Throughout my time I have continued to prioritize listening to our community, meeting with staff and visiting school sites regularly. 

"What I heard and saw when I first began as superintendent and continue to hear and see today is we are a community that is dedicated to shared core values with equity at the foundation. We are united by a shared mission that every day we provide each and every student the quality instruction and equitable support required to thrive in the 21st century.

"I believe wholeheartedly in the vision set forth in Vision 2025 that every student who attends SFUSD schools will discover their spark, along with a strong sense of self and purpose and that each and every student will graduate from high school ready for college and career and equipped with the skills, capacities and dispositions outlined in SFUSD’s Graduate Profile. 

"I have seen our district’s talented leadership team work tirelessly and creatively to implement strategies that will bring our district closer to realizing this compelling vision. I have also watched thousands of teachers and classified staff members deliver high quality instruction and equitable support for each and every student. Though it saddens me to leave at a time when our district is already experiencing so many destabilizing hardships brought on by this pandemic, after much reflection, I believe this is the right time. There are many new commissioners on the SF Board of Education and I want them to have the opportunity to select a new superintendent who is aligned with their approach.

"I am sharing this news just as soon as my family and I made the decision. For the remainder of my time as superintendent I remain committed to the critical work in front of us: Bringing students back to in-person learning, continuing to provide distance learning and planning for the summer and fall. I am not going to discuss my decision in more detail at this time as I want to support our sustained focus on this challenging task.” 

SF Board of Education President Gabriela Lopez shared that the SF Board of Education will be working with the superintendent to create a transition plan.  

“We deeply appreciate Superintendent Matthews’ leadership and the care he has shown to the SFUSD community. And we’re excited and happy for Dr. Matthews as we wish him a long and happy retirement. He has been a steadfast and focused partner as we have prioritized the safe reopening of schools during the pandemic. We are fortunate to have worked with an educator who is a native of San Francisco and proud alumni of our public schools. We will have more information to share about hiring Dr. Matthews’ replacement shortly. In the meantime we know we will continue to build on the work we have done together including strengthening and implementing our collective vision.”

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