Media Coverage of SFUSD

8/30/24 - Francis Scott Key kindergarten class featured on NBC school shout out series (NBC Bay Area)

Ms. Cuper's kindergarten class at Francis Scott Key Elementary School was featured on NBC Bay Area's school shout out series. 

8/29/24 - 24 SFUSD middle school students' art work featured on Muni buses (KALW)

Students competed in the Tasty Roots Arts competition. Their artwork depicts a range of California specialty crops and highlights nutritional facts.

8/26/24 - Free campus grocery store helps tackle food insecurity at San Francisco middle school (KPIX) 

A new food program at a San Francisco middle school has rolled out a free campus grocery store for students to take advantage of for them and their families. 

7/18/24 - High school students get hands-on experience with internships at UCSF Kanbar Center for Simulation (ABC 7)

Hundreds of high school students with San Francisco Unified School District are getting incredible hands-on career experience this summer. They're interning in construction, automotive, and sports careers, and more. 

7/13/24 - Power tools replace pens, paper at this SF high school internship (San Francisco Examiner)

Woodwork and auto-shop classes waned in popularity when most millennials were in high school, but shop class isn’t dead in San Francisco public schools. In fact, research shows that Generation Z students are more interested in skilled-labor trades than their predecessors. 

7/11/24 - San Francisco high school auto shop class seeing shift to more female students (KPIX)

The auto shop class at George Washington High School in San Francisco is seeing more female students seeking to get into the traditionally male-dominated industry. 

7/10/24 - SF high schoolers ahead of state's financial-literacy curve (San Francisco Examiner)

The City’s high schools have offered personal-finance courses for three years, well before California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation late last month requiring financial literacy to graduate beginning with the class of 2031. 

6/12/24 - SFUSD exceeds literacy rate goal for underserved communities: report (KRON 4)

The San Francisco Unified District comes with good news. Since the adoption of a new initiative, “Each and Every by Name” earlier this year, San Francisco schools are achieving and even exceeding their goals in improving literacy rates for African American and Pacific Islander first grade students this academic year so far.

6/3/24 - San Francisco Unified School District established Asian Parent Advisory Committee (KTSF)

KTSF Channel 26 went to the first Asian PAC meeting and spoke to attendees and organizers about how it can help Asian families in the district. 

5/28/24 - The motivational power of STEM: This program connects students to potential careers (Education Week)

Mission Bay Hub is a one-year, specialized STEM program for 11th and 12th graders and counts toward a science, English, and elective credit. Students, who come for half the day from their high schools, learn more about science disciplines such as biochemistry and neuroscience. 

5/8/24 - Children's book tells story of Bay Area Chinese-American girl's civil rights fight in 1885 (KPIX)

Author Traci Huahn, reads her new book "Mamie Tape Fights to go to School" to students at Spring Valley Science Elementary School for Asian American & Pacific Islander Month. The book is about Tape vs. Hurley – a historic 1885 case pitting an 8-year-old Chinese American girl versus the San Francisco school board. 

4/22/24 - Interactive staircase unveiled at Sherman Elementary (KCBS)

It's being called a one-of-a-kind immersive space. Nearly 3,000 square feet of space has been totally transformed at San Francisco's Sherman Elementary. 

4/1/24 - Application for 1st affordable housing site opens this week; prioritizing SFUSD teachers, employees (ABC 7)

For the first time, San Francisco is offering affordable housing in an attempt to help educators live in the areas that they teach. 

3/30/24 - Students at this S.F. high school defy odds to get into UCs, elite colleges. What's the secret? (SF Chronicle)

The seniors at San Francisco’s Mission High School don’t pay attention to the odds that say children of immigrants, teens exposed to violence, Black and brown kids, unhoused students, or those living in poverty are far less likely to go to college than their wealthier, white and Asian American peers. 

3/28/24 - SFUSD adopts new language arts curriculum (KTVU Fox 2)

Some students in San Francisco will start the new school year with a new curriculum. The San Francisco Board of Education voted this week to adopt new language arts core curriculum for Grades PK-8. 

3/27/24 - This SF public school is tops in UC Berkeley acceptance rate (SF Gate)

According to data from the University of California released on March 13, Mission High School had an acceptance rate of 43% at the flagship UC campus, the highest of any high school surveyed and almost three times the state average of 15%. 

3/20/24 - Video game building class at Balboa High School (KTVU Fox 2)

Inside San Francisco's Balboa High School, students in Mr. Peery's class are hard at work building video games. Make no mistake, while these games may be fun to play, designing them is hard work. 

3/15/24 - 10 S.F. schools will see Algebra I back in eighth-grade classrooms this fall (San Francisco Chronicle)

Ten San Francisco middle schools will see Algebra I courses back on the schedule this fall for the first time in a decade, the first group in a three-year phase-in to fully integrate the course back into eighth-grade students’ schedules. 

2/23/24 - San Francisco elementary school students welcome the Year of the Dragon (CBS Bay Area News)

It might just be the most exciting day of the year at Garfield Elementary in San Francisco. The school was holding the final dress rehearsal for the city's Chinese New Year Parade. And while the parents and teachers will say it's about the experience, for students, this is serious business.

2/12/24 - Ulloa Elementary students learn organizing, self-respect at BSU (San Francisco Chronicle)

Every other week at Ulloa Elementary during lunch period, a group of young students gets together with El-Khalid McCree, a parent volunteer, for a regular meeting of the Black Student Union (BSU). The purpose? To learn about and celebrate black excellence, and to build community. 

1/9/23 - AccessSFUSD: The Arc Annual Holiday Sing Along Soars to New Heights With a Performance at SF MoMA (Richmond Review / Sunset Beacon)

AccessSFUSD: The Arc’s annual Holiday Sing Along was hosted at a new venue this year; the prestigious modern art museum, SF MoMA in downtown San Francisco. 

9/23/23 - San Francisco public school students learn sustainability from their own buildings (Bay City News / Local News Matters)

How do you teach a child to live in a climate-changed future? Use the school building and the land beneath it as a learning laboratory.

That’s what the San Francisco Unified School District has done since winning the 2016 Green Ribbon Award, and that’s what was on display this week.  

9/22/23 - San Francisco motorcycle culture comes to the classroom (San Francisco Examiner)

Four years ago, June Jordan School for Equity — a small high school on the edge of McLaren Park — started offering a motorcycle design, maintenance and operation course. It’s the only school in the country to offer a class that teaches students everything from motorbike anatomy to responsible riding.

9/19/23 - Department of Education takes "Green Strides Tour," visits local schools (KCBS)

Federal Education officials today are in San Francisco touring local schools that are excelling at sustainability.

8/21/23 - Unlocking the Potential of Wellness Centers (KALW)

Recent Independence High School graduate, Jamareion Adrow, was guided through high school with the help of his school's wellness center. Now, he's advocating for better resources and encouraging his peers to take advantage of their schools' wellness centers.

8/21/23 - Some California districts are passing restrictive LGBTQ policies. S.F. is doing the opposite (San Francisco Chronicle)

Kena Hazelwood gathered two dozen health teachers days before San Francisco Unifified started this year for what district officials feel is a vital training: how to support LGBTQ students amid worrying rates of bullying, harassment and suicide among them.

8/17/23 - John O'Connell teacher teaches students to become builders (KPIX)

Chris Wood is in his 12th year leading the construction trades program after decades getting his hands and boots dirty as a contractor.

8/17/23 - TK students starting school at Mission Education Center (KQED)

Principal Carla Llewellyn Vasquez says this new grade will help kids get ready for kindergarten and set the foundations for their academic success when fully rolled out by 2025.

8/14/23 - SFUSD Superintendent addresses challenges, teacher shortage ahead of upcoming school year (KTVU)

Ahead of the upcoming school year, KTVU spoke with the superintendents of some of the Bay Area's largest public school districts – to ask them about their plans, challenges and goals for the upcoming school year.

San Francisco Unified School District is the largest public school district in the Bay Area, with more than 50,000 students in 115 schools.

8/8/23 - Setting Up Libraries to Be the Best Space in School (Edutopia)

At A. P. Giannini Middle School in San Francisco, almost half of the books brought into the school’s collection come from student requests, says teacher librarian Shannon Engelbrecht.

8/7/23 - Paper wings and a prayer: SFUSD program wants to close STEM gap for Black students (San Francisco Chronicle)

The glider’s brief maiden voyage didn’t dim Ibrahim Maxie’s enthusiasm. The 14-year-old, who will attend liberal arts charter school Gateway High this fall, had just completed Black Star Rising, a six-week math and science summer program offered through a partnership between the San Francisco Unified School District and UCSF.

8/4/23 - Redesigning the school cafeteria (ABC7 News)

Thanks to money from a voter approved bond and private donations, 82 school cafeterias will have been redesigned in a period of almost 10 years.

7/26/23 - It’s hard for English learners to get the state seal of biliteracy. A new bill aims to change that (EdSource)

“SFUSD was one of the first districts to adopt California’s State Seal of Biliteracy in 2013, and the state has modified the criteria for earning the seal over the last 10 years, making it harder for English learners to earn,” said Amy Brooks Gottesfeld, supervisor of multilingual pathway programs at SFUSD. “We wholeheartedly support the passage of AB 370, which would lead to more multilingual learners being recognized and celebrated for their multi/bilingualism with a seal of biliteracy on their diplomas.”

7/6/23 - Bay Area 5th grader heads to MLB Stem League all-star weekend (KTVU)

Niko Rober, a Bay Area fifth grader from Junipero Serra Elementary School in San Francisco, is heading to the Major League Baseball All-Star weekend in Seattle for a special global competition.

7/5/23 - San Francisco teacher builds community by nurturing ESL students (KPIX)

Teachers are known for going the extra mile, but Cathy Personius is known for going even farther for her students. Personius just retired from Francisco Middle School in San Francisco, where she's devoted more than 30 years teaching students English as their second language.

June 2023

6/22/23 - Teaching Our Children Well: A SF Pride Month Miracle (San Francisco Bay Times)

Something amazing took place at a San Francisco public elementary school on April 21. On this day, the Leonard R. Flynn Elementary School held its annual Rainbow Day, as part of their 7th Annual Rainbow Week.

6/21/23 - Teens talking it out and chalking up results (San Francisco Examiner)

When it comes to mediation between students, sometimes the best asset isn’t an adult but a friend — someone who understands what it’s like to be a teen.

California Lopez, a Mission High School student, knows this well; Trained in conflict resolution, Lopez has mediated dozens of disagreements between peers throughout her high school career.

6/21/23 - Student podcasters share the dark realities of middle school in America (NPR)

In the words of two San Francisco best friends – the middle school winners of this year's NPR Student Podcast Challenge – welcome to Middle School Now. In a classroom at Presidio Middle School, not far from the Golden Gate Bridge, 13-year-olds Erika Young and Norah Weiner sat down with NPR to tell them about their podcast. It is one of two Grand Prize winners chosen by our judges from more than 3,300 submissions from 48 states, as well as the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.

6/7/23 - Transitions in learning (KPIX)

Sarah Ballard-Hanson, principal at Thurgood Marshall Academic High School, talks about how the Class of 2023 made adjustments in their learning over the last several years.

6/7/23 - SF Peacemaker awardees recognized for preventing violence and conflict (KALW)

This year's winners include Susan Stone, a restorative justice practitioner who works inside juvenile halls; California Lopez, an 11th grader who mediates conflicts and mentors students at Mission High School; and Brava!, a community theater that offers youth alternatives to the streets and programming that reflects diverse communities.

6/7/23 - Solving declining public school enrollment (ABC7 News)

Districts like San Francisco are having to get creative to engage families. San Francisco Unified is still seeing declining enrollment, but the exodus experienced during the pandemic seems to have slowed down.

6/5/23 - San Francisco celebrates new recipients of 'Bridge to Excellence Scholarship' (KTVU)

On Monday, San Francisco Mayor London Breed and her office celebrated the new recipients of the city's "Bridge to Excellence Scholarship."

May 2023

5/31/23 - From a dirt floor in Guatemala to straight A’s: S.F. high school graduate’s stunning story (San Francisco Chronicle)

Oliser Aguilar will not only graduate from high school in San Francisco, but he’ll do so with nearly fluent English and a 3.95 grade point average that he earned while working two jobs.

5/31/23 - Mission Education Center celebrates 50th anniversary (ABC7 News)

The school is the city's only public elementary school specifically for newly arrived Spanish-speaking immigrant students. To celebrate 50 years, they unveiled a new mural.

5/30/23 - New Turf Field Unveiled at James Lick Middle School in San Francisco (NBC Bay Area)

James Lick Middle School in San Francisco’s Noe Valley neighborhood got a much-needed upgrade Tuesday. The school hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony to unveil its brand new turf field.

5/29/23 - Dancing with the special stars: SF students show talents, art on and off stage (ABC7 News)

It is said that "art promotes freedom of creative expression." A group of special education students from Access SFUSD: The Arc displayed their art projects at the ACT in San Francisco on Friday.

5/22/23 - O’Connell seniors build for the future in end-of-year exhibit (Mission Local)

Every April, the 130-odd seniors at John O’Connell Technical High School in the Mission present a final project called a capstone — the culmination of two years’ work within each student’s area of study, known as a pathway. 

5/20/23 - SF Teens on Public Health (KALW)

Students studying health sciences at Phillip and Sala Burton Academic High School in San Francisco worked with KALW radio to share their perspectives on health issues and solutions.

5/17/23 - As high school auto shops grow scarce nationwide, an SF program prevails (San Francisco Examiner)

One of the most popular electives for teens today isn’t robotics, chorus or debate. It’s automotive studies. “It’s the beginning of a revival,” said George Washington High School auto shop teacher Andre Higginbotham.

5/16/23 - Mission Education Center celebrates 50th anniversary (KCBS)

The Mission Education Center is a small school that serves recent immigrant children speaking Spanish.

5/11/23 - Roosevelt Middle School resurrects Fun Run (KCBS)

Close to 700 students participated in the run at Golden Gate Park.

5/9/23 - César Chávez students learn to skate (Mission Local)

With pads and helmets and strings pulled tight, dozens of students at César Chávez Elementary School step on skateboards three days a week and surf on the sidewalk, part of the after-school program on campus. 

5/8/23 - ABC7 Salutes 6 outstanding San Francisco high school seniors graduating in 2023

The 2023 Superintendent's 21st Century Awards Scholarship Program grants six graduating seniors in San Francisco who have excelled academically and have been leaders at their school and in their communities.

5/2/23 - Resurgence of chess in San Francisco (KALW)

A sudden resurgence of the 1,400-year-old game can only be explained by the COVID-19 pandemic causing everyone to stay home, chess tournaments resorting to function online, and the premiere of the Netflix series Queen’s Gambit, which told the story of a female chess prodigy becoming a chess master during the Cold War.

April 2023

4/26/23 - ‘Together Again’ celebrates students’ return to live theater (KRON4)

Director of ‘Together Again’ Keith Carames and Co-Founder and Artistic Director of the San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Company and joined host Olivia Horton to preview ‘Together Again’ celebrating SFUSD students’ return to theater after the pandemic.

4/20/23 - SF public school students blanket The City in art (San Francisco Examiner)

The City’s youngest artists have covered venues, parks and buses with visual art this month for the Citywide Youth Arts Festival, a tradition 30 years in the making that kicked off with a showcase of student performances last Saturday.

4/16/23 - Herd of goats helps protect San Francisco from brush fires (KPIX)

Heavy precipitation has led to an abundance of grass and other brush throughout San Francisco, but as the seasons change and the plants die, they become dangerously flammable. To help reduce the risk of fires, City Grazers has unleashed a herd of goats to graze throughout the city, including at Malcolm X Academy in SFUSD, and help manage the fire risk. 

4/7/23 - SOTA Celebrates 10 Years of World Music Education With Taiko, Gamelan and More (KQED)

It’s been a decade since the World Music Program was founded at Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of the Arts and students are poised to celebrate in a big way with “Takeover X”: three nights of performances at the school’s Don Kryston Memorial Theater, April 13–15.

March 2023

3/29/23 - San Francisco nonprofit gives free eyeglasses to at-risk kids (KPIX)

Curt Yagi of Real Options for City Kids (R.O.C.K.) crafted a one-day program at Visitacion Valley Middle School called Vision Day for students like 3rd grader Dominise Holmes of El Dorado Elementary School.

3/25/23 - SFUSD receives grant to teach financial literacy in high schools (San Francisco Examiner)

The San Francisco Unified School District announced it is the first in California to apply for and receive a grant that will allow the district's educators to integrate financial literacy curriculum in high schools.

3/17/23 - The San Francisco Unified School District to send out student assignments for next school year (in Chinese) (KTSF)

The San Francisco Unified School District shared that families will receive their student assignment letters for the 2023-2024 school year starting next week.

3/2/23 - San Francisco high schoolers create investment club (KTVU)

Students at George Washington High School are taking a hands-on approach to learn about economics. The teens started and ran an investment club, and are now managing a portfolio worth more than $14,000.

February 2023

2/10/23 - Bay Area education nonprofit wants every student to have a Black male teacher (ABC7 News)

"There's all kinds of data that suggests, especially for our Black boys in particular, but for our students of color, that if you have teachers that look like them as early as possible, there's all kinds of gains that they have," Jason Muse, a first-grade teacher at George Washington Carver Elementary School in San Francisco, said.

2/2/23 - Students take pride in Lunar New Year festival (ABC7 News)

Students at Alice Fong Yu Alternative School celebrated Lunar New Year with a festival focused on diversity and inclusivity. The school gym resembled an outdoor street fair with kids to build Chinese lanterns. calligraphy for beginners, and bowling for the youngest.

January 2023

1/31/23 - SF elementary students set to welcome Year of the Rabbit in Chinese New Year Parade (KPIX)

In the shadow of Coit Tower, students at Garfield Elementary School get ready to shine in another iconic San Francisco attraction, the annual Chinese New Year parade.

1/18/23 - Even After 50 Years On The Job, San Francisco School Bus Driver Still Goes Extra Mile For Students With Disabilities (NBC Bay Area)

Parents of children with special needs know how valuable a good bus driver can be. For the past 50 years in San Francisco, they’ve had a great one in Shirley Canyon.

1/9/23 - School custodians working overtime (ABC7 News)

Public schools in San Francisco have felt the impact of the storm and custodians like Miguel Cuellar at McKinley Elementary are working around the clock.

December 2022

12/26/22 - CA’s oldest public school still in operation in San Francisco (San Francisco Examiner)

Spring Valley Science Elementary School, which opened its doors to classroom instruction during the Gold Rush, celebrated its 170th birthday this year. Spring Valley was founded as a public institution in 1852, but its history dates back a bit further.

12/15/22 - SFUSD recruits record number of internal candidates to teach in classroom (San Francisco Examiner)

San Francisco Unified’s Pathway to Teaching program, which began in the 2017-18 academic year, has aimed to lower the cost and time barriers to become a credentialed teacher. This year, the program pulled from its own staff of substitute teachers, paraeducators and those with “emergency credentials,” or a provisional waiver to teach, to recruit a record number of internal applicants.

To date, the program has graduated 276 teachers who are now employed at SFUSD; this year the program received 94 applications.

12/15/22 - SF-based Filipino education program marks 10 years of inspiring youth (TFC News)

The Filipino World Languages in Elementary School program, more commonly known as Filipino WLES, celebrated its 10th anniversary. The party was held at Longfellow Elementary School in San Francisco where the educational program, which includes an ethnic studies curriculum focused on Filipino language and culture, is implemented.

12/15/22 - Retention bonuses for paraeducators (ABC7 News)

The City of San Francisco is allocating $3 million from its budget to give each paraeducator in SFUSD a retention bonus.

12/11/22 - Lincoln dominates Crenshaw-Los Angeles for CIF Division 7-A state title (San Francisco Chronicle) 

Ricky Underwood and Jamelle Newman combined for 337 rushing yards and five touchdowns, leading Lincoln to a 54-6 win over Crenshaw-Los Angeles Saturday at Kezar Stadium for its third state championship in five seasons.

November 2022

11/22/22 - Pathway to Teaching provides hands-on opportunity for aspiring teachers (KCBS)

Kristin Bijur, Head of Human Resources at the San Francisco Unified School District, says "it is an intensive experience of what it means to run and manage a classroom, teach curriculum, and collaborate with colleagues."

11/18/22 - Oldest California public school celebrates 170th anniversary (KCBS)

Spring Valley Science Elementary School has been a mainstay in San Francisco dating back to the Gold Rush.

11/15/22 - SF Giants Community Fund makes college dreams come true for Black students (KTVU)

At Oracle Park in San Francisco Tuesday night, there was a special induction ceremony in the name of Giants legend Willie Mays. But the stars who took center stage were not athletes, but Black high school students who have displayed the ability to overcome challenges.

11/2/22 - More California Kids Are Opting for Alternatives to Traditional Education—Just Ask SF’s Independence High (The San Francisco Standard)

Toward the end of the last school year—the first fully in-person return to campus since the pandemic started—something unusual for an alternative public high school in San Francisco started happening. For the first time, students signed up to attend Independence High School—a small school centered on independent study—in such great numbers that a wait list was required.

11/1/22 - SFUSD unveils state of the art kitchen for students (KTVU)

The new kitchen facility, unveiled at Marina Middle, will now serve meals as part of an effort to move towards freshly prepared food for students. Several middle and high schools are receiving upgraded equipment as part of the initiative.

October 2022

10/26/22 - Nonprofit Helps SF Students Complete Art Project (NBC Bay Area)

In San Francisco, art is coming with a powerful lesson for students. Sanchez Elementary School, in the city’s Mission District, is set to unveil a new 800-square-foot tile mosaic.

10/22/22 - SFUSD enrollment season kicks off (ABC7 News)

About 2000 families came to John O'Connell High School to learn more from representatives of the district's elementary schools.

10/20/22 - "The Great Shakeout" Day of Earthquake Preparedness (KRON4)

At Everett Middle School, students after the drill evacuated from the school as part of the Great Shakeout Drill, which prepares people on what to do before, during, and after an earthquake.

10/2/22 - SF elementary school students celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month by creating mosaic mural (ABC7 News)

Students at Sanchez Elementary in San Francisco are celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month by creating a huge mosaic mural. The artwork is called "Together We Rise," and it shows a community lifting itself after the COVID pandemic.

10/1/22 - Galileo Academy of Science and Technology celebrates 100th year anniversary (KCBS Radio)

Students started coming to Galileo in 1921 but the centennial celebration had to be postponed because of COVID, and Principal Peter Avila said it's good to finally be getting people back together properly again.

September 2022

9/26/22 - As Cantonese language wanes, efforts grow to preserve it (Associated Press)

The San Francisco Unified School District has Cantonese and Mandarin immersion programs for preK-8th grades.

9/19/22 - Salesforce: 10 years of funding schools (ABC7 News)

It's been nearly 10 years since Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff made a commitment to improve student outcomes by donating much-needed resources to San Francisco schools and later to those in Oakland. True to his word, today Benioff announced another large donation.

9/4/22 - SFUSD College and Career Readiness prepares students for life after high school (KCBS Radio)

Students in the San Francisco Unified School District are getting hands-on college and career preparation through a highly sought-after program.

August 2022

8/17/22 - 27 years ago, she adored her kindergarten teacher. Now that teacher is her boss at the same S.F. school. (San Francisco Chronicle)

It’s been 27 years since Jennifer Tan was a 5-year-old in Room B30 at San Francisco’s Gordon Lau Elementary School. She remembers almost everything about her kindergarten year: the rug they sat on, the posters on the wall, the time she got in trouble for talking in line. But more than anything she remembers her teacher, Gloria Choy, who taught her not only how to read, but how to be a good person, Tan said.

8/3/22 - Teachers in high demand across the Bay Area (CBS News Bay Area)

Andria Borba reports on the staffing shortages many school districts are suffering across the Bay Area ahead of school starting back up.

July 2022

7/13/22 - Summer construction program at John O'Connell High School provides hands-on opportunities for students (KCBS)

Students are painting, using power tools, and getting college credit and a stipend.

7/7/22 - SFUSD provides free school meals for all students as part of CA-funded program (ABC7 News)

Every student in the San Francisco Unified School District gets a healthy meal with food with high-quality produce from California farms.

June 2022

6/17/22 - New school to open in Mission Bay (ABC7 News)

The San Francisco Board of Education voted on Wednesday to build the first and only school in the Mission Bay neighborhood.

6/14/22 - Building a community of future educators (ABC7 News)

There are thousands of kids in the Bay Area participating in summer programs. In San Francisco, one focuses on building the future generation of Hispanic teachers at the high school level.

6/4/22 - SF students to use tipster program (ABC7 News)

Next fall, public school students in San Francisco will be trained on how to use an online tipster program so they can report anything from school threats to students who may be struggling.

May 2022

5/31/22 - Graduating San Francisco Unified students reflect on learning through pandemic (CBS Bay Area)

Tuesday was graduation day for hundreds of San Francisco public school students. KPIX 5 photojournalist Bryan Yuen talked to seniors graduating from Burton High who reflect on learning through the pandemic and their hopes for the future.

5/25/22 - ‘Are We Next?’: Lincoln High Students Mourn Lives Lost in Uvalde Massacre (The San Francisco Standard)

Students grabbed markers at Abraham Lincoln High School on Wednesday afternoon and lined up to answer a weighty question printed in orange letters: What are you thinking?

“They were only 10 years old,” one student wrote. 

“It’ll keep happening until we do something,” another stated. 

“Are we next?” a third asked.

The students were responding to the heartbreaking school massacre in Uvalde, Texas, which claimed the lives of 19 students and two adults on May 24. 

5/20/22 - New Chicken Coop at Rosa Parks Elementary in San Francisco (NBC Bay Area)

The chickens are back at Rosa Parks Elementary School in San Francisco after the program was temporarily discontinued at the height of the pandemic.

5/17/22 - SF school students walk out in protest of anti-trans laws (Bay Area Reporter)

Nearly a third of the 900 students at James Denman Middle School in Balboa Park poured down the stairs of the entry to the school at 10 a.m. to participate in a student-led — and faculty approved — walkout, protesting the rising tide of state-sponsored anti-LGBTQ legislation in places like Florida, Texas, Alabama, and numerous other states.

5/16/22 - Breaking into the boys' club: How women educators succeeded in male-dominated jobs (ABC7 News)

We often think of Title IX as equal female representation in varsity sports. But, in reality, it has gone much farther than the gym or the locker room.

Former Interim Superintendent Gwen Chan looks at an old picture taken in the 60s at what is now Harvey Milk Elementary when mostly men dominated the San Francisco School District.

5/13/22 - These S.F. teachers ran into a burning building to rescue residents from Fillmore District fire (San Francisco Chronicle)

Cecily Ina and Vincent Reyes, both teachers at Rosa Parks Elementary School, went into the building at 10 Inca Lane as firefighters worked to put out a two-alarm blaze that erupted shortly after 10 a.m.

5/6/22 - ABC7 Salutes 6 outstanding San Francisco high school seniors (ABC7 News)

The 2022 Superintendent's 21st Century Awards Scholarship Program grants six graduating seniors in San Francisco who have excelled academically and have been leaders at their school and in their communities.

5/3/22 - Investing in new teachers (ABC7 News)

"This program has really helped me expedite [my credential], it helps me get a lot of real experience in the classroom, and it's really good and affordable for a single mom like me," says AJ Johnson, a second grade teacher who's part of SFUSD's Pathway to Teaching program, where she earns a credential while working in a classroom paid for by the district.

April 2022

4/30/22 - At SF elementary school, LGBTQ pride is on the march (Bay Area Reporter)

Decked out in rainbow accessories roughly two-dozen George Peabody Elementary School students came together on the blacktop courtyard of their San Francisco public school for a flash mob performance to "LOVE" by Gianluca Vacchi and Sebastián Yatra.

4/22/22 - Local Educators Seek To Provide More Book Access In Bay Area ‘Book Deserts’ (KPIX)

World Book Day is on Saturday, but many neighborhoods in the Bay Area often lack access to books. Unite for Literacy calls them “book deserts,” and their map shows that areas along the peninsula and in San Francisco, Santa Clara, Contra Costa and Alameda counties fall under these. One local teacher-librarian though is trying to change that in her school.

Jessica Martinez works at Bret Harte Elementary School on Gilman Avenue in San Francisco. United for Literacy’s map shows that in that area, just about 5% of homes have more than 100 books.

4/14/22 - How to Instill a 'Growth Mindset' in Kids (US News and World Report)

With a growth mindset, kids see the goal as development, not perfection, and can ditch this binary thinking, says Kristin Smith Alvarez, who has seen growth mindset coaching in action in dozens of schools as a teacher educator in the San Francisco Unified School District.

4/8/22 - Lowell High’s elite robotics team is racing to finish its robot. Can they make it to a high-stakes competition? (San Francisco Chronicle)

For the first time in two years, Lowell High School students in San Francisco will face off in person against students from across California and other countries in the Silicon Valley Regional First Robotics Competition.

4/4/22 - Teaching 'The 1619 Project' (ABC7 News)

'The 1619 Project' documents the arrival of the first enslaved Africans in the English colony of Virginia - now the first picture book for kids about it has been published. One of the authors will read it tomorrow to San Francisco students.

March 2022

3/31/22 - SF students getting an early jump on a career in hip hop (KCBS Radio)

KCBS Radio's Kathy Novak and Bay Current host Matt Pitman introduce you to a group of students at June Jordan School for Equity, who are getting hands on experience and opportunities to explore a career in music after graduating.

3/24/22 - Eight Best Practices for Teaching in Dual Language and Other Bilingual Programs (School Library Journal)

Knowing the structure and goals of an individual class can help librarians best adjust their lessons and policies. “In some schools the model might not be all that well-defined, and there may even be disagreements,” says Judy Viertel, school librarian at Marshall Elementary School in San Francisco. “Because it’s about language, and our work is centered on language and information, we can actually be a voice in the discussion of what the program should look like.”

3/22/22 - Teaching about the Supreme Court (ABC7 News)

A history class at John O'Connell High School in San Francisco learned today that the Supreme Court is there to ensure equal justice for all, so there was great interest in the confirmation hearing of the first African American woman to be nominated.

3/10/22 - S.F.’s newest fire station is floating off the Embarcadero (San Francisco Chronicle)

Mission High School senior Marcus Coleman was part of the group that came for the opening. From the Bayview, he said he hopes to one day work as a firefighter in his community, as he marveled at the floating station. Coleman is part of a program at his high school that trains students in fire science and basic EMT preparation in partnership with San Francisco City College and the Fire Department.

3/8/22 - Celebrating National School Breakfast Week (NBC Bay Area)

Bryant Elementary in San Francisco partnered with Project Cereal and Conscious Kitchen to give kids an organic breakfast, including milk, cereal, and fruit.

February 2022

2/18/22 - African American Honor Roll students celebrated (ABC7 News)

It was a very special night for hundreds of African-American high school students who made the honor roll in the San Francisco Unified School District.

2/14/22 - Case Study: Project-Based Learning in San Francisco: Research Study Sparks Middle School Science Curriculum (Lucas Education Research)

When the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) was looking for a new middle school science curriculum in 2016, it sought a program that would align with the new Next Generation Science Standards and the district’s equity goals.

January 2022

1/26/22 - Meet San Francisco’s 17-Year-Old Self-Taught Nail Technician (The San Francisco Standard)

Seventeen-year-old high school senior Jianna Cariño has always excelled as a student. But she’s also exceptional at doing nails. Cariño operates a homespun nail salon out of her parents’ garage in Visitacion Valley, all while juggling a part-time job, the turbulence of life as a high school senior at Lowell High School—one of the city’s most academically rigorous schools—and being a big sister to a baby sibling born during the pandemic.

1/19/22 - SFUSD high school graduation rate up (ABC7 News)

The high school graduation numbers were released by the California Department of Education: San Francisco Unified reported that 88.3% of the Class of 2021 graduated, an improvement from 84.4% in 2016-17. The graduation rate is measured within four years of starting ninth grade.

1/12/22 - Bay Area schools work to feed all students two free meals daily (KALW)

On a cool fall morning, the kitchen at McAteer Culinary Center in San Francisco is buzzing with activity. Cook Sonia Aguilar is standing at a stainless steel table chopping lettuce for the next day’s chicken salad. Nearby Ming Yu is scooping chicken adobo into serving dishes. He describes the lunch menu for that day, “Today, lunch for high school, we have a chicken adobo and a turkey taco. I hope they like it!”

December 2021

12/6/21 - Defining an Entrepreneurial Spirit at Lincoln High School (ABC7 News)

Lincoln High School student Michael Yu will receive a special commendation for his work to encourage his peers to get vaccinated.

November 2021

11/12/21 - San Francisco Unified School District is now accepting enrollment applications for next school year (in Chinese) (KTSF)

The San Francisco Unified School District is now accepting enrollment applications for the 2022-23 school year. Schools are hosting in-person enrollment workshops for families.

11/3/21 - SFUSD set to vaccinate children as young as five years old (San Francisco Examiner)

Fourth and fifth graders at Malcolm X Academy Elementary in Bayview-Hunters Point had a chance to get their vaccine questions answered directly by UCSF pediatrician Dr. Daniel Woolridge, SFUSD Superintendent Vincent Matthews and School Board President Gabriela López.

October 2021

10/28/21 - Samoan immersion preschool opens on US mainland (AP/USA Today)

What's believed to be the first dual-language Samoan preschool on the US mainland has started at Leola M. Havard Early Education School at SFUSD, with a goal of preserving Samoan language and culture.

10/18/21 - Is bird-watching the antidote to the pandemic? S.F. high school pushes passion projects (San Francisco Chronicle)

For the students from Independence High School, an alternative public school, this classroom 900 feet above sea level was something akin to heaven after 18 months in distance-learning isolation.

10/9/21 - One group in San Francisco is happy to be back to in-person classes (KCBS Radio)

Students from Downtown High's Wilderness Arts Literacy Collaborative talked to KCBS Radio about volunteering at Heron’s Head Park to complete construction on their new nature exploration area.

10/4/21 - A SFUSD training program that’s diversifying the teacher workforce (San Francisco Examiner)

Forty-six-year-old Josefina Matus, a behavioral therapist and mother of 11 children, had always wanted to be a teacher. So when she was accepted to San Francisco Unified School District’s Pathway To Teaching program, she was overcome. She couldn’t believe that she — a Latina — could get the job. “I always had teachers of other cultures,” and it was rare to encounter teachers who looked like me, she said.

September 2021

9/30/21 - Program Helps Professionals Become Teachers in San Francisco (in Spanish) (Telemundo 48)

The Bay Area has experienced a teacher shortage due to the high cost of living in the region. In SFUSD, the Pathway to Teaching program helps professionals become teachers.

9/24/21 - Mask ambassadors at school (ABC7 News)

Schools in the Bay Area are finding creative ways to encourage students to keep their masks on. El Dorado Elementary School in SFUSD is using student ambassadors to make sure their peers stay safe.

9/22/21 - This school puts mental health and relationship-building first to help students thrive (NBC Today)

At Bessie Carmichael School PreK-8 in San Francisco, 18% of students have experienced homelessness in the last year. The school partnered with the nonprofit HEARTS to train staff in trauma-informed practices that have proven to help improve students’ sense of self and well-being.

9/13/21 - Equity in the Classroom: Black teacher in SF's Bayview inspiring students, diversifying industry (ABC7 News)

In the last 18 months, America has endured a health crisis unseen in our lifetime. Our kids were away from the classroom and many people lost their jobs. Still, we like to think that we are strong as individuals, as communities and as a nation. There are two recruiting programs that are helping to build equity among teachers to make America even stronger. That's how we met Mr. C. Mr. C is short for Codion Isom, a kindergarten teacher at Malcolm X Academy in San Francisco's Bayview District.

9/8/21 - San Francisco Students Learn How to Manage Anxiety, Emotions (NBC Bay Area)

Research released Monday found that the benefits for San Francisco Unified students who took an ethnic studies course in ninth grade lasted throughout high school, resulting in higher attendance, higher graduation rates and increased enrollment in college, compared with similarly matched students who didn’t take the course.

9/7/21 - Research finds ethnic studies in San Francisco had enduring impact (EdSource)

Research released Monday found that the benefits for San Francisco Unified students who took an ethnic studies course in ninth grade lasted throughout high school, resulting in higher attendance, higher graduation rates and increased enrollment in college, compared with similarly matched students who didn’t take the course.

9/1/21 - From Teachers to Custodians, Meet the Educators Who Saved A Pandemic School Year (TIME)

Karla Zambrano-­Armijos, a family-­support specialist, was selected to produce a show, SF Loves Learning, because of her expertise in early-­childhood education, and under Brian Fox’s leadership, she and several other educators were tasked with producing the show to air on the local KTVU Plus channel and to stream on YouTube. To get it done, Zambrano-­Armijos says, they “called on the city.” The city responded.

July 2021

7/6/21 - 'How can we help?': S.F. schools embrace customer service line to solve problems during pandemic (SF Chronicle)

When the pandemic hit and San Francisco schools closed, the chaos was overwhelming, with families and staff floundering to figure out technology, schedules, food distribution, and support for disabled or depressed students. District officials decided to do what is a no-brainer for companies and corporations: They set up a customer service help line.

May 2021

5/24/21 - Here's what's changed in SFUSD culture, curriculum since murder of George Floyd (ABC7)

The murder of George Floyd provoked a transformative response at many school districts across the country. At San Francisco Unified, now more than ever, the work involving teachers, students and staff is done through an anti-racism lens.

February 2021

2/15/21 - SFUSD receives $2 million gift from real estate investment firm for Mission Bay elementary school project (SF Examiner)

The new school is expected to serve roughly 500 pre-kindergarten to fifth graders as well as feature a Linked Learning Hub where high school students from across the District can participate in job training, internships and other professional development activities.

2/8/21 - How SFUSD is preparing sites for in-person learning (ABC7)

Chief of Facilities Dawn Kamalanathan gives an update about the work to prepare school sites for in-person learning.

January 2021

1/29/21 - Balboa High Student Strives To Help Community (KPIX 5)

Rana Salem, a senior at Balboa High, is a youth leader at the Arab Resource & Organizing Center (AROC), a cloud engineer intern, and has tutored younger students at Dr. Charles R. Drew Elementary School in SFUSD.

1/27/21 - Inspiring Sister And Brother Music Duo Use Their Talents To Uplift Others (KPIX5)

Cleo Guerrero, a senior at Lowell High, and her brother Neo volunteer their musical talents in the city as well as tutor students online.

1/22/21 - Mission High Teen Set Sights On College In Atlanta (KPIX 5)

Isreal Laviene, a senior at Mission High, boasts a 3.9 GPA, dabbles in modeling and sees himself as a future entrepreneur. He is eyeing Morehouse in Atlanta as his college of choice.

1/15/21 - Balboa Teacher Shares Capitol Riot Classroom Lessons (ABC7)

Balboa High School educator Sergio Robledo discusses how he addressed the Capitol Riot with students.

1/7/21 - How Do Teachers, Parents Explain Capitol Riot to Students? (NBC Bay Area)

“My years as an educator allowed me to come with a lesson pretty quickly. This is what happened, this is what I need for them to understand,” said Michael Rosenberg, an educator at Balboa High School.

1/1/21 - Mission Education Center Full of 'Heroes' (Noe Valley Voice)

The school shares distance learning bright spots.

August 2020

8/4/20 - Experts discuss impact of COVID-19 on future of elementary schools, distance learning

Watch as experts, including SFUSD's Deputy Superintendent of Instruction Enikia Ford Morthel, discuss the impact of COVID-19 on elementary schools, distance learning and what's being done to make it work during the pandemic.

July 2020

Bay Area schools repurpose their 3D printers to make PPE for medical workers (ABC7 News)

San Francisco Unified School District let students take home 3D printers at its schools to make personal protective equipment.

QuickBites: SFUSD Meal Distribution Program (SFGovTV)

“Our economy is going to take a long time to recover; our families are going to be relying on school meals more than ever.” - Jennifer LeBarre, SFUSD Executive Director, Student Nutrition Services

June 2020

California school districts forced to move to virtual recruiting — and it’s working (EdSource)

Most California school districts were just plunging into their annual teacher recruitment season in March when schools began to close in response to the coronavirus pandemic. One by one districts canceled job fairs, pulled recruiters off the road and shifted to a virtual hiring process.

May 2020

SFUSD designs distance learning for English learner students (KTSF)

As part of the San Francisco Unified School District’s distance learning plan to support the continued education of each and every student, educators are finding new ways to provide the grade-specific English language development (ELD) support that students receive while school buildings are open.

April 2020

SFUSD teams up with KTVU to produce distance learning show (KTVU)

Dr. Vincent Matthews, SFUSD Superintendent, discusses how the new television program "SF Loves Learning" is helping children stay prepared while doing schoolwork outside the classroom.

How San Francisco Unified feeds school families in the time of coronavirus (SF Chronicle)

On a recent Wednesday morning, the line outside San Francisco’s Mission High School snaked down Dolores Street, wrapping into the school parking lot. Chalk X’s on the pavement, 6 feet apart, instructed people where to stand to maintain proper social distance. The hundred assembled were there to pick up bags of free meals for their children, provided by the San Francisco Unified School District.

March 2020

San Francisco schools distribute laptops to students in need for online distance learning (KTVU)

Families began to arrive at San Francisco Mission High School on Tuesday where the district was distributing Chromebook laptop computers to students who need them.

February 2020

How some California school districts invest in counseling – and achieve results (EdSource)

San Francisco Unified is among dozens of districts across California that has invested in counseling in recent years, hiring more staff to guide students through the college and career process and help with their mental health needs.

January 2020​

A Decade Of Work Leads To Nearly 90 Percent Black Graduation Rate For SFUSD (KALW)

San Francisco Unified is sharing some good news about graduation rates. Recent data show a jump for African American students -- to nearly 90 percent.