Our education coverage examines the inequities students face in Bay Area and California schools, and reports on what it will take to educate the next generation.
San Francisco Prepares to End Its Public School Lottery System
Don’t Skip the School Board Races on Your Ballot. Here’s Why They Could Be Pivotal
San Diego at the Heart of New Native American Studies Curriculum
Embattled Northern California Charter School Files for Bankruptcy
SF Has the Fewest Kids. City Leaders Hope These Policies Will Help Families Stick Around
SF NAACP Calls on San Francisco Unified to Hold Racist Behavior Accountable
A Bay Area Teacher Was Acquitted of Sexual Abuse. He’s on Trial Again for New Allegations
The Next 250: Young People Are Finding Their Voices Through Voter Registration
SFUSD Reveals Location of New Mandarin Immersion Campus
California Community Colleges Can Offer Up to 12 New Bachelor’s Degrees Under New Laws
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"title": "San Francisco Prepares to End Its Public School Lottery System",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a>’s schools could soon pivot to neighborhood-based enrollment, 15 years after the controversial “lottery” system aimed to give families a sweeping choice of schools anywhere in the city, but offered little certainty of where their child would be placed. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The school board is expected to approve one of two plans that would overhaul the San Francisco Unified School District’s student assignment system in favor of a policy staff said will be more predictable and keep more students closer to home. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>SFUSD’s current enrollment system allows families to apply to any of its elementary school campuses across the city, but does not guarantee students’ acceptance in any specific one.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Critics have called the system stressful, confusing, and frustrating enough to turn some families away from the city’s public school system entirely. But others are wary of losing the element of choice, especially for families who live in neighborhoods where schools have weathered decades of underinvestment and underenrollment.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In recent weeks, SFUSD’s board and staff have spent late nights discussing possible enrollment options, narrowing down their choices to two last week. Both of the plans on the table on Tuesday night would guarantee students who apply by the enrollment deadline a seat in an assigned elementary school based on their address — and eliminate the requirement that families rank school choices in order to enroll in SFUSD.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1998\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-33-MC_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095610\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-33-MC_qed.jpg 1998w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-33-MC_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-33-MC_qed-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1998px) 100vw, 1998px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Leo Pham leads the way to his classroom after Jose Ortega Elementary School’s first morning circle of the school year on Aug. 17, 2026, in San Francisco. (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The board is expected to direct staff to hammer out the details for one of those policies, called “Option B” and “Option C,” for approval by April.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Under Option B, students would be given the option to accept a seat at their neighborhood school. They would have the option of applying to other SFUSD schools and could be assigned if there are empty seats. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Option C would similarly give applicants the choice to accept their neighborhood school. They could also apply to other campuses, but only those that offer special programs like language pathways, newcomer services or a kindergarten through eighth grade model. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Last week, the board eliminated a third option, Option A, which would have created enrollment zones. Under that policy, students would have been guaranteed a seat in one of three to five elementary schools near their home, but not necessarily their first choice. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Option A was most similar to a policy the district approved in 2020, but never implemented after the COVID-19 pandemic and significant community pushback. That policy would have had applicants rank schools in their attendance zone and assign them based on that list, as well as diversity and tiebreaker considerations.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Board members expressed concerns that Option A would be difficult to implement before enrollment for fall of 2028 begins, and poses equity concerns between neighborhoods. It also wouldn’t eliminate some of the perils of the current system — applicants would need to rank multiple schools, likely tour multiple campuses and manage the stress of uncertainty while awaiting an assignment.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But Option A rivaled Option B in popularity among families who responded to a district engagement survey this fall.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Of more than 2,7000 respondents, 73% said Option A would meet their needs, while 71% said Option B would. Option C received much lower approval, at just 48%. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Within those percentages, families’ preferences were starkly divided along neighborhood lines: west side and central neighborhoods favored Option A, while the Southeast leaned toward Option B.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Historically, students in the Sunset and Richmond have been more likely to favor neighborhood schools, while some in the Bayview, Mission Bay and Excelsior have preferred schools outside of their neighborhoods, worried that the schools closest to them don’t have the resources their kids need. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Mirna Vasquez, a Bayview resident whose three children have attended SFUSD schools, said choice remains a priority for her.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“My priority looking at schools [was] they provided a bilingual program,” she said. “I realized that schools near to my house, they don’t have it.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She also said she wanted to send her children to a campus that was “really funded” and had a full staff.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-36-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094205\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-36-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-36-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-36-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mission Bay Elementary School in San Francisco on Aug. 6, 2026. Mission Bay School is the first new public SFUSD school to open in 20 years. (Gina Castro for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Overwhelmingly, families who responded to the district’s survey said that for them to enroll a child in a school by their home, they would need an environment that felt safe, has strong math and reading instruction and a stable teaching staff. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Until they guarantee me as a parent, ‘we’re going to fund it,’ maybe I can enroll my children in my neighborhood schools. But if they don’t promise that … I don’t mind driving far away to make sure my kids have better access to, I don’t want to say better education, because I don’t know if that’s true, but more support,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Families who preferred Option A reported much higher levels of satisfaction with the schools near their homes: just 37% in favor of A responded that there was “no acceptable school nearby,” compared to 60% of those who preferred Option B.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For decades, the school district has struggled to ensure that schools in lower-income neighborhoods and where students have had lower academic performance rates receive equitable resources, staff and programs — creating a loop of underenrollment, and so, a lack of funding, for schools with the most acute needs. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>At their final study session before Tuesday’s vote, some board members expressed concerns that either policy could perpetuate the same issues: “I’m very concerned that we would expect similar patterns to repeat, of students from the southeast preferencing schools other than their neighborhood schools [and] going to open spots,” said Vice President Jaime Huling. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250818-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12052662\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250818-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250818-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250818-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Students at Sanchez Elementary School in San Francisco arrive for their first day of the school year on Aug. 18, 2025. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Then, having their schools be underenrolled even though that’s where the most students are, and being faced in April with making decisions about closing schools in the southeast,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Looming in the background is a mandate from the board for Superintendent Maria Su to propose possible school closures and mergers by 2030.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The district’s last attempt to close schools in 2024 was abandoned after parents, union representatives and city officials pushed back, in part because they said the campuses set to close or merge would disproportionately impact historically marginalized communities. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>After Tuesday night’s decision, staff will move forward with redrawing attendance areas for neighborhood schools and making sure there are enough seats for all students. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The board will meet again in November to discuss more specifics, like tiebreaker metrics for assigning students to non-neighborhood schools. The current lottery gives priority to siblings of students enrolled at the school, and those who live in areas of the city with the lowest test scores, among other factors.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>They’ve also directed staff to implement the enrollment change in a way that creates strong, well-resourced schools in every neighborhood. Whether that’s possible under either proposed model, though, remains to be seen.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>SFUSD’s current enrollment system allows families to apply to any of its elementary school campuses across the city, but does not guarantee students’ acceptance in any specific one.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Critics have called the system stressful, confusing, and frustrating enough to turn some families away from the city’s public school system entirely. But others are wary of losing the element of choice, especially for families who live in neighborhoods where schools have weathered decades of underinvestment and underenrollment.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Critics have called the system stressful, confusing, and frustrating enough to turn some families away from the city’s public school system entirely. But others are wary of losing the element of choice, especially for families who live in neighborhoods where schools have weathered decades of underinvestment and underenrollment.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In recent weeks, SFUSD’s board and staff have spent late nights discussing possible enrollment options, narrowing down their choices to two last week. Both of the plans on the table on Tuesday night would guarantee students who apply by the enrollment deadline a seat in an assigned elementary school based on their address — and eliminate the requirement that families rank school choices in order to enroll in SFUSD.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In recent weeks, SFUSD’s board and staff have spent late nights discussing possible enrollment options, narrowing down their choices to two last week. Both of the plans on the table on Tuesday night would guarantee students who apply by the enrollment deadline a seat in an assigned elementary school based on their address — and eliminate the requirement that families rank school choices in order to enroll in SFUSD.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-33-MC_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095610\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-33-MC_qed.jpg 1998w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-33-MC_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-33-MC_qed-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Leo Pham leads the way to his classroom after Jose Ortega Elementary School’s first morning circle of the school year on Aug. 17, 2026, in San Francisco.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The board is expected to direct staff to hammer out the details for one of those policies, called “Option B” and “Option C,” for approval by April.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Under Option B, students would be given the option to accept a seat at their neighborhood school. They would have the option of applying to other SFUSD schools and could be assigned if there are empty seats. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Under Option B, students would be given the option to accept a seat at their neighborhood school. They would have the option of applying to other SFUSD schools and could be assigned if there are empty seats. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Option C would similarly give applicants the choice to accept their neighborhood school. They could also apply to other campuses, but only those that offer special programs like language pathways, newcomer services or a kindergarten through eighth grade model. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Option C would similarly give applicants the choice to accept their neighborhood school. They could also apply to other campuses, but only those that offer special programs like language pathways, newcomer services or a kindergarten through eighth grade model. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Last week, the board eliminated a third option, Option A, which would have created enrollment zones. Under that policy, students would have been guaranteed a seat in one of three to five elementary schools near their home, but not necessarily their first choice. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Option A was most similar to a policy the district approved in 2020, but never implemented after the COVID-19 pandemic and significant community pushback. That policy would have had applicants rank schools in their attendance zone and assign them based on that list, as well as diversity and tiebreaker considerations.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Option A was most similar to a policy the district approved in 2020, but never implemented after the COVID-19 pandemic and significant community pushback. That policy would have had applicants rank schools in their attendance zone and assign them based on that list, as well as diversity and tiebreaker considerations.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Board members expressed concerns that Option A would be difficult to implement before enrollment for fall of 2028 begins, and poses equity concerns between neighborhoods. It also wouldn’t eliminate some of the perils of the current system — applicants would need to rank multiple schools, likely tour multiple campuses and manage the stress of uncertainty while awaiting an assignment.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Board members expressed concerns that Option A would be difficult to implement before enrollment for fall of 2028 begins, and poses equity concerns between neighborhoods. It also wouldn’t eliminate some of the perils of the current system — applicants would need to rank multiple schools, likely tour multiple campuses and manage the stress of uncertainty while awaiting an assignment.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But Option A rivaled Option B in popularity among families who responded to a district engagement survey this fall.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Of more than 2,7000 respondents, 73% said Option A would meet their needs, while 71% said Option B would. Option C received much lower approval, at just 48%. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Of more than 2,7000 respondents, 73% said Option A would meet their needs, while 71% said Option B would. Option C received much lower approval, at just 48%. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Within those percentages, families’ preferences were starkly divided along neighborhood lines: west side and central neighborhoods favored Option A, while the Southeast leaned toward Option B.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Within those percentages, families’ preferences were starkly divided along neighborhood lines: west side and central neighborhoods favored Option A, while the Southeast leaned toward Option B.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Historically, students in the Sunset and Richmond have been more likely to favor neighborhood schools, while some in the Bayview, Mission Bay and Excelsior have preferred schools outside of their neighborhoods, worried that the schools closest to them don’t have the resources their kids need. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Historically, students in the Sunset and Richmond have been more likely to favor neighborhood schools, while some in the Bayview, Mission Bay and Excelsior have preferred schools outside of their neighborhoods, worried that the schools closest to them don’t have the resources their kids need. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Mirna Vasquez, a Bayview resident whose three children have attended SFUSD schools, said choice remains a priority for her.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Mirna Vasquez, a Bayview resident whose three children have attended SFUSD schools, said choice remains a priority for her.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“My priority looking at schools [was] they provided a bilingual program,” she said. “I realized that schools near to my house, they don’t have it.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>She also said she wanted to send her children to a campus that was “really funded” and had a full staff.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>She also said she wanted to send her children to a campus that was “really funded” and had a full staff.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-36-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094205\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-36-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-36-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-36-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mission Bay Elementary School in San Francisco on Aug. 6, 2026. Mission Bay School is the first new public SFUSD school to open in 20 years.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Gina Castro for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Overwhelmingly, families who responded to the district’s survey said that for them to enroll a child in a school by their home, they would need an environment that felt safe, has strong math and reading instruction and a stable teaching staff. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Overwhelmingly, families who responded to the district’s survey said that for them to enroll a child in a school by their home, they would need an environment that felt safe, has strong math and reading instruction and a stable teaching staff. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Until they guarantee me as a parent, ‘we’re going to fund it,’ maybe I can enroll my children in my neighborhood schools. But if they don’t promise that … I don’t mind driving far away to make sure my kids have better access to, I don’t want to say better education, because I don’t know if that’s true, but more support,” she said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Until they guarantee me as a parent, ‘we’re going to fund it,’ maybe I can enroll my children in my neighborhood schools. But if they don’t promise that … I don’t mind driving far away to make sure my kids have better access to, I don’t want to say better education, because I don’t know if that’s true, but more support,” she said. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Families who preferred Option A reported much higher levels of satisfaction with the schools near their homes: just 37% in favor of A responded that there was “no acceptable school nearby,” compared to 60% of those who preferred Option B.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Families who preferred Option A reported much higher levels of satisfaction with the schools near their homes: just 37% in favor of A responded that there was “no acceptable school nearby,” compared to 60% of those who preferred Option B.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>For decades, the school district has struggled to ensure that schools in lower-income neighborhoods and where students have had lower academic performance rates receive equitable resources, staff and programs — creating a loop of underenrollment, and so, a lack of funding, for schools with the most acute needs. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>For decades, the school district has struggled to ensure that schools in lower-income neighborhoods and where students have had lower academic performance rates receive equitable resources, staff and programs — creating a loop of underenrollment, and so, a lack of funding, for schools with the most acute needs. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>At their final study session before Tuesday’s vote, some board members expressed concerns that either policy could perpetuate the same issues: “I’m very concerned that we would expect similar patterns to repeat, of students from the southeast preferencing schools other than their neighborhood schools [and] going to open spots,” said Vice President Jaime Huling. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>At their final study session before Tuesday’s vote, some board members expressed concerns that either policy could perpetuate the same issues: “I’m very concerned that we would expect similar patterns to repeat, of students from the southeast preferencing schools other than their neighborhood schools [and] going to open spots,” said Vice President Jaime Huling. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Then, having their schools be underenrolled even though that’s where the most students are, and being faced in April with making decisions about closing schools in the southeast,” she said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Looming in the background is a mandate from the board for Superintendent Maria Su to propose possible school closures and mergers by 2030.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The district’s last attempt to close schools in 2024 was abandoned after parents, union representatives and city officials pushed back, in part because they said the campuses set to close or merge would disproportionately impact historically marginalized communities. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>After Tuesday night’s decision, staff will move forward with redrawing attendance areas for neighborhood schools and making sure there are enough seats for all students. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The board will meet again in November to discuss more specifics, like tiebreaker metrics for assigning students to non-neighborhood schools. The current lottery gives priority to siblings of students enrolled at the school, and those who live in areas of the city with the lowest test scores, among other factors.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The board will meet again in November to discuss more specifics, like tiebreaker metrics for assigning students to non-neighborhood schools. The current lottery gives priority to siblings of students enrolled at the school, and those who live in areas of the city with the lowest test scores, among other factors.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>They’ve also directed staff to implement the enrollment change in a way that creates strong, well-resourced schools in every neighborhood. Whether that’s possible under either proposed model, though, remains to be seen.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>They’ve also directed staff to implement the enrollment change in a way that creates strong, well-resourced schools in every neighborhood. Whether that’s possible under either proposed model, though, remains to be seen.\u003c/p>\n"
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"excerpt": "As SFUSD moves to replace its lottery with neighborhood schools, parents in underfunded areas worry the new policy could leave their local campuses behind. ",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a>’s schools could soon pivot to neighborhood-based enrollment, 15 years after the controversial “lottery” system aimed to give families a sweeping choice of schools anywhere in the city, but offered little certainty of where their child would be placed. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The school board is expected to approve one of two plans that would overhaul the San Francisco Unified School District’s student assignment system in favor of a policy staff said will be more predictable and keep more students closer to home. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>SFUSD’s current enrollment system allows families to apply to any of its elementary school campuses across the city, but does not guarantee students’ acceptance in any specific one.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Critics have called the system stressful, confusing, and frustrating enough to turn some families away from the city’s public school system entirely. But others are wary of losing the element of choice, especially for families who live in neighborhoods where schools have weathered decades of underinvestment and underenrollment.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In recent weeks, SFUSD’s board and staff have spent late nights discussing possible enrollment options, narrowing down their choices to two last week. Both of the plans on the table on Tuesday night would guarantee students who apply by the enrollment deadline a seat in an assigned elementary school based on their address — and eliminate the requirement that families rank school choices in order to enroll in SFUSD.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1998\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-33-MC_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095610\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-33-MC_qed.jpg 1998w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-33-MC_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-33-MC_qed-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1998px) 100vw, 1998px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Leo Pham leads the way to his classroom after Jose Ortega Elementary School’s first morning circle of the school year on Aug. 17, 2026, in San Francisco. (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The board is expected to direct staff to hammer out the details for one of those policies, called “Option B” and “Option C,” for approval by April.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Under Option B, students would be given the option to accept a seat at their neighborhood school. They would have the option of applying to other SFUSD schools and could be assigned if there are empty seats. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Option C would similarly give applicants the choice to accept their neighborhood school. They could also apply to other campuses, but only those that offer special programs like language pathways, newcomer services or a kindergarten through eighth grade model. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Last week, the board eliminated a third option, Option A, which would have created enrollment zones. Under that policy, students would have been guaranteed a seat in one of three to five elementary schools near their home, but not necessarily their first choice. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Option A was most similar to a policy the district approved in 2020, but never implemented after the COVID-19 pandemic and significant community pushback. That policy would have had applicants rank schools in their attendance zone and assign them based on that list, as well as diversity and tiebreaker considerations.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Board members expressed concerns that Option A would be difficult to implement before enrollment for fall of 2028 begins, and poses equity concerns between neighborhoods. It also wouldn’t eliminate some of the perils of the current system — applicants would need to rank multiple schools, likely tour multiple campuses and manage the stress of uncertainty while awaiting an assignment.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But Option A rivaled Option B in popularity among families who responded to a district engagement survey this fall.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Of more than 2,7000 respondents, 73% said Option A would meet their needs, while 71% said Option B would. Option C received much lower approval, at just 48%. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Within those percentages, families’ preferences were starkly divided along neighborhood lines: west side and central neighborhoods favored Option A, while the Southeast leaned toward Option B.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Historically, students in the Sunset and Richmond have been more likely to favor neighborhood schools, while some in the Bayview, Mission Bay and Excelsior have preferred schools outside of their neighborhoods, worried that the schools closest to them don’t have the resources their kids need. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Mirna Vasquez, a Bayview resident whose three children have attended SFUSD schools, said choice remains a priority for her.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“My priority looking at schools [was] they provided a bilingual program,” she said. “I realized that schools near to my house, they don’t have it.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She also said she wanted to send her children to a campus that was “really funded” and had a full staff.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-36-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094205\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-36-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-36-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-36-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mission Bay Elementary School in San Francisco on Aug. 6, 2026. Mission Bay School is the first new public SFUSD school to open in 20 years. (Gina Castro for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Overwhelmingly, families who responded to the district’s survey said that for them to enroll a child in a school by their home, they would need an environment that felt safe, has strong math and reading instruction and a stable teaching staff. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Until they guarantee me as a parent, ‘we’re going to fund it,’ maybe I can enroll my children in my neighborhood schools. But if they don’t promise that … I don’t mind driving far away to make sure my kids have better access to, I don’t want to say better education, because I don’t know if that’s true, but more support,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Families who preferred Option A reported much higher levels of satisfaction with the schools near their homes: just 37% in favor of A responded that there was “no acceptable school nearby,” compared to 60% of those who preferred Option B.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For decades, the school district has struggled to ensure that schools in lower-income neighborhoods and where students have had lower academic performance rates receive equitable resources, staff and programs — creating a loop of underenrollment, and so, a lack of funding, for schools with the most acute needs. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>At their final study session before Tuesday’s vote, some board members expressed concerns that either policy could perpetuate the same issues: “I’m very concerned that we would expect similar patterns to repeat, of students from the southeast preferencing schools other than their neighborhood schools [and] going to open spots,” said Vice President Jaime Huling. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250818-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12052662\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250818-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250818-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250818-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Students at Sanchez Elementary School in San Francisco arrive for their first day of the school year on Aug. 18, 2025. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Then, having their schools be underenrolled even though that’s where the most students are, and being faced in April with making decisions about closing schools in the southeast,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Looming in the background is a mandate from the board for Superintendent Maria Su to propose possible school closures and mergers by 2030.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The district’s last attempt to close schools in 2024 was abandoned after parents, union representatives and city officials pushed back, in part because they said the campuses set to close or merge would disproportionately impact historically marginalized communities. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>After Tuesday night’s decision, staff will move forward with redrawing attendance areas for neighborhood schools and making sure there are enough seats for all students. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The board will meet again in November to discuss more specifics, like tiebreaker metrics for assigning students to non-neighborhood schools. The current lottery gives priority to siblings of students enrolled at the school, and those who live in areas of the city with the lowest test scores, among other factors.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>They’ve also directed staff to implement the enrollment change in a way that creates strong, well-resourced schools in every neighborhood. Whether that’s possible under either proposed model, though, remains to be seen.\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "dont-skip-the-school-board-races-on-your-ballot-heres-why-they-could-be-pivotal",
"title": "Don’t Skip the School Board Races on Your Ballot. Here’s Why They Could Be Pivotal",
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"headTitle": "Don’t Skip the School Board Races on Your Ballot. Here’s Why They Could Be Pivotal | KQED",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>In \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/educationnews\">school districts\u003c/a> across the Bay Area, years of declining enrollment are forcing major cuts and closures; students’ math and reading scores are in a \u003ca href=\"https://cepr.harvard.edu/news/2026/05/why-us-test-scores-are-generation-long-decline\">free fall\u003c/a>; and campuses are being confronted with many of our major political fights, from transgender rights to AI regulation. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But in many cases, the people elected to navigate these challenges earn that significant power by a margin as small as a couple hundred votes. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>More than half of school board candidates across the U.S. run uncontested in an average election cycle, and voter turnout hovers between 5% and 10%. And school board races tend to be “low information,” meaning voters know little about who the candidates are or where they stand on key issues, many of which are similar across districts throughout the state.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>KQED asked \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/voterguide\">390 candidates vying for 109 school board seats\u003c/a> across the nine-county Bay Area in November for their stance on some of these topics, from potential school closures to cellphone use — information voters can use at a time that education experts say is pivotal to public schools’ success. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We have some unambiguously big problems for schools,” said Jon Valant, who directs the Brown Center on Education Policy at the Brookings Institution. “You can have a big impact, and you can have a big impact at a time when schools are facing a lot of important questions.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What do school boards actually do?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>School boards oversee large budgets, act as major employers and make policy and curriculum decisions that affect thousands of young people — and have rippling impacts on their wider communities.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“[Public schools] are the primary institutions that we have for preparing people to be contributing members of our society, democracy and economy,” Valant said. “When you’re participating in a school board election, you’re really having a say in the structure of our society more broadly.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-8-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094191\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-8-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-8-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-8-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A classroom at Mission Bay Elementary School in San Francisco on Aug. 6, 2026. Mission Bay School is the first new public SFUSD school to open in 20 years. (Gina Castro for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The bodies have a few main functions: approving a school district’s budget — which for an urban district like San Francisco, tops $1.36 billion — and hiring and evaluating a superintendent, the person “who’s really responsible for running the system,” according to Julie Marsh, a faculty director at Policy Analysis for California Education.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>School boards set priorities, such as student outcome goals and community values, that are supposed to guide decision-making by the superintendent and district staff. They also approve curriculum and labor contracts and can steer high-level policy. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Culture war battlegrounds\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Less officially, school boards have also become political arenas.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Schools and particularly school boards have really become some of the country’s main battlegrounds for its culture wars,” Valant said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He traces the trend back to the COVID-19 pandemic, when some groups of parents began organizing and rallying against masking and vaccine mandates.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1571\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/MomsLibertyGetty-52a1d437.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12103881\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/MomsLibertyGetty-52a1d437.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/MomsLibertyGetty-52a1d437-160x126.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/MomsLibertyGetty-52a1d437-1536x1207.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Martha Aguilera, left, with Karen Frost of Moms for Liberty, speaks at the California Policy Center and PERK (Protection of the Educational Rights of Kids) event, “A Line in the Sand, A Rally for Parental Rights,” at Rancho Madera Community Park in Simi Valley, California, on Sept. 26, 2023. (Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Around the same time, groups like \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101904708/conservative-mothers-as-a-political-force-in-california\">Moms for Liberty\u003c/a> were on the rise, advocating against curriculum that teaches about LGBTQ rights and race and ethnicity. They began running school board candidates and establishing a sustained presence at school board meetings, sowing fear that public schools are pushing “woke indoctrination.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We’ve seen far-right leaders who have been quite successful with this approach where they run well-funded groups, organize and run a candidate on an ideological platform,” Marsh said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She and other experts said the rise of candidates running for the nonpartisan roles backed by political interest groups became especially prominent in the early 2020s. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While these groups’ influence on school board races seems to be dying down in California, Valant said a recent national Brookings survey found that school board members still feel their governance has become more political and partisan in recent years. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Marsh said that conservative groups have also used the tactic to upend trust in school systems more broadly and “mobilize their base.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There’s a whole strategy of creating a bench for potential candidates for higher office,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1372\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/Sonja-Shaw-Getty-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12086196\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/Sonja-Shaw-Getty-1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/Sonja-Shaw-Getty-1-160x110.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/Sonja-Shaw-Getty-1-1536x1054.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sonja Shaw, Chino Valley Unified School District Board President, speaks at the California Policy Center and PERK (Protection of the Educational Rights of Kids) event, “A Line in the Sand: A Rally for Parental Rights,” at Rancho Madera Community Park in Simi Valley, California, on Sept. 26, 2023. (Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Sonja Shaw, who is in the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12086044/conservative-activist-sonja-shaw-advances-in-state-superintendent-race\">runoff election for California state superintendent\u003c/a> this November, rose to notoriety as Chino Valley’s school board president in 2023, when she pushed for a policy that would require school staff to notify parents of any change in their children’s gender identity. Shaw made headlines after current state Superintendent Tony Thurmond was heckled and removed from her district’s board meeting after he expressed opposition to the policy. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The policy was permanently halted in 2024, after a lawsuit from Attorney General Rob Bonta, along with similar campaigns to implement “forced outing” in Rocklin and counties in Southern California.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>President Donald Trump also harnessed fear surrounding schools’ policies around LGBTQ students in the final stretch of his 2024 reelection campaign, telling a crowd of about 20,000 at Madison Square Garden, “we will get … transgender insanity the hell out of our schools.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He repeatedly told voters: “your kid goes to school and comes home a few days later with an operation,” changing their sex.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">‘Big, big issues’\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While “culture war politics” draw attention and tend to spur single-issue candidates to run for school boards, Valant said, “we need really to be focused on some of the core issues in education.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“[Artificial intelligence] has kind of landed on schools’ laps, and questions about how technology should be embedded into the school day,” he said. “We’ve seen achievement declines across the country and growing gaps between the highest- and lowest-scoring students. We’ve seen chronic absenteeism and enrollment declines.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“And, we’ve seen a growing attack on public education across the country,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/LAUSDScreenTimeGetty-d975feb9.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12103883\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/LAUSDScreenTimeGetty-d975feb9.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/LAUSDScreenTimeGetty-d975feb9-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/LAUSDScreenTimeGetty-d975feb9-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Nick Melvoin, Member of the Los Angeles Unified School District, speaks during a board meeting at the LAUSD headquarters on April 21, 2026, in Los Angeles, California. The LAUSD met to discuss a resolution calling for development of a Screen Time Policy setting time limits by grade, including elimination of student digital devices for early education through first grade, prohibiting device use by elementary and middle school students during passing periods, lunch and recess. The board unanimously voted to approve Board Member Melvoin’s Resolution to limit student screen time. (Kayla Bartkowski/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Many of the boards elected this November will be tasked with deciding how their districts will weather shrinking student bodies, and whether to close schools as part of that process.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/school-closures\">closure process\u003c/a> is almost always met with strong opposition from families and teachers, but how districts approach it can significantly change how it affects enrollment and trust.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco’s former superintendent \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12010008/sf-schools-crisis-is-spiraling-with-top-official-to-resign-heres-all-thats-happened\">resigned under pressure\u003c/a> in 2024 after a botched closure process that strained relationships with the district’s labor unions and many families. But earlier this year, the school board \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12095382/as-sfusd-welcomes-back-students-officials-plan-to-revamp-enrollment-consider-closures\">reopened the question of school consolidations\u003c/a>, giving Superintendent Maria Su a strict deadline of 2030 to decide whether campuses should shutter. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The board — including the three members who will be elected this fall — will have final approval over her plan.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Campus closures can upend longstanding school communities, and National School Board Association president Verjeana McCotter-Jacobs said they have rippling effects on nearby businesses, property values and neighborhood populations if they spur families to move.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Of the 140 Bay Area school board candidates who responded to KQED’s question about school closures, 57% said they would consider supporting a proposal from their district to close schools, while 43% said they would oppose the practice.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Boards are also setting the course for the future of technology in classrooms, as parent-led backlash expands across the country, blaming overreliance on screens and artificial intelligence for poor learning outcomes. According to a joint Education Scorecard project from researchers at Stanford, Harvard and Dartmouth universities, falling test scores reflect a \u003ca href=\"https://cepr.harvard.edu/news/2026/05/why-us-test-scores-are-generation-long-decline\">decadelong “learning recession.”\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In the spring, the Los Angeles Unified School District board passed a slate of historic tech-limiting policies, proposed by board member Nick Melvoin, with advocacy group Schools Beyond Screens. Districts across the country have moved quickly to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12096557/a-chromebook-in-the-hand-of-every-child-did-schools-go-too-far\">replicate their model\u003c/a>, including in the Bay Area, from San José to Marin.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Last week, the Oakland school board approved new technology restrictions, proposed by board member Rachel Latta, that prohibit students from using individual devices during lunch and passing periods, and mandate training for teachers to reduce 1:1 device use by the fall of 2027. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Other districts in San Francisco, San Mateo and Palo Alto have formed ad hoc committees or working groups to consider stricter tech policies, which will be presented to their new boards in the spring.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco’s public school district is relatively behind on limiting tech use — the current board allowed administrators to punt on a stricter cellphone policy last spring, and it uses a controversial AI-assisted reading assessment and tutoring tool with kindergarteners.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Combatting federal attacks\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Voters aren’t just choosing who will make major instructional decisions at their local school districts; Valant said voting in school board elections this November will send an important message amid what he calls a “federal attack” on public schools.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Staying engaged with school boards, with education, with your local public school, is just really important in communicating that public schools are institutions that mean a lot to this country,” he said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Since taking office last year, Trump has signed an executive order directing the dismantling of the Department of Education and created a federal \u003ca href=\"https://www.ed.gov/media/document/education-freedom-tax-credit-fact-sheet-113147.pdf\">Education Freedom Scholarship Program\u003c/a>, which aims to expand parents’ school choice by allowing them to receive tax credits up to $1,700 that can be used to pay for private school tuition, home-schooling costs, and other educational support.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2285787606-scaled-e1791586238561.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12091600\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">U.S. President Donald Trump addresses the nation from the East Room of the White House on July 16, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Saul Loeb/Pool via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Those together are the biggest change in school policy since at least the early 1990s,” said professor Doug Harris, the director of the National Center for Research on Education Access and Choice at Tulane University. “The idea of open access or universal access to schools is upended. Public education has always involved some public governance, and this eliminates [that].”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Valant called the universal private school choice policies, adopted by more than half of U.S. states, not including California, “intentionally hostile to public schools.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While the federal government has suggested that school choice increases competition and will improve public schools, Valant and others worry it will siphon funds away from the public system and toward schools that are able to select which students they serve — and often teach religious material.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Trump administration has also threatened to withhold federal dollars from school districts that teach about diversity, equity and inclusion, or promote policies that protect transgender students. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In June, the Department of Education launched compliance reviews into SFUSD and three Monterey County school districts over their policies and materials related to gender identity and sexual orientation.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/MariaSuAP2.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12086920\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/MariaSuAP2.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/MariaSuAP2-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/MariaSuAP2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Maria Su testifies during a House Education and Workforce Committee hearing on parental rights and school content policies, on June 10, 2026, in Washington. (Kevin Wolf/AP Photo)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Later that month, San Francisco Superintendent Su was \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12086522/congress-to-grill-san-francisco-schools-chief-maria-su-about-gender-ethnic-studies\">called to testify\u003c/a> before Congress about parental rights and “inappropriate” course curriculum.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>All of that adds up to a current moment that Marsh described as an attack on public education and democracy at large, adding that voting is essential to maintain those institutions.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“A democracy that focuses on the common good … actually requires people to look out for other kids, not just their own families,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“School boards are one of our few local institutions that are both defending democracy and public education,” she said. “The federal government can’t do anything about our boards — the school board system is well established, and I think we need to defend that.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We have some unambiguously big problems for schools,” said Jon Valant, who directs the Brown Center on Education Policy at the Brookings Institution. “You can have a big impact, and you can have a big impact at a time when schools are facing a lot of important questions.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“We have some unambiguously big problems for schools,” said Jon Valant, who directs the Brown Center on Education Policy at the Brookings Institution. “You can have a big impact, and you can have a big impact at a time when schools are facing a lot of important questions.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“[Public schools] are the primary institutions that we have for preparing people to be contributing members of our society, democracy and economy,” Valant said. “When you’re participating in a school board election, you’re really having a say in the structure of our society more broadly.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-8-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094191\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-8-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-8-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-8-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A classroom at Mission Bay Elementary School in San Francisco on Aug. 6, 2026. Mission Bay School is the first new public SFUSD school to open in 20 years.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Gina Castro for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-8-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094191\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A classroom at Mission Bay Elementary School in San Francisco on Aug. 6, 2026. Mission Bay School is the first new public SFUSD school to open in 20 years.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Gina Castro for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The bodies have a few main functions: approving a school district’s budget — which for an urban district like San Francisco, tops $1.36 billion — and hiring and evaluating a superintendent, the person “who’s really responsible for running the system,” according to Julie Marsh, a faculty director at Policy Analysis for California Education.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The bodies have a few main functions: approving a school district’s budget — which for an urban district like San Francisco, tops $1.36 billion — and hiring and evaluating a superintendent, the person “who’s really responsible for running the system,” according to Julie Marsh, a faculty director at Policy Analysis for California Education.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>School boards set priorities, such as student outcome goals and community values, that are supposed to guide decision-making by the superintendent and district staff. They also approve curriculum and labor contracts and can steer high-level policy. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>School boards set priorities, such as student outcome goals and community values, that are supposed to guide decision-making by the superintendent and district staff. They also approve curriculum and labor contracts and can steer high-level policy. \u003c/p>\n"
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"text": "Culture war battlegrounds",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Culture war battlegrounds\u003c/h2>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Less officially, school boards have also become political arenas.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Schools and particularly school boards have really become some of the country’s main battlegrounds for its culture wars,” Valant said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Schools and particularly school boards have really become some of the country’s main battlegrounds for its culture wars,” Valant said. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>He traces the trend back to the COVID-19 pandemic, when some groups of parents began organizing and rallying against masking and vaccine mandates.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>He traces the trend back to the COVID-19 pandemic, when some groups of parents began organizing and rallying against masking and vaccine mandates.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/MomsLibertyGetty-52a1d437.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12103881\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/MomsLibertyGetty-52a1d437.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/MomsLibertyGetty-52a1d437-160x126.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/MomsLibertyGetty-52a1d437-1536x1207.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Martha Aguilera, left, with Karen Frost of Moms for Liberty, speaks at the California Policy Center and PERK (Protection of the Educational Rights of Kids) event, “A Line in the Sand, A Rally for Parental Rights,” at Rancho Madera Community Park in Simi Valley, California, on Sept. 26, 2023.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/MomsLibertyGetty-52a1d437.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12103881\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Martha Aguilera, left, with Karen Frost of Moms for Liberty, speaks at the California Policy Center and PERK (Protection of the Educational Rights of Kids) event, “A Line in the Sand, A Rally for Parental Rights,” at Rancho Madera Community Park in Simi Valley, California, on Sept. 26, 2023.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Around the same time, groups like \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101904708/conservative-mothers-as-a-political-force-in-california\">Moms for Liberty\u003c/a> were on the rise, advocating against curriculum that teaches about LGBTQ rights and race and ethnicity. They began running school board candidates and establishing a sustained presence at school board meetings, sowing fear that public schools are pushing “woke indoctrination.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Around the same time, groups like \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101904708/conservative-mothers-as-a-political-force-in-california\">Moms for Liberty\u003c/a> were on the rise, advocating against curriculum that teaches about LGBTQ rights and race and ethnicity. They began running school board candidates and establishing a sustained presence at school board meetings, sowing fear that public schools are pushing “woke indoctrination.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We’ve seen far-right leaders who have been quite successful with this approach where they run well-funded groups, organize and run a candidate on an ideological platform,” Marsh said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“We’ve seen far-right leaders who have been quite successful with this approach where they run well-funded groups, organize and run a candidate on an ideological platform,” Marsh said. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>She and other experts said the rise of candidates running for the nonpartisan roles backed by political interest groups became especially prominent in the early 2020s. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>She and other experts said the rise of candidates running for the nonpartisan roles backed by political interest groups became especially prominent in the early 2020s. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>While these groups’ influence on school board races seems to be dying down in California, Valant said a recent national Brookings survey found that school board members still feel their governance has become more political and partisan in recent years. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>While these groups’ influence on school board races seems to be dying down in California, Valant said a recent national Brookings survey found that school board members still feel their governance has become more political and partisan in recent years. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Marsh said that conservative groups have also used the tactic to upend trust in school systems more broadly and “mobilize their base.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Marsh said that conservative groups have also used the tactic to upend trust in school systems more broadly and “mobilize their base.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“There’s a whole strategy of creating a bench for potential candidates for higher office,” she said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“There’s a whole strategy of creating a bench for potential candidates for higher office,” she said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"srcset": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/Sonja-Shaw-Getty-1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/Sonja-Shaw-Getty-1-160x110.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/Sonja-Shaw-Getty-1-1536x1054.jpg 1536w",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/Sonja-Shaw-Getty-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12086196\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/Sonja-Shaw-Getty-1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/Sonja-Shaw-Getty-1-160x110.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/Sonja-Shaw-Getty-1-1536x1054.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sonja Shaw, Chino Valley Unified School District Board President, speaks at the California Policy Center and PERK (Protection of the Educational Rights of Kids) event, “A Line in the Sand: A Rally for Parental Rights,” at Rancho Madera Community Park in Simi Valley, California, on Sept. 26, 2023.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/Sonja-Shaw-Getty-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12086196\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sonja Shaw, Chino Valley Unified School District Board President, speaks at the California Policy Center and PERK (Protection of the Educational Rights of Kids) event, “A Line in the Sand: A Rally for Parental Rights,” at Rancho Madera Community Park in Simi Valley, California, on Sept. 26, 2023.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Sonja Shaw, who is in the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12086044/conservative-activist-sonja-shaw-advances-in-state-superintendent-race\">runoff election for California state superintendent\u003c/a> this November, rose to notoriety as Chino Valley’s school board president in 2023, when she pushed for a policy that would require school staff to notify parents of any change in their children’s gender identity. Shaw made headlines after current state Superintendent Tony Thurmond was heckled and removed from her district’s board meeting after he expressed opposition to the policy. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Sonja Shaw, who is in the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12086044/conservative-activist-sonja-shaw-advances-in-state-superintendent-race\">runoff election for California state superintendent\u003c/a> this November, rose to notoriety as Chino Valley’s school board president in 2023, when she pushed for a policy that would require school staff to notify parents of any change in their children’s gender identity. Shaw made headlines after current state Superintendent Tony Thurmond was heckled and removed from her district’s board meeting after he expressed opposition to the policy. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The policy was permanently halted in 2024, after a lawsuit from Attorney General Rob Bonta, along with similar campaigns to implement “forced outing” in Rocklin and counties in Southern California.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>The policy was permanently halted in 2024, after a lawsuit from Attorney General Rob Bonta, along with similar campaigns to implement “forced outing” in Rocklin and counties in Southern California.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>President Donald Trump also harnessed fear surrounding schools’ policies around LGBTQ students in the final stretch of his 2024 reelection campaign, telling a crowd of about 20,000 at Madison Square Garden, “we will get … transgender insanity the hell out of our schools.”\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>President Donald Trump also harnessed fear surrounding schools’ policies around LGBTQ students in the final stretch of his 2024 reelection campaign, telling a crowd of about 20,000 at Madison Square Garden, “we will get … transgender insanity the hell out of our schools.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>He repeatedly told voters: “your kid goes to school and comes home a few days later with an operation,” changing their sex.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>He repeatedly told voters: “your kid goes to school and comes home a few days later with an operation,” changing their sex.\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"text": "‘Big, big issues’",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">‘Big, big issues’\u003c/h2>\n",
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"\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">‘Big, big issues’\u003c/h2>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>While “culture war politics” draw attention and tend to spur single-issue candidates to run for school boards, Valant said, “we need really to be focused on some of the core issues in education.”\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>While “culture war politics” draw attention and tend to spur single-issue candidates to run for school boards, Valant said, “we need really to be focused on some of the core issues in education.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“[Artificial intelligence] has kind of landed on schools’ laps, and questions about how technology should be embedded into the school day,” he said. “We’ve seen achievement declines across the country and growing gaps between the highest- and lowest-scoring students. We’ve seen chronic absenteeism and enrollment declines.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“[Artificial intelligence] has kind of landed on schools’ laps, and questions about how technology should be embedded into the school day,” he said. “We’ve seen achievement declines across the country and growing gaps between the highest- and lowest-scoring students. We’ve seen chronic absenteeism and enrollment declines.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“And, we’ve seen a growing attack on public education across the country,” he said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“And, we’ve seen a growing attack on public education across the country,” he said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"sizes": "(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/LAUSDScreenTimeGetty-d975feb9.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12103883\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/LAUSDScreenTimeGetty-d975feb9.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/LAUSDScreenTimeGetty-d975feb9-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/LAUSDScreenTimeGetty-d975feb9-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Nick Melvoin, Member of the Los Angeles Unified School District, speaks during a board meeting at the LAUSD headquarters on April 21, 2026, in Los Angeles, California. The LAUSD met to discuss a resolution calling for development of a Screen Time Policy setting time limits by grade, including elimination of student digital devices for early education through first grade, prohibiting device use by elementary and middle school students during passing periods, lunch and recess. The board unanimously voted to approve Board Member Melvoin’s Resolution to limit student screen time.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Kayla Bartkowski/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/LAUSDScreenTimeGetty-d975feb9.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12103883\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Nick Melvoin, Member of the Los Angeles Unified School District, speaks during a board meeting at the LAUSD headquarters on April 21, 2026, in Los Angeles, California. The LAUSD met to discuss a resolution calling for development of a Screen Time Policy setting time limits by grade, including elimination of student digital devices for early education through first grade, prohibiting device use by elementary and middle school students during passing periods, lunch and recess. The board unanimously voted to approve Board Member Melvoin’s Resolution to limit student screen time.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Kayla Bartkowski/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Many of the boards elected this November will be tasked with deciding how their districts will weather shrinking student bodies, and whether to close schools as part of that process.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Many of the boards elected this November will be tasked with deciding how their districts will weather shrinking student bodies, and whether to close schools as part of that process.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/school-closures\">closure process\u003c/a> is almost always met with strong opposition from families and teachers, but how districts approach it can significantly change how it affects enrollment and trust.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/school-closures\">closure process\u003c/a> is almost always met with strong opposition from families and teachers, but how districts approach it can significantly change how it affects enrollment and trust.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>San Francisco’s former superintendent \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12010008/sf-schools-crisis-is-spiraling-with-top-official-to-resign-heres-all-thats-happened\">resigned under pressure\u003c/a> in 2024 after a botched closure process that strained relationships with the district’s labor unions and many families. But earlier this year, the school board \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12095382/as-sfusd-welcomes-back-students-officials-plan-to-revamp-enrollment-consider-closures\">reopened the question of school consolidations\u003c/a>, giving Superintendent Maria Su a strict deadline of 2030 to decide whether campuses should shutter. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>San Francisco’s former superintendent \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12010008/sf-schools-crisis-is-spiraling-with-top-official-to-resign-heres-all-thats-happened\">resigned under pressure\u003c/a> in 2024 after a botched closure process that strained relationships with the district’s labor unions and many families. But earlier this year, the school board \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12095382/as-sfusd-welcomes-back-students-officials-plan-to-revamp-enrollment-consider-closures\">reopened the question of school consolidations\u003c/a>, giving Superintendent Maria Su a strict deadline of 2030 to decide whether campuses should shutter. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The board — including the three members who will be elected this fall — will have final approval over her plan.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The board — including the three members who will be elected this fall — will have final approval over her plan.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Campus closures can upend longstanding school communities, and National School Board Association president Verjeana McCotter-Jacobs said they have rippling effects on nearby businesses, property values and neighborhood populations if they spur families to move.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Campus closures can upend longstanding school communities, and National School Board Association president Verjeana McCotter-Jacobs said they have rippling effects on nearby businesses, property values and neighborhood populations if they spur families to move.\u003c/p>\n"
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"label": "2026 Bay Area Voter Guide",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Of the 140 Bay Area school board candidates who responded to KQED’s question about school closures, 57% said they would consider supporting a proposal from their district to close schools, while 43% said they would oppose the practice.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Of the 140 Bay Area school board candidates who responded to KQED’s question about school closures, 57% said they would consider supporting a proposal from their district to close schools, while 43% said they would oppose the practice.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Boards are also setting the course for the future of technology in classrooms, as parent-led backlash expands across the country, blaming overreliance on screens and artificial intelligence for poor learning outcomes. According to a joint Education Scorecard project from researchers at Stanford, Harvard and Dartmouth universities, falling test scores reflect a \u003ca href=\"https://cepr.harvard.edu/news/2026/05/why-us-test-scores-are-generation-long-decline\">decadelong “learning recession.”\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Boards are also setting the course for the future of technology in classrooms, as parent-led backlash expands across the country, blaming overreliance on screens and artificial intelligence for poor learning outcomes. According to a joint Education Scorecard project from researchers at Stanford, Harvard and Dartmouth universities, falling test scores reflect a \u003ca href=\"https://cepr.harvard.edu/news/2026/05/why-us-test-scores-are-generation-long-decline\">decadelong “learning recession.”\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In the spring, the Los Angeles Unified School District board passed a slate of historic tech-limiting policies, proposed by board member Nick Melvoin, with advocacy group Schools Beyond Screens. Districts across the country have moved quickly to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12096557/a-chromebook-in-the-hand-of-every-child-did-schools-go-too-far\">replicate their model\u003c/a>, including in the Bay Area, from San José to Marin.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In the spring, the Los Angeles Unified School District board passed a slate of historic tech-limiting policies, proposed by board member Nick Melvoin, with advocacy group Schools Beyond Screens. Districts across the country have moved quickly to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12096557/a-chromebook-in-the-hand-of-every-child-did-schools-go-too-far\">replicate their model\u003c/a>, including in the Bay Area, from San José to Marin.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Last week, the Oakland school board approved new technology restrictions, proposed by board member Rachel Latta, that prohibit students from using individual devices during lunch and passing periods, and mandate training for teachers to reduce 1:1 device use by the fall of 2027. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Last week, the Oakland school board approved new technology restrictions, proposed by board member Rachel Latta, that prohibit students from using individual devices during lunch and passing periods, and mandate training for teachers to reduce 1:1 device use by the fall of 2027. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Other districts in San Francisco, San Mateo and Palo Alto have formed ad hoc committees or working groups to consider stricter tech policies, which will be presented to their new boards in the spring.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Other districts in San Francisco, San Mateo and Palo Alto have formed ad hoc committees or working groups to consider stricter tech policies, which will be presented to their new boards in the spring.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>San Francisco’s public school district is relatively behind on limiting tech use — the current board allowed administrators to punt on a stricter cellphone policy last spring, and it uses a controversial AI-assisted reading assessment and tutoring tool with kindergarteners.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>San Francisco’s public school district is relatively behind on limiting tech use — the current board allowed administrators to punt on a stricter cellphone policy last spring, and it uses a controversial AI-assisted reading assessment and tutoring tool with kindergarteners.\u003c/p>\n"
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"text": "Combatting federal attacks",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Combatting federal attacks\u003c/h2>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Voters aren’t just choosing who will make major instructional decisions at their local school districts; Valant said voting in school board elections this November will send an important message amid what he calls a “federal attack” on public schools.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Voters aren’t just choosing who will make major instructional decisions at their local school districts; Valant said voting in school board elections this November will send an important message amid what he calls a “federal attack” on public schools.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Staying engaged with school boards, with education, with your local public school, is just really important in communicating that public schools are institutions that mean a lot to this country,” he said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Staying engaged with school boards, with education, with your local public school, is just really important in communicating that public schools are institutions that mean a lot to this country,” he said. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Since taking office last year, Trump has signed an executive order directing the dismantling of the Department of Education and created a federal \u003ca href=\"https://www.ed.gov/media/document/education-freedom-tax-credit-fact-sheet-113147.pdf\">Education Freedom Scholarship Program\u003c/a>, which aims to expand parents’ school choice by allowing them to receive tax credits up to $1,700 that can be used to pay for private school tuition, home-schooling costs, and other educational support.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Since taking office last year, Trump has signed an executive order directing the dismantling of the Department of Education and created a federal \u003ca href=\"https://www.ed.gov/media/document/education-freedom-tax-credit-fact-sheet-113147.pdf\">Education Freedom Scholarship Program\u003c/a>, which aims to expand parents’ school choice by allowing them to receive tax credits up to $1,700 that can be used to pay for private school tuition, home-schooling costs, and other educational support.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2285787606-scaled-e1791586238561.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12091600\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">U.S. President Donald Trump addresses the nation from the East Room of the White House on July 16, 2026, in Washington, D.C. \u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Saul Loeb/Pool via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2285787606-scaled-e1791586238561.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12091600\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">U.S. President Donald Trump addresses the nation from the East Room of the White House on July 16, 2026, in Washington, D.C. \u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Saul Loeb/Pool via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Those together are the biggest change in school policy since at least the early 1990s,” said professor Doug Harris, the director of the National Center for Research on Education Access and Choice at Tulane University. “The idea of open access or universal access to schools is upended. Public education has always involved some public governance, and this eliminates [that].”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Those together are the biggest change in school policy since at least the early 1990s,” said professor Doug Harris, the director of the National Center for Research on Education Access and Choice at Tulane University. “The idea of open access or universal access to schools is upended. Public education has always involved some public governance, and this eliminates [that].”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Valant called the universal private school choice policies, adopted by more than half of U.S. states, not including California, “intentionally hostile to public schools.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Valant called the universal private school choice policies, adopted by more than half of U.S. states, not including California, “intentionally hostile to public schools.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>While the federal government has suggested that school choice increases competition and will improve public schools, Valant and others worry it will siphon funds away from the public system and toward schools that are able to select which students they serve — and often teach religious material.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>While the federal government has suggested that school choice increases competition and will improve public schools, Valant and others worry it will siphon funds away from the public system and toward schools that are able to select which students they serve — and often teach religious material.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The Trump administration has also threatened to withhold federal dollars from school districts that teach about diversity, equity and inclusion, or promote policies that protect transgender students. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The Trump administration has also threatened to withhold federal dollars from school districts that teach about diversity, equity and inclusion, or promote policies that protect transgender students. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In June, the Department of Education launched compliance reviews into SFUSD and three Monterey County school districts over their policies and materials related to gender identity and sexual orientation.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In June, the Department of Education launched compliance reviews into SFUSD and three Monterey County school districts over their policies and materials related to gender identity and sexual orientation.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Later that month, San Francisco Superintendent Su was \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12086522/congress-to-grill-san-francisco-schools-chief-maria-su-about-gender-ethnic-studies\">called to testify\u003c/a> before Congress about parental rights and “inappropriate” course curriculum.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>All of that adds up to a current moment that Marsh described as an attack on public education and democracy at large, adding that voting is essential to maintain those institutions.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“A democracy that focuses on the common good … actually requires people to look out for other kids, not just their own families,” she said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“School boards are one of our few local institutions that are both defending democracy and public education,” she said. “The federal government can’t do anything about our boards — the school board system is well established, and I think we need to defend that.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“School boards are one of our few local institutions that are both defending democracy and public education,” she said. “The federal government can’t do anything about our boards — the school board system is well established, and I think we need to defend that.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"excerpt": "Public schools across the Bay Area are facing “some unambiguously big problems,” education experts say, but the elections for local school boards often fly under the radar.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>In \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/educationnews\">school districts\u003c/a> across the Bay Area, years of declining enrollment are forcing major cuts and closures; students’ math and reading scores are in a \u003ca href=\"https://cepr.harvard.edu/news/2026/05/why-us-test-scores-are-generation-long-decline\">free fall\u003c/a>; and campuses are being confronted with many of our major political fights, from transgender rights to AI regulation. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But in many cases, the people elected to navigate these challenges earn that significant power by a margin as small as a couple hundred votes. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>More than half of school board candidates across the U.S. run uncontested in an average election cycle, and voter turnout hovers between 5% and 10%. And school board races tend to be “low information,” meaning voters know little about who the candidates are or where they stand on key issues, many of which are similar across districts throughout the state.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>KQED asked \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/voterguide\">390 candidates vying for 109 school board seats\u003c/a> across the nine-county Bay Area in November for their stance on some of these topics, from potential school closures to cellphone use — information voters can use at a time that education experts say is pivotal to public schools’ success. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We have some unambiguously big problems for schools,” said Jon Valant, who directs the Brown Center on Education Policy at the Brookings Institution. “You can have a big impact, and you can have a big impact at a time when schools are facing a lot of important questions.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What do school boards actually do?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>School boards oversee large budgets, act as major employers and make policy and curriculum decisions that affect thousands of young people — and have rippling impacts on their wider communities.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“[Public schools] are the primary institutions that we have for preparing people to be contributing members of our society, democracy and economy,” Valant said. “When you’re participating in a school board election, you’re really having a say in the structure of our society more broadly.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-8-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094191\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-8-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-8-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/20260806_SFUSDNEWSCHOOL_GC-8-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A classroom at Mission Bay Elementary School in San Francisco on Aug. 6, 2026. Mission Bay School is the first new public SFUSD school to open in 20 years. (Gina Castro for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The bodies have a few main functions: approving a school district’s budget — which for an urban district like San Francisco, tops $1.36 billion — and hiring and evaluating a superintendent, the person “who’s really responsible for running the system,” according to Julie Marsh, a faculty director at Policy Analysis for California Education.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>School boards set priorities, such as student outcome goals and community values, that are supposed to guide decision-making by the superintendent and district staff. They also approve curriculum and labor contracts and can steer high-level policy. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Culture war battlegrounds\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Less officially, school boards have also become political arenas.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Schools and particularly school boards have really become some of the country’s main battlegrounds for its culture wars,” Valant said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He traces the trend back to the COVID-19 pandemic, when some groups of parents began organizing and rallying against masking and vaccine mandates.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1571\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/MomsLibertyGetty-52a1d437.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12103881\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/MomsLibertyGetty-52a1d437.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/MomsLibertyGetty-52a1d437-160x126.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/MomsLibertyGetty-52a1d437-1536x1207.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Martha Aguilera, left, with Karen Frost of Moms for Liberty, speaks at the California Policy Center and PERK (Protection of the Educational Rights of Kids) event, “A Line in the Sand, A Rally for Parental Rights,” at Rancho Madera Community Park in Simi Valley, California, on Sept. 26, 2023. (Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Around the same time, groups like \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101904708/conservative-mothers-as-a-political-force-in-california\">Moms for Liberty\u003c/a> were on the rise, advocating against curriculum that teaches about LGBTQ rights and race and ethnicity. They began running school board candidates and establishing a sustained presence at school board meetings, sowing fear that public schools are pushing “woke indoctrination.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We’ve seen far-right leaders who have been quite successful with this approach where they run well-funded groups, organize and run a candidate on an ideological platform,” Marsh said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She and other experts said the rise of candidates running for the nonpartisan roles backed by political interest groups became especially prominent in the early 2020s. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While these groups’ influence on school board races seems to be dying down in California, Valant said a recent national Brookings survey found that school board members still feel their governance has become more political and partisan in recent years. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Marsh said that conservative groups have also used the tactic to upend trust in school systems more broadly and “mobilize their base.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There’s a whole strategy of creating a bench for potential candidates for higher office,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1372\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/Sonja-Shaw-Getty-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12086196\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/Sonja-Shaw-Getty-1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/Sonja-Shaw-Getty-1-160x110.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/Sonja-Shaw-Getty-1-1536x1054.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sonja Shaw, Chino Valley Unified School District Board President, speaks at the California Policy Center and PERK (Protection of the Educational Rights of Kids) event, “A Line in the Sand: A Rally for Parental Rights,” at Rancho Madera Community Park in Simi Valley, California, on Sept. 26, 2023. (Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Sonja Shaw, who is in the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12086044/conservative-activist-sonja-shaw-advances-in-state-superintendent-race\">runoff election for California state superintendent\u003c/a> this November, rose to notoriety as Chino Valley’s school board president in 2023, when she pushed for a policy that would require school staff to notify parents of any change in their children’s gender identity. Shaw made headlines after current state Superintendent Tony Thurmond was heckled and removed from her district’s board meeting after he expressed opposition to the policy. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The policy was permanently halted in 2024, after a lawsuit from Attorney General Rob Bonta, along with similar campaigns to implement “forced outing” in Rocklin and counties in Southern California.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>President Donald Trump also harnessed fear surrounding schools’ policies around LGBTQ students in the final stretch of his 2024 reelection campaign, telling a crowd of about 20,000 at Madison Square Garden, “we will get … transgender insanity the hell out of our schools.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He repeatedly told voters: “your kid goes to school and comes home a few days later with an operation,” changing their sex.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">‘Big, big issues’\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While “culture war politics” draw attention and tend to spur single-issue candidates to run for school boards, Valant said, “we need really to be focused on some of the core issues in education.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“[Artificial intelligence] has kind of landed on schools’ laps, and questions about how technology should be embedded into the school day,” he said. “We’ve seen achievement declines across the country and growing gaps between the highest- and lowest-scoring students. We’ve seen chronic absenteeism and enrollment declines.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“And, we’ve seen a growing attack on public education across the country,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/LAUSDScreenTimeGetty-d975feb9.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12103883\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/LAUSDScreenTimeGetty-d975feb9.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/LAUSDScreenTimeGetty-d975feb9-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/LAUSDScreenTimeGetty-d975feb9-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Nick Melvoin, Member of the Los Angeles Unified School District, speaks during a board meeting at the LAUSD headquarters on April 21, 2026, in Los Angeles, California. The LAUSD met to discuss a resolution calling for development of a Screen Time Policy setting time limits by grade, including elimination of student digital devices for early education through first grade, prohibiting device use by elementary and middle school students during passing periods, lunch and recess. The board unanimously voted to approve Board Member Melvoin’s Resolution to limit student screen time. (Kayla Bartkowski/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Many of the boards elected this November will be tasked with deciding how their districts will weather shrinking student bodies, and whether to close schools as part of that process.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/school-closures\">closure process\u003c/a> is almost always met with strong opposition from families and teachers, but how districts approach it can significantly change how it affects enrollment and trust.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco’s former superintendent \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12010008/sf-schools-crisis-is-spiraling-with-top-official-to-resign-heres-all-thats-happened\">resigned under pressure\u003c/a> in 2024 after a botched closure process that strained relationships with the district’s labor unions and many families. But earlier this year, the school board \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12095382/as-sfusd-welcomes-back-students-officials-plan-to-revamp-enrollment-consider-closures\">reopened the question of school consolidations\u003c/a>, giving Superintendent Maria Su a strict deadline of 2030 to decide whether campuses should shutter. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The board — including the three members who will be elected this fall — will have final approval over her plan.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Campus closures can upend longstanding school communities, and National School Board Association president Verjeana McCotter-Jacobs said they have rippling effects on nearby businesses, property values and neighborhood populations if they spur families to move.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Of the 140 Bay Area school board candidates who responded to KQED’s question about school closures, 57% said they would consider supporting a proposal from their district to close schools, while 43% said they would oppose the practice.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Boards are also setting the course for the future of technology in classrooms, as parent-led backlash expands across the country, blaming overreliance on screens and artificial intelligence for poor learning outcomes. According to a joint Education Scorecard project from researchers at Stanford, Harvard and Dartmouth universities, falling test scores reflect a \u003ca href=\"https://cepr.harvard.edu/news/2026/05/why-us-test-scores-are-generation-long-decline\">decadelong “learning recession.”\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In the spring, the Los Angeles Unified School District board passed a slate of historic tech-limiting policies, proposed by board member Nick Melvoin, with advocacy group Schools Beyond Screens. Districts across the country have moved quickly to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12096557/a-chromebook-in-the-hand-of-every-child-did-schools-go-too-far\">replicate their model\u003c/a>, including in the Bay Area, from San José to Marin.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Last week, the Oakland school board approved new technology restrictions, proposed by board member Rachel Latta, that prohibit students from using individual devices during lunch and passing periods, and mandate training for teachers to reduce 1:1 device use by the fall of 2027. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Other districts in San Francisco, San Mateo and Palo Alto have formed ad hoc committees or working groups to consider stricter tech policies, which will be presented to their new boards in the spring.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco’s public school district is relatively behind on limiting tech use — the current board allowed administrators to punt on a stricter cellphone policy last spring, and it uses a controversial AI-assisted reading assessment and tutoring tool with kindergarteners.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Combatting federal attacks\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Voters aren’t just choosing who will make major instructional decisions at their local school districts; Valant said voting in school board elections this November will send an important message amid what he calls a “federal attack” on public schools.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Staying engaged with school boards, with education, with your local public school, is just really important in communicating that public schools are institutions that mean a lot to this country,” he said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Since taking office last year, Trump has signed an executive order directing the dismantling of the Department of Education and created a federal \u003ca href=\"https://www.ed.gov/media/document/education-freedom-tax-credit-fact-sheet-113147.pdf\">Education Freedom Scholarship Program\u003c/a>, which aims to expand parents’ school choice by allowing them to receive tax credits up to $1,700 that can be used to pay for private school tuition, home-schooling costs, and other educational support.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2285787606-scaled-e1791586238561.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12091600\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">U.S. President Donald Trump addresses the nation from the East Room of the White House on July 16, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Saul Loeb/Pool via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Those together are the biggest change in school policy since at least the early 1990s,” said professor Doug Harris, the director of the National Center for Research on Education Access and Choice at Tulane University. “The idea of open access or universal access to schools is upended. Public education has always involved some public governance, and this eliminates [that].”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Valant called the universal private school choice policies, adopted by more than half of U.S. states, not including California, “intentionally hostile to public schools.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While the federal government has suggested that school choice increases competition and will improve public schools, Valant and others worry it will siphon funds away from the public system and toward schools that are able to select which students they serve — and often teach religious material.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Trump administration has also threatened to withhold federal dollars from school districts that teach about diversity, equity and inclusion, or promote policies that protect transgender students. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In June, the Department of Education launched compliance reviews into SFUSD and three Monterey County school districts over their policies and materials related to gender identity and sexual orientation.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/MariaSuAP2.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12086920\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/MariaSuAP2.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/MariaSuAP2-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/MariaSuAP2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Maria Su testifies during a House Education and Workforce Committee hearing on parental rights and school content policies, on June 10, 2026, in Washington. (Kevin Wolf/AP Photo)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Later that month, San Francisco Superintendent Su was \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12086522/congress-to-grill-san-francisco-schools-chief-maria-su-about-gender-ethnic-studies\">called to testify\u003c/a> before Congress about parental rights and “inappropriate” course curriculum.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>All of that adds up to a current moment that Marsh described as an attack on public education and democracy at large, adding that voting is essential to maintain those institutions.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“A democracy that focuses on the common good … actually requires people to look out for other kids, not just their own families,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“School boards are one of our few local institutions that are both defending democracy and public education,” she said. “The federal government can’t do anything about our boards — the school board system is well established, and I think we need to defend that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Here are the morning’s top stories on Friday, October 9, 2026\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>California now has a statewide guide for teaching about Native American history and culture. In the community of Bonsall in San Diego County, a high school teacher \u003ca href=\"https://www.kpbs.org/news/education/2026/10/02/californias-new-native-american-studies-curriculum-comes-alive-in-a-bonsall-classroom\">is weaving the curriculum into his history class.\u003c/a> \u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Central Valley leaders are trying to assuage the anxieties of their constituents, who are worried about \u003ca href=\"https://www.kvpr.org/community/2026-10-08/immigration-sweeps-hit-central-californias-farming-region-as-diesel-costs-also-worry-farmers\">a reported ICE crackdown\u003c/a> in the area.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kpbs.org/news/education/2026/10/02/californias-new-native-american-studies-curriculum-comes-alive-in-a-bonsall-classroom\">California’s new Native American studies curriculum comes alive in a Bonsall classroom\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Can a government legitimately claim territory, even when other people already live there? If land is not being farmed or developed, does someone else have a right to use it?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Greg Hinchliff’s 11th-grade history students grappled with these questions on a recent morning at Bonsall High School. They moved to different parts of the room depending on what they thought, gathering around signs that ranged from “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Then, they repeated the activity from the perspectives of Native Americans, European settlers, monarchs and religious leaders. “European religious leaders,” Hinchliff said to a group of students. “What would they say about this statement, that explorers can claim that land?”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“That they can claim it because they’re Christians, basically,” a student responded.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Right, because it goes back to that \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/03/30/1167056438/vatican-doctrine-of-discovery-colonialism-indigenous\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u003cu>doctrine of discovery\u003c/u>\u003c/a>,” Hinchliff said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The activity comes from California’s Native American Studies Model Curriculum. Published in 2025, it has hundreds of free lesson plans and teaching materials. Hinchliff helped write it. There are lessons \u003ca href=\"https://camodelcurricula.ucdavis.edu/native-american-studies/whats-in-a-name-native-place-names-and-perspectives\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">for elementary school students\u003c/a> about Indigenous and colonial place names. Eighth graders can learn about \u003ca href=\"https://camodelcurricula.ucdavis.edu/native-american-studies/tribal-governments-sovereignty-treaties-and-constitutions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">tribal sovereignty and federal recognition\u003c/a>. High schoolers can learn about cultural fire practices.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In 2021, the California Department of Education allocated $4 million to develop the curriculum. Joely Proudfit (Luiseño/Payómkawichum, Tongva), director of the California Indian Culture and Sovereignty Center at CSU San Marcos, was one of three people from across the state selected to lead the project. “We really wanted tribal communities to take the lead in helping us write this curriculum,” Proudfit said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>They held dozens of meetings with tribal communities throughout the state. There are 109 federally recognized tribes in California, plus many other tribal communities that aren’t recognized. “There’s not a lesson plan for every single tribe in the state,” Proudfit said. “This is merely the first step in the right direction.” Teachers can continue in the right direction, she said, by building relationships with members of local tribal communities.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kvpr.org/community/2026-10-08/immigration-sweeps-hit-central-californias-farming-region-as-diesel-costs-also-worry-farmers\">Immigration sweeps hit Central Valley\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>There have been \u003ca href=\"https://www.fresnobee.com/news/local/article317542396.html\">reports this week\u003c/a> of a significant increase in immigration enforcement activity across the Central Valley.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In a statement, State Senator Anna Caballero said her office has received reports that upwards of 60 people have been taken into ICE custody in her district in the past few days. Her district includes Fresno, Madera and Merced counties.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Fresno City Councilman Miguel Arias cautioned Latino residents in particular during a city council meeting on Thursday. “Stay home. It’s not safe for you to be out. They’re not just picking up criminals, they’re not just picking up people who don’t have legal status, they’re picking up everyone,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Arias expressed concerns about the Big Fresno Fair, which opened this week. But in a statement, fair officials said they work diligently to provide a safe environment for the community. They also said they have not received any information about planned federal activity at the Fair. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Immigration agents appear \u003ca href=\"https://www.kvpr.org/community/2026-10-08/immigration-sweeps-hit-central-californias-farming-region-as-diesel-costs-also-worry-farmers\">to be detaining farmworkers\u003c/a> along rural roads and others driving along busy city streets in Fresno County. Community-reported incidents of\u003ca href=\"https://iceout.org/en/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u003cu> immigration agents conducting traffic stops\u003c/u>\u003c/a> have sent shock through the community. The sweeps come as farmers gear up to finish harvest for most crops in the Valley. In a statement on Thursday, the Nisei Farmers League also called on ICE to respect “the rights of farmers, farmworkers and communities.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Can a government legitimately claim territory, even when other people already live there? If land is not being farmed or developed, does someone else have a right to use it?\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Greg Hinchliff’s 11th-grade history students grappled with these questions on a recent morning at Bonsall High School. They moved to different parts of the room depending on what they thought, gathering around signs that ranged from “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Then, they repeated the activity from the perspectives of Native Americans, European settlers, monarchs and religious leaders. “European religious leaders,” Hinchliff said to a group of students. “What would they say about this statement, that explorers can claim that land?”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“That they can claim it because they’re Christians, basically,” a student responded.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Right, because it goes back to that \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/03/30/1167056438/vatican-doctrine-of-discovery-colonialism-indigenous\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u003cu>doctrine of discovery\u003c/u>\u003c/a>,” Hinchliff said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The activity comes from California’s Native American Studies Model Curriculum. Published in 2025, it has hundreds of free lesson plans and teaching materials. Hinchliff helped write it. There are lessons \u003ca href=\"https://camodelcurricula.ucdavis.edu/native-american-studies/whats-in-a-name-native-place-names-and-perspectives\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">for elementary school students\u003c/a> about Indigenous and colonial place names. Eighth graders can learn about \u003ca href=\"https://camodelcurricula.ucdavis.edu/native-american-studies/tribal-governments-sovereignty-treaties-and-constitutions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">tribal sovereignty and federal recognition\u003c/a>. High schoolers can learn about cultural fire practices.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In 2021, the California Department of Education allocated $4 million to develop the curriculum. Joely Proudfit (Luiseño/Payómkawichum, Tongva), director of the California Indian Culture and Sovereignty Center at CSU San Marcos, was one of three people from across the state selected to lead the project. “We really wanted tribal communities to take the lead in helping us write this curriculum,” Proudfit said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In 2021, the California Department of Education allocated $4 million to develop the curriculum. Joely Proudfit (Luiseño/Payómkawichum, Tongva), director of the California Indian Culture and Sovereignty Center at CSU San Marcos, was one of three people from across the state selected to lead the project. “We really wanted tribal communities to take the lead in helping us write this curriculum,” Proudfit said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>They held dozens of meetings with tribal communities throughout the state. There are 109 federally recognized tribes in California, plus many other tribal communities that aren’t recognized. “There’s not a lesson plan for every single tribe in the state,” Proudfit said. “This is merely the first step in the right direction.” Teachers can continue in the right direction, she said, by building relationships with members of local tribal communities.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>There have been \u003ca href=\"https://www.fresnobee.com/news/local/article317542396.html\">reports this week\u003c/a> of a significant increase in immigration enforcement activity across the Central Valley.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>There have been \u003ca href=\"https://www.fresnobee.com/news/local/article317542396.html\">reports this week\u003c/a> of a significant increase in immigration enforcement activity across the Central Valley.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In a statement, State Senator Anna Caballero said her office has received reports that upwards of 60 people have been taken into ICE custody in her district in the past few days. Her district includes Fresno, Madera and Merced counties.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In a statement, State Senator Anna Caballero said her office has received reports that upwards of 60 people have been taken into ICE custody in her district in the past few days. Her district includes Fresno, Madera and Merced counties.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Fresno City Councilman Miguel Arias cautioned Latino residents in particular during a city council meeting on Thursday. “Stay home. It’s not safe for you to be out. They’re not just picking up criminals, they’re not just picking up people who don’t have legal status, they’re picking up everyone,” he said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Fresno City Councilman Miguel Arias cautioned Latino residents in particular during a city council meeting on Thursday. “Stay home. It’s not safe for you to be out. They’re not just picking up criminals, they’re not just picking up people who don’t have legal status, they’re picking up everyone,” he said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Arias expressed concerns about the Big Fresno Fair, which opened this week. But in a statement, fair officials said they work diligently to provide a safe environment for the community. They also said they have not received any information about planned federal activity at the Fair. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Immigration agents appear \u003ca href=\"https://www.kvpr.org/community/2026-10-08/immigration-sweeps-hit-central-californias-farming-region-as-diesel-costs-also-worry-farmers\">to be detaining farmworkers\u003c/a> along rural roads and others driving along busy city streets in Fresno County. Community-reported incidents of\u003ca href=\"https://iceout.org/en/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u003cu> immigration agents conducting traffic stops\u003c/u>\u003c/a> have sent shock through the community. The sweeps come as farmers gear up to finish harvest for most crops in the Valley. In a statement on Thursday, the Nisei Farmers League also called on ICE to respect “the rights of farmers, farmworkers and communities.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Immigration agents appear \u003ca href=\"https://www.kvpr.org/community/2026-10-08/immigration-sweeps-hit-central-californias-farming-region-as-diesel-costs-also-worry-farmers\">to be detaining farmworkers\u003c/a> along rural roads and others driving along busy city streets in Fresno County. Community-reported incidents of\u003ca href=\"https://iceout.org/en/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u003cu> immigration agents conducting traffic stops\u003c/u>\u003c/a> have sent shock through the community. The sweeps come as farmers gear up to finish harvest for most crops in the Valley. In a statement on Thursday, the Nisei Farmers League also called on ICE to respect “the rights of farmers, farmworkers and communities.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Here are the morning’s top stories on Friday, October 9, 2026\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>California now has a statewide guide for teaching about Native American history and culture. In the community of Bonsall in San Diego County, a high school teacher \u003ca href=\"https://www.kpbs.org/news/education/2026/10/02/californias-new-native-american-studies-curriculum-comes-alive-in-a-bonsall-classroom\">is weaving the curriculum into his history class.\u003c/a> \u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Central Valley leaders are trying to assuage the anxieties of their constituents, who are worried about \u003ca href=\"https://www.kvpr.org/community/2026-10-08/immigration-sweeps-hit-central-californias-farming-region-as-diesel-costs-also-worry-farmers\">a reported ICE crackdown\u003c/a> in the area.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kpbs.org/news/education/2026/10/02/californias-new-native-american-studies-curriculum-comes-alive-in-a-bonsall-classroom\">California’s new Native American studies curriculum comes alive in a Bonsall classroom\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Can a government legitimately claim territory, even when other people already live there? If land is not being farmed or developed, does someone else have a right to use it?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Greg Hinchliff’s 11th-grade history students grappled with these questions on a recent morning at Bonsall High School. They moved to different parts of the room depending on what they thought, gathering around signs that ranged from “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Then, they repeated the activity from the perspectives of Native Americans, European settlers, monarchs and religious leaders. “European religious leaders,” Hinchliff said to a group of students. “What would they say about this statement, that explorers can claim that land?”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“That they can claim it because they’re Christians, basically,” a student responded.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Right, because it goes back to that \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/03/30/1167056438/vatican-doctrine-of-discovery-colonialism-indigenous\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u003cu>doctrine of discovery\u003c/u>\u003c/a>,” Hinchliff said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The activity comes from California’s Native American Studies Model Curriculum. Published in 2025, it has hundreds of free lesson plans and teaching materials. Hinchliff helped write it. There are lessons \u003ca href=\"https://camodelcurricula.ucdavis.edu/native-american-studies/whats-in-a-name-native-place-names-and-perspectives\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">for elementary school students\u003c/a> about Indigenous and colonial place names. Eighth graders can learn about \u003ca href=\"https://camodelcurricula.ucdavis.edu/native-american-studies/tribal-governments-sovereignty-treaties-and-constitutions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">tribal sovereignty and federal recognition\u003c/a>. High schoolers can learn about cultural fire practices.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In 2021, the California Department of Education allocated $4 million to develop the curriculum. Joely Proudfit (Luiseño/Payómkawichum, Tongva), director of the California Indian Culture and Sovereignty Center at CSU San Marcos, was one of three people from across the state selected to lead the project. “We really wanted tribal communities to take the lead in helping us write this curriculum,” Proudfit said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>They held dozens of meetings with tribal communities throughout the state. There are 109 federally recognized tribes in California, plus many other tribal communities that aren’t recognized. “There’s not a lesson plan for every single tribe in the state,” Proudfit said. “This is merely the first step in the right direction.” Teachers can continue in the right direction, she said, by building relationships with members of local tribal communities.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kvpr.org/community/2026-10-08/immigration-sweeps-hit-central-californias-farming-region-as-diesel-costs-also-worry-farmers\">Immigration sweeps hit Central Valley\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>There have been \u003ca href=\"https://www.fresnobee.com/news/local/article317542396.html\">reports this week\u003c/a> of a significant increase in immigration enforcement activity across the Central Valley.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In a statement, State Senator Anna Caballero said her office has received reports that upwards of 60 people have been taken into ICE custody in her district in the past few days. Her district includes Fresno, Madera and Merced counties.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Fresno City Councilman Miguel Arias cautioned Latino residents in particular during a city council meeting on Thursday. “Stay home. It’s not safe for you to be out. They’re not just picking up criminals, they’re not just picking up people who don’t have legal status, they’re picking up everyone,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Arias expressed concerns about the Big Fresno Fair, which opened this week. But in a statement, fair officials said they work diligently to provide a safe environment for the community. They also said they have not received any information about planned federal activity at the Fair. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Immigration agents appear \u003ca href=\"https://www.kvpr.org/community/2026-10-08/immigration-sweeps-hit-central-californias-farming-region-as-diesel-costs-also-worry-farmers\">to be detaining farmworkers\u003c/a> along rural roads and others driving along busy city streets in Fresno County. Community-reported incidents of\u003ca href=\"https://iceout.org/en/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u003cu> immigration agents conducting traffic stops\u003c/u>\u003c/a> have sent shock through the community. The sweeps come as farmers gear up to finish harvest for most crops in the Valley. In a statement on Thursday, the Nisei Farmers League also called on ICE to respect “the rights of farmers, farmworkers and communities.”\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003c!-- Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ -->\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A beleaguered \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/sacramento\">Sacramento\u003c/a> charter school, which the state last year accused of misspending $180 million, has filed for bankruptcy after the school said negotiations broke down over its repayment of the debt.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Highlands Community and Technical Schools, which serves about 2,000 adults at six campuses in the Sacramento area, remains open.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Highlands is taking this step to protect our students and preserve the future of our schools,” the school’s executive director, Jonathan Raymond, said in a written statement. “The reorganization process gives us the best opportunity to remain open and continue serving students while we address the disputed financial claims through an orderly, court-supervised process.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Relocation to Sutter County?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Highlands’s quest to \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/2026/09/highlands-charter-school-california/\">relocate to Sutter County\u003c/a> also remains in play. The school is awaiting a decision from the Sutter County Board of Education over its petition for a new charter, under a new name: California Learning Academy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yuba City Unified School District, where Highlands hoped to expand, denied the school’s charter request in July.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\">[aside postID=news_12102861 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-07.jpg']\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The school filed for bankruptcy in U.S, District Court for the Eastern District of California on Sunday. A hearing is set for Thursday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In its filing, the school said it has between 1,000 and 5,000 creditors, including the California Department of Education and Twin Rivers Unified School District, which currently holds the school’s charter. The Department of Education is demanding $243 million, according to the filing, and Twin Rivers says it’s owed $2.4 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Highlands disputes the charges. The Department of Education had no comment on the matter and Twin Rivers Unified did not respond by deadline for a request for comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Auditor’s findings\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The case stems from a 2025 \u003ca href=\"https://www.auditor.ca.gov/reports/2024-106/\">California State Auditor report\u003c/a> that accused Highlands leadership of misstating the school’s attendance, essentially collecting state money for students who didn’t exist. The auditor also accused the school of hiring unqualified teachers and engaging in nepotism in hiring and contracting. Among other questionable expenses, the school spent $1.2 million at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in San Diego and paid for board trips to Paris and Hawaii, according to the auditor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The school has addressed 18 of the auditor’s 19 recommendations, Raymond said, and it appealed the remaining one, which is the alleged misuse of funds. The state’s Education Audit Appeals Panel is expected to release a ruling soon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since the audit, Highlands has replaced all of its senior staff and moved to replace unqualified teachers with those who have, or are working toward, credentials, Raymond said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Founded in 2014, Highlands serves adults seeking a high school diploma, English classes or job skills. Many of its students are immigrants.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/2026/10/highlands-charter-school-california-2/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003c!-- Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ -->\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A beleaguered \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/sacramento\">Sacramento\u003c/a> charter school, which the state last year accused of misspending $180 million, has filed for bankruptcy after the school said negotiations broke down over its repayment of the debt.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Highlands Community and Technical Schools, which serves about 2,000 adults at six campuses in the Sacramento area, remains open.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Highlands is taking this step to protect our students and preserve the future of our schools,” the school’s executive director, Jonathan Raymond, said in a written statement. “The reorganization process gives us the best opportunity to remain open and continue serving students while we address the disputed financial claims through an orderly, court-supervised process.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Relocation to Sutter County?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Highlands’s quest to \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/2026/09/highlands-charter-school-california/\">relocate to Sutter County\u003c/a> also remains in play. The school is awaiting a decision from the Sutter County Board of Education over its petition for a new charter, under a new name: California Learning Academy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yuba City Unified School District, where Highlands hoped to expand, denied the school’s charter request in July.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The school filed for bankruptcy in U.S, District Court for the Eastern District of California on Sunday. A hearing is set for Thursday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In its filing, the school said it has between 1,000 and 5,000 creditors, including the California Department of Education and Twin Rivers Unified School District, which currently holds the school’s charter. The Department of Education is demanding $243 million, according to the filing, and Twin Rivers says it’s owed $2.4 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Highlands disputes the charges. The Department of Education had no comment on the matter and Twin Rivers Unified did not respond by deadline for a request for comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Auditor’s findings\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The case stems from a 2025 \u003ca href=\"https://www.auditor.ca.gov/reports/2024-106/\">California State Auditor report\u003c/a> that accused Highlands leadership of misstating the school’s attendance, essentially collecting state money for students who didn’t exist. The auditor also accused the school of hiring unqualified teachers and engaging in nepotism in hiring and contracting. Among other questionable expenses, the school spent $1.2 million at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in San Diego and paid for board trips to Paris and Hawaii, according to the auditor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The school has addressed 18 of the auditor’s 19 recommendations, Raymond said, and it appealed the remaining one, which is the alleged misuse of funds. The state’s Education Audit Appeals Panel is expected to release a ruling soon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since the audit, Highlands has replaced all of its senior staff and moved to replace unqualified teachers with those who have, or are working toward, credentials, Raymond said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Founded in 2014, Highlands serves adults seeking a high school diploma, English classes or job skills. Many of its students are immigrants.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/2026/10/highlands-charter-school-california-2/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "sf-has-the-fewest-kids-city-leaders-hope-these-policies-will-help-families-stick-around",
"title": "SF Has the Fewest Kids. City Leaders Hope These Policies Will Help Families Stick Around",
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"headTitle": "SF Has the Fewest Kids. City Leaders Hope These Policies Will Help Families Stick Around | KQED",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of How We Get By, a KQED series exploring how people are coping with rising costs in the Bay Area and California. Find the \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/affordability\">\u003cem>full series here\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>After giving birth to her second child this Spring, Angelica Torres was able to take four months off work to care for herself and her baby.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>It’s a luxury not all working parents can afford, but Torres was able to take advantage of a San Francisco law, which offers parents full paychecks while they miss work to bond with a new child. That benefit, plus another city program that offers free childcare for her 3-year-old daughter, gave her welcome financial relief as she navigated the additional cost of growing her family, she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“With everything getting so expensive, I feel that San Francisco does a lot to support families,” she said. “This is why we’re still here.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For at least a decade, San Francisco has had the fewest children of any major American city, with about 13% of residents under the age of 18 in 2025, according to U.S. Census data. The cost of raising a family has long been cited as one reason. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As the artificial intelligence boom fuels economic growth and stirs anxiety about the costs of living rising even higher, local leaders are trying to help families stay in San Francisco by making life a little more affordable.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096525\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres and her children Valentina and Angel stand for a portrait in Torres’ mother’s home in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. Torres and her family stay with her mother for childcare assistance. (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There’s a joke about San Francisco having more dogs than kids, and that’s a little funny, but a little sad,” said Supervisor Danny Sauter, who pushed to expand the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/information--paid-parental-leave-ordinance\">paid parental leave ordinance\u003c/a> to make it easier for workers to qualify. “It’s our responsibility at City Hall to look to see if we can remove barriers, if we could lend a hand.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Since the beginning of this year, the city has focused on alleviating some of the largest expenses families face. In January, Mayor Daniel Lurie rolled out his “Family Opportunity Agenda,” which included \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12094257/san-francisco-child-care-free-elfa-discount-subsidies-how-to-apply-who-qualifies\">expanding the city’s subsidized childcare\u003c/a> to include higher-income earners — a family of four making up to $324,000 a year can now qualify — as well as growing the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/news-mayor-lurie-expands-access-to-affordable-after-school-care-for-san-francisco-families-following-major-expansion-of-early-childcare\">after-school programs\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Lurie is among a handful of mayors and state governors who’ve championed similar policies aimed at families, joining Delaware, Maine, Minnesota and Colorado in \u003ca href=\"https://www.parentoleave.com/blog/whats-changing-in-paid-family-leave-in-2026-your-complete-guide\">enacting or expanding paid parental leave\u003c/a> and New York City in rolling out \u003ca href=\"https://www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2026/09/10/mamdani-2-k-program-launches-with-cost-savings-payment-delays/\">free childcare for 2-year-olds\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Those efforts come as the child population is trending down nationwide due to falling birth and fertility rates, and major cities \u003ca href=\"https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2026/vintage-2025-pop-estimates.html\">saw the biggest decline\u003c/a> in the past five years, according to Census data. Between 2010 and 2025, San Francisco’s under-18 population decreased numerically but \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/san-francisco-fewest-kids-data-21044908.php\">stayed relatively flat as a percentage of the overall population\u003c/a>. The portion of children under 5 had hovered around 4.5% between 2010 and 2020, but since the pandemic, it’s dropped to just under 4%.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr />\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"San Francisco's Under 18 and Under 5 Population\" aria-label=\"Area Chart\" id=\"datawrapper-chart-nMwbh\" src=\"https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/nMwbh/1/\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" 0=\"style="width:\" 1=\"0;\" 2=\"min-width:\" 3=\"100%\" width=\"100%\" height=\"500\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In speeches, Lurie and other city leaders echoed concerns about people delaying having children, if at all, or moving out of San Francisco after they have kids. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This is the greatest city in the world, but it can’t be great if the people that are living here today can’t afford to stay here tomorrow,” Lurie told KQED in a recent interview. “We know how expensive this city is to raise a family, and so we’re doing everything in our power to build more affordable housing, to make early childhood care and education accessible to every family.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>City leaders are focusing on the early years because Census surveys show that’s when families are most likely to leave. It’s also the most expensive phase of life, when childcare prices can consume a big chunk of a family’s income.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“One of the things that’s been true in San Francisco is that if you have a child [under] 5, you’re more likely to leave,” said Ted Egan, the city’s chief economist. “But if you have a child who’s over 5, you’re not — which basically means once people are settled in school, they’re less mobile.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco first began using city funds to offer free preschool for 4-year-olds in 2004 and two decades later broadened that program by using revenue from a voter-approved tax to offer free or discounted early education and care for families, based on their income. Lurie stops short of calling it universal childcare, but said he wants San Francisco to become the first major city in the country to provide “access to childcare” for every family with a child under 5.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The city was also a leader in offering fully paid parental leave, becoming the first in the nation to do so in 2017. The ordinance built on California’s \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/disability/paid-family-leave/\">paid family leave program\u003c/a>, which offers new parents between 60 and 70 percent of their wages for eight weeks, by requiring employers to cover the rest of workers’ paychecks. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096522\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres holds her 5-month-old son Angel as her daughter Valentina works on a project for school in the kitchen of Torres’ mother’s home in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. Torres’ mother helps out with childcare for her and her family. (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11828551/who-benefits-from-san-franciscos-paid-leave-for-new-parents\">Studies have shown\u003c/a> that workers in industries with high turnover, like restaurants and hospitality, were least likely to opt in. A new update to the law makes employees who are starting a new job eligible for the benefit sooner — at 90 days, up from 180.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Torres said this change didn’t directly affect her, but she was glad to see her partner take time off his job as a restaurant cook to take care of their baby after she went back to work as a site supervisor at a preschool. It was a benefit he could have taken after their daughter was born, but didn’t, she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“He was like, ‘I cannot miss a lot of days of work. What is my boss going to say?’” Torres said. “This time around, I explained to him [he] could take some time off. It’s a law. He would go on walks with the baby and take care of our daughter. I feel like he was more connected to his children.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The subsidized childcare program, Early Learning For All, saves her more than $2,000 per month for her daughter’s full-time care, she said, and helps offset other rising costs. The program also boosts the pay of early childhood educators at its participating programs, including the preschool where Torres works, and that has increased her hourly wage from $28 to $36 per hour in the last few years. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While she’s grateful for the help, Torres said her biggest expense is still the rent. The couple shares a four-bedroom apartment with Torres’ parents and brother in the Excelsior District, a working-class neighborhood in the southeastern part of the city. Since the pandemic, the rent stayed at $4,000 until a couple of months ago, when Torres said the landlord bumped it up by 10%.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said she hopes that city leaders “can target the bigger issues that people in San Francisco face like the rent.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Rent is really expensive. Super expensive,” she said. “I really love this city. I love the diversity, and I want my children to grow here.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">‘Hard to live here’ \u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In several interviews, parents of young children echoed Torres’ concern, praising the family-friendly policies but citing the high cost of housing, limited availability of family-sized apartments and an unpopular school lottery as reasons they may eventually leave.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096523\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres holds her 5-month-old son Angel in her mother’s kitchen in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“People who locked in their [mortgage or rental] rates during the pandemic are happy to stay, but those that want to move or want to expand out of their one-bedroom or two-bedroom apartments really do find it hard to live here,” said Vai Sundaresan, a tech worker who was laid off when she was pregnant with her 1-year-old daughter. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said one reason she and her husband, who also works in tech, can afford to live in San Francisco is that they bought their house four years ago. “But if we were to move now, it would be hard.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Sauter is keenly aware of this trend: In the 15 years he’s lived in San Francisco, he said he’s seen friends leave after they start a family. He became a dad himself more than a year ago and said he’s now getting a closer glimpse into the challenges of parenting in the city.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It almost feels destined when you have a first child, or certainly a second child, that you just expect someone to move away,” Sauter said. “That’s not healthy for a city.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>To encourage developers to build larger, family-sized apartments, Sauter co-authored an incentive to allow developers to add another floor if they build apartments with two or more bedrooms. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The incentive is part of a state-mandated effort to address California’s housing shortage. The city’s proposal, which Lurie branded the “Family Zoning Plan,” was approved in December 2025 and allows for the construction of some 36,000 additional homes and apartments, largely in neighborhoods with access to public transit, parks, retail, and community facilities.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In addition to championing the rezoning amendment and expanded paid parental leave, Sauter is also looking to add more diaper-changing tables and lactation rooms in public spaces and improve transit access for families with young kids. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But for some families, a bigger issue is the public school system.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Hitomi Wada and EJ Macayan, a couple who own a small business in the Tenderloin District, said they’re grateful to save $3,000 per month in infant care under the city’s expanded Early Learning for All program but aren’t sure what they’ll do when their 1-year-old son reaches school age. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wada said she’s heard “nightmare stories” of navigating San Francisco Unified School District’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11641238/how-the-san-francisco-school-lottery-works-and-how-it-doesnt-2\">lottery\u003c/a> — a complicated assignment system intended to desegregate schools but one that has also led to long waitlists and confusion, leaving families anxious about whether they’ll get into their preferred school. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The district wants to overhaul the system but has \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12082156/sfusd-wants-to-fix-its-lottery-system-then-look-again-at-closing-schools\">repeatedly delayed replacing it\u003c/a>, though officials said this year, 65% of families got into their top-ranked school. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“He’s only 15 months old, but we’re already thinking, ‘What is our strategy for navigating that portion?’ and trying to figure out what best fits us,” Wada said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Lurie’s hands are tied when it comes to resolving this problem: By law, an elected school board governs the district, which is funded by the state.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He said the city does set aside around $100 million annually from its general fund to support public school libraries and the district’s arts, sports and college readiness programs. The city also increased access to free or discounted after-school care “to help bridge the gap between the time that school ends and parents are done with their job,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We have more work to do, but we’ve made some progress, especially on this early childhood [initiative],” Lurie said. “We’re going to lean in on transit; we’re going to lean in on building more affordable housing.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wada and Macayan said their heart is in San Francisco, but they’re not sure how long they can sustain their life in the city.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We do want to stay,” Wada said. “We want to make it work for as long as possible.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But as they look into the future, Wada said they’re already bracing themselves for what comes next: “When we do have to leave, where do we want to go?”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of How We Get By, a KQED series exploring how people are coping with rising costs in the Bay Area and California. Find the \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/affordability\">\u003cem>full series here\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>After giving birth to her second child this Spring, Angelica Torres was able to take four months off work to care for herself and her baby.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>After giving birth to her second child this Spring, Angelica Torres was able to take four months off work to care for herself and her baby.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>It’s a luxury not all working parents can afford, but Torres was able to take advantage of a San Francisco law, which offers parents full paychecks while they miss work to bond with a new child. That benefit, plus another city program that offers free childcare for her 3-year-old daughter, gave her welcome financial relief as she navigated the additional cost of growing her family, she said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>It’s a luxury not all working parents can afford, but Torres was able to take advantage of a San Francisco law, which offers parents full paychecks while they miss work to bond with a new child. That benefit, plus another city program that offers free childcare for her 3-year-old daughter, gave her welcome financial relief as she navigated the additional cost of growing her family, she said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“With everything getting so expensive, I feel that San Francisco does a lot to support families,” she said. “This is why we’re still here.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“With everything getting so expensive, I feel that San Francisco does a lot to support families,” she said. “This is why we’re still here.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>For at least a decade, San Francisco has had the fewest children of any major American city, with about 13% of residents under the age of 18 in 2025, according to U.S. Census data. The cost of raising a family has long been cited as one reason. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>For at least a decade, San Francisco has had the fewest children of any major American city, with about 13% of residents under the age of 18 in 2025, according to U.S. Census data. The cost of raising a family has long been cited as one reason. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>As the artificial intelligence boom fuels economic growth and stirs anxiety about the costs of living rising even higher, local leaders are trying to help families stay in San Francisco by making life a little more affordable.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>As the artificial intelligence boom fuels economic growth and stirs anxiety about the costs of living rising even higher, local leaders are trying to help families stay in San Francisco by making life a little more affordable.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096525\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres and her children Valentina and Angel stand for a portrait in Torres’ mother’s home in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. Torres and her family stay with her mother for childcare assistance.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096525\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres and her children Valentina and Angel stand for a portrait in Torres’ mother’s home in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. Torres and her family stay with her mother for childcare assistance.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“There’s a joke about San Francisco having more dogs than kids, and that’s a little funny, but a little sad,” said Supervisor Danny Sauter, who pushed to expand the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/information--paid-parental-leave-ordinance\">paid parental leave ordinance\u003c/a> to make it easier for workers to qualify. “It’s our responsibility at City Hall to look to see if we can remove barriers, if we could lend a hand.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“There’s a joke about San Francisco having more dogs than kids, and that’s a little funny, but a little sad,” said Supervisor Danny Sauter, who pushed to expand the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/information--paid-parental-leave-ordinance\">paid parental leave ordinance\u003c/a> to make it easier for workers to qualify. “It’s our responsibility at City Hall to look to see if we can remove barriers, if we could lend a hand.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Since the beginning of this year, the city has focused on alleviating some of the largest expenses families face. In January, Mayor Daniel Lurie rolled out his “Family Opportunity Agenda,” which included \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12094257/san-francisco-child-care-free-elfa-discount-subsidies-how-to-apply-who-qualifies\">expanding the city’s subsidized childcare\u003c/a> to include higher-income earners — a family of four making up to $324,000 a year can now qualify — as well as growing the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/news-mayor-lurie-expands-access-to-affordable-after-school-care-for-san-francisco-families-following-major-expansion-of-early-childcare\">after-school programs\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Since the beginning of this year, the city has focused on alleviating some of the largest expenses families face. In January, Mayor Daniel Lurie rolled out his “Family Opportunity Agenda,” which included \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12094257/san-francisco-child-care-free-elfa-discount-subsidies-how-to-apply-who-qualifies\">expanding the city’s subsidized childcare\u003c/a> to include higher-income earners — a family of four making up to $324,000 a year can now qualify — as well as growing the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/news-mayor-lurie-expands-access-to-affordable-after-school-care-for-san-francisco-families-following-major-expansion-of-early-childcare\">after-school programs\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Lurie is among a handful of mayors and state governors who’ve championed similar policies aimed at families, joining Delaware, Maine, Minnesota and Colorado in \u003ca href=\"https://www.parentoleave.com/blog/whats-changing-in-paid-family-leave-in-2026-your-complete-guide\">enacting or expanding paid parental leave\u003c/a> and New York City in rolling out \u003ca href=\"https://www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2026/09/10/mamdani-2-k-program-launches-with-cost-savings-payment-delays/\">free childcare for 2-year-olds\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Lurie is among a handful of mayors and state governors who’ve championed similar policies aimed at families, joining Delaware, Maine, Minnesota and Colorado in \u003ca href=\"https://www.parentoleave.com/blog/whats-changing-in-paid-family-leave-in-2026-your-complete-guide\">enacting or expanding paid parental leave\u003c/a> and New York City in rolling out \u003ca href=\"https://www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2026/09/10/mamdani-2-k-program-launches-with-cost-savings-payment-delays/\">free childcare for 2-year-olds\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Those efforts come as the child population is trending down nationwide due to falling birth and fertility rates, and major cities \u003ca href=\"https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2026/vintage-2025-pop-estimates.html\">saw the biggest decline\u003c/a> in the past five years, according to Census data. Between 2010 and 2025, San Francisco’s under-18 population decreased numerically but \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/san-francisco-fewest-kids-data-21044908.php\">stayed relatively flat as a percentage of the overall population\u003c/a>. The portion of children under 5 had hovered around 4.5% between 2010 and 2020, but since the pandemic, it’s dropped to just under 4%.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Those efforts come as the child population is trending down nationwide due to falling birth and fertility rates, and major cities \u003ca href=\"https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2026/vintage-2025-pop-estimates.html\">saw the biggest decline\u003c/a> in the past five years, according to Census data. Between 2010 and 2025, San Francisco’s under-18 population decreased numerically but \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/san-francisco-fewest-kids-data-21044908.php\">stayed relatively flat as a percentage of the overall population\u003c/a>. The portion of children under 5 had hovered around 4.5% between 2010 and 2020, but since the pandemic, it’s dropped to just under 4%.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In speeches, Lurie and other city leaders echoed concerns about people delaying having children, if at all, or moving out of San Francisco after they have kids. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In speeches, Lurie and other city leaders echoed concerns about people delaying having children, if at all, or moving out of San Francisco after they have kids. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“This is the greatest city in the world, but it can’t be great if the people that are living here today can’t afford to stay here tomorrow,” Lurie told KQED in a recent interview. “We know how expensive this city is to raise a family, and so we’re doing everything in our power to build more affordable housing, to make early childhood care and education accessible to every family.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“This is the greatest city in the world, but it can’t be great if the people that are living here today can’t afford to stay here tomorrow,” Lurie told KQED in a recent interview. “We know how expensive this city is to raise a family, and so we’re doing everything in our power to build more affordable housing, to make early childhood care and education accessible to every family.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>City leaders are focusing on the early years because Census surveys show that’s when families are most likely to leave. It’s also the most expensive phase of life, when childcare prices can consume a big chunk of a family’s income.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>City leaders are focusing on the early years because Census surveys show that’s when families are most likely to leave. It’s also the most expensive phase of life, when childcare prices can consume a big chunk of a family’s income.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“One of the things that’s been true in San Francisco is that if you have a child [under] 5, you’re more likely to leave,” said Ted Egan, the city’s chief economist. “But if you have a child who’s over 5, you’re not — which basically means once people are settled in school, they’re less mobile.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“One of the things that’s been true in San Francisco is that if you have a child [under] 5, you’re more likely to leave,” said Ted Egan, the city’s chief economist. “But if you have a child who’s over 5, you’re not — which basically means once people are settled in school, they’re less mobile.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>San Francisco first began using city funds to offer free preschool for 4-year-olds in 2004 and two decades later broadened that program by using revenue from a voter-approved tax to offer free or discounted early education and care for families, based on their income. Lurie stops short of calling it universal childcare, but said he wants San Francisco to become the first major city in the country to provide “access to childcare” for every family with a child under 5.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>San Francisco first began using city funds to offer free preschool for 4-year-olds in 2004 and two decades later broadened that program by using revenue from a voter-approved tax to offer free or discounted early education and care for families, based on their income. Lurie stops short of calling it universal childcare, but said he wants San Francisco to become the first major city in the country to provide “access to childcare” for every family with a child under 5.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The city was also a leader in offering fully paid parental leave, becoming the first in the nation to do so in 2017. The ordinance built on California’s \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/disability/paid-family-leave/\">paid family leave program\u003c/a>, which offers new parents between 60 and 70 percent of their wages for eight weeks, by requiring employers to cover the rest of workers’ paychecks. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The city was also a leader in offering fully paid parental leave, becoming the first in the nation to do so in 2017. The ordinance built on California’s \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/disability/paid-family-leave/\">paid family leave program\u003c/a>, which offers new parents between 60 and 70 percent of their wages for eight weeks, by requiring employers to cover the rest of workers’ paychecks. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096522\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres holds her 5-month-old son Angel as her daughter Valentina works on a project for school in the kitchen of Torres’ mother’s home in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. Torres’ mother helps out with childcare for her and her family.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096522\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres holds her 5-month-old son Angel as her daughter Valentina works on a project for school in the kitchen of Torres’ mother’s home in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. Torres’ mother helps out with childcare for her and her family.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11828551/who-benefits-from-san-franciscos-paid-leave-for-new-parents\">Studies have shown\u003c/a> that workers in industries with high turnover, like restaurants and hospitality, were least likely to opt in. A new update to the law makes employees who are starting a new job eligible for the benefit sooner — at 90 days, up from 180.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11828551/who-benefits-from-san-franciscos-paid-leave-for-new-parents\">Studies have shown\u003c/a> that workers in industries with high turnover, like restaurants and hospitality, were least likely to opt in. A new update to the law makes employees who are starting a new job eligible for the benefit sooner — at 90 days, up from 180.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Torres said this change didn’t directly affect her, but she was glad to see her partner take time off his job as a restaurant cook to take care of their baby after she went back to work as a site supervisor at a preschool. It was a benefit he could have taken after their daughter was born, but didn’t, she said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“He was like, ‘I cannot miss a lot of days of work. What is my boss going to say?’” Torres said. “This time around, I explained to him [he] could take some time off. It’s a law. He would go on walks with the baby and take care of our daughter. I feel like he was more connected to his children.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The subsidized childcare program, Early Learning For All, saves her more than $2,000 per month for her daughter’s full-time care, she said, and helps offset other rising costs. The program also boosts the pay of early childhood educators at its participating programs, including the preschool where Torres works, and that has increased her hourly wage from $28 to $36 per hour in the last few years. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>While she’s grateful for the help, Torres said her biggest expense is still the rent. The couple shares a four-bedroom apartment with Torres’ parents and brother in the Excelsior District, a working-class neighborhood in the southeastern part of the city. Since the pandemic, the rent stayed at $4,000 until a couple of months ago, when Torres said the landlord bumped it up by 10%.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Rent is really expensive. Super expensive,” she said. “I really love this city. I love the diversity, and I want my children to grow here.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In several interviews, parents of young children echoed Torres’ concern, praising the family-friendly policies but citing the high cost of housing, limited availability of family-sized apartments and an unpopular school lottery as reasons they may eventually leave.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“People who locked in their [mortgage or rental] rates during the pandemic are happy to stay, but those that want to move or want to expand out of their one-bedroom or two-bedroom apartments really do find it hard to live here,” said Vai Sundaresan, a tech worker who was laid off when she was pregnant with her 1-year-old daughter. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>She said one reason she and her husband, who also works in tech, can afford to live in San Francisco is that they bought their house four years ago. “But if we were to move now, it would be hard.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Sauter is keenly aware of this trend: In the 15 years he’s lived in San Francisco, he said he’s seen friends leave after they start a family. He became a dad himself more than a year ago and said he’s now getting a closer glimpse into the challenges of parenting in the city.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Sauter is keenly aware of this trend: In the 15 years he’s lived in San Francisco, he said he’s seen friends leave after they start a family. He became a dad himself more than a year ago and said he’s now getting a closer glimpse into the challenges of parenting in the city.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It almost feels destined when you have a first child, or certainly a second child, that you just expect someone to move away,” Sauter said. “That’s not healthy for a city.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>To encourage developers to build larger, family-sized apartments, Sauter co-authored an incentive to allow developers to add another floor if they build apartments with two or more bedrooms. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The incentive is part of a state-mandated effort to address California’s housing shortage. The city’s proposal, which Lurie branded the “Family Zoning Plan,” was approved in December 2025 and allows for the construction of some 36,000 additional homes and apartments, largely in neighborhoods with access to public transit, parks, retail, and community facilities.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The incentive is part of a state-mandated effort to address California’s housing shortage. The city’s proposal, which Lurie branded the “Family Zoning Plan,” was approved in December 2025 and allows for the construction of some 36,000 additional homes and apartments, largely in neighborhoods with access to public transit, parks, retail, and community facilities.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In addition to championing the rezoning amendment and expanded paid parental leave, Sauter is also looking to add more diaper-changing tables and lactation rooms in public spaces and improve transit access for families with young kids. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Hitomi Wada and EJ Macayan, a couple who own a small business in the Tenderloin District, said they’re grateful to save $3,000 per month in infant care under the city’s expanded Early Learning for All program but aren’t sure what they’ll do when their 1-year-old son reaches school age. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wada said she’s heard “nightmare stories” of navigating San Francisco Unified School District’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11641238/how-the-san-francisco-school-lottery-works-and-how-it-doesnt-2\">lottery\u003c/a> — a complicated assignment system intended to desegregate schools but one that has also led to long waitlists and confusion, leaving families anxious about whether they’ll get into their preferred school. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The district wants to overhaul the system but has \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12082156/sfusd-wants-to-fix-its-lottery-system-then-look-again-at-closing-schools\">repeatedly delayed replacing it\u003c/a>, though officials said this year, 65% of families got into their top-ranked school. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The district wants to overhaul the system but has \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12082156/sfusd-wants-to-fix-its-lottery-system-then-look-again-at-closing-schools\">repeatedly delayed replacing it\u003c/a>, though officials said this year, 65% of families got into their top-ranked school. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“He’s only 15 months old, but we’re already thinking, ‘What is our strategy for navigating that portion?’ and trying to figure out what best fits us,” Wada said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“He’s only 15 months old, but we’re already thinking, ‘What is our strategy for navigating that portion?’ and trying to figure out what best fits us,” Wada said. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Lurie’s hands are tied when it comes to resolving this problem: By law, an elected school board governs the district, which is funded by the state.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>He said the city does set aside around $100 million annually from its general fund to support public school libraries and the district’s arts, sports and college readiness programs. The city also increased access to free or discounted after-school care “to help bridge the gap between the time that school ends and parents are done with their job,” he said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>He said the city does set aside around $100 million annually from its general fund to support public school libraries and the district’s arts, sports and college readiness programs. The city also increased access to free or discounted after-school care “to help bridge the gap between the time that school ends and parents are done with their job,” he said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We have more work to do, but we’ve made some progress, especially on this early childhood [initiative],” Lurie said. “We’re going to lean in on transit; we’re going to lean in on building more affordable housing.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“We have more work to do, but we’ve made some progress, especially on this early childhood [initiative],” Lurie said. “We’re going to lean in on transit; we’re going to lean in on building more affordable housing.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wada and Macayan said their heart is in San Francisco, but they’re not sure how long they can sustain their life in the city.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We do want to stay,” Wada said. “We want to make it work for as long as possible.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But as they look into the future, Wada said they’re already bracing themselves for what comes next: “When we do have to leave, where do we want to go?”\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of How We Get By, a KQED series exploring how people are coping with rising costs in the Bay Area and California. Find the \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/affordability\">\u003cem>full series here\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>After giving birth to her second child this Spring, Angelica Torres was able to take four months off work to care for herself and her baby.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>It’s a luxury not all working parents can afford, but Torres was able to take advantage of a San Francisco law, which offers parents full paychecks while they miss work to bond with a new child. That benefit, plus another city program that offers free childcare for her 3-year-old daughter, gave her welcome financial relief as she navigated the additional cost of growing her family, she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“With everything getting so expensive, I feel that San Francisco does a lot to support families,” she said. “This is why we’re still here.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For at least a decade, San Francisco has had the fewest children of any major American city, with about 13% of residents under the age of 18 in 2025, according to U.S. Census data. The cost of raising a family has long been cited as one reason. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As the artificial intelligence boom fuels economic growth and stirs anxiety about the costs of living rising even higher, local leaders are trying to help families stay in San Francisco by making life a little more affordable.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096525\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres and her children Valentina and Angel stand for a portrait in Torres’ mother’s home in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. Torres and her family stay with her mother for childcare assistance. (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There’s a joke about San Francisco having more dogs than kids, and that’s a little funny, but a little sad,” said Supervisor Danny Sauter, who pushed to expand the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/information--paid-parental-leave-ordinance\">paid parental leave ordinance\u003c/a> to make it easier for workers to qualify. “It’s our responsibility at City Hall to look to see if we can remove barriers, if we could lend a hand.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Since the beginning of this year, the city has focused on alleviating some of the largest expenses families face. In January, Mayor Daniel Lurie rolled out his “Family Opportunity Agenda,” which included \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12094257/san-francisco-child-care-free-elfa-discount-subsidies-how-to-apply-who-qualifies\">expanding the city’s subsidized childcare\u003c/a> to include higher-income earners — a family of four making up to $324,000 a year can now qualify — as well as growing the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/news-mayor-lurie-expands-access-to-affordable-after-school-care-for-san-francisco-families-following-major-expansion-of-early-childcare\">after-school programs\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Lurie is among a handful of mayors and state governors who’ve championed similar policies aimed at families, joining Delaware, Maine, Minnesota and Colorado in \u003ca href=\"https://www.parentoleave.com/blog/whats-changing-in-paid-family-leave-in-2026-your-complete-guide\">enacting or expanding paid parental leave\u003c/a> and New York City in rolling out \u003ca href=\"https://www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2026/09/10/mamdani-2-k-program-launches-with-cost-savings-payment-delays/\">free childcare for 2-year-olds\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Those efforts come as the child population is trending down nationwide due to falling birth and fertility rates, and major cities \u003ca href=\"https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2026/vintage-2025-pop-estimates.html\">saw the biggest decline\u003c/a> in the past five years, according to Census data. Between 2010 and 2025, San Francisco’s under-18 population decreased numerically but \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/san-francisco-fewest-kids-data-21044908.php\">stayed relatively flat as a percentage of the overall population\u003c/a>. The portion of children under 5 had hovered around 4.5% between 2010 and 2020, but since the pandemic, it’s dropped to just under 4%.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr />\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"San Francisco's Under 18 and Under 5 Population\" aria-label=\"Area Chart\" id=\"datawrapper-chart-nMwbh\" src=\"https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/nMwbh/1/\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" 0=\"style="width:\" 1=\"0;\" 2=\"min-width:\" 3=\"100%\" width=\"100%\" height=\"500\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In speeches, Lurie and other city leaders echoed concerns about people delaying having children, if at all, or moving out of San Francisco after they have kids. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This is the greatest city in the world, but it can’t be great if the people that are living here today can’t afford to stay here tomorrow,” Lurie told KQED in a recent interview. “We know how expensive this city is to raise a family, and so we’re doing everything in our power to build more affordable housing, to make early childhood care and education accessible to every family.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>City leaders are focusing on the early years because Census surveys show that’s when families are most likely to leave. It’s also the most expensive phase of life, when childcare prices can consume a big chunk of a family’s income.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“One of the things that’s been true in San Francisco is that if you have a child [under] 5, you’re more likely to leave,” said Ted Egan, the city’s chief economist. “But if you have a child who’s over 5, you’re not — which basically means once people are settled in school, they’re less mobile.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco first began using city funds to offer free preschool for 4-year-olds in 2004 and two decades later broadened that program by using revenue from a voter-approved tax to offer free or discounted early education and care for families, based on their income. Lurie stops short of calling it universal childcare, but said he wants San Francisco to become the first major city in the country to provide “access to childcare” for every family with a child under 5.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The city was also a leader in offering fully paid parental leave, becoming the first in the nation to do so in 2017. The ordinance built on California’s \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/disability/paid-family-leave/\">paid family leave program\u003c/a>, which offers new parents between 60 and 70 percent of their wages for eight weeks, by requiring employers to cover the rest of workers’ paychecks. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096522\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres holds her 5-month-old son Angel as her daughter Valentina works on a project for school in the kitchen of Torres’ mother’s home in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. Torres’ mother helps out with childcare for her and her family. (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11828551/who-benefits-from-san-franciscos-paid-leave-for-new-parents\">Studies have shown\u003c/a> that workers in industries with high turnover, like restaurants and hospitality, were least likely to opt in. A new update to the law makes employees who are starting a new job eligible for the benefit sooner — at 90 days, up from 180.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Torres said this change didn’t directly affect her, but she was glad to see her partner take time off his job as a restaurant cook to take care of their baby after she went back to work as a site supervisor at a preschool. It was a benefit he could have taken after their daughter was born, but didn’t, she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“He was like, ‘I cannot miss a lot of days of work. What is my boss going to say?’” Torres said. “This time around, I explained to him [he] could take some time off. It’s a law. He would go on walks with the baby and take care of our daughter. I feel like he was more connected to his children.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The subsidized childcare program, Early Learning For All, saves her more than $2,000 per month for her daughter’s full-time care, she said, and helps offset other rising costs. The program also boosts the pay of early childhood educators at its participating programs, including the preschool where Torres works, and that has increased her hourly wage from $28 to $36 per hour in the last few years. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While she’s grateful for the help, Torres said her biggest expense is still the rent. The couple shares a four-bedroom apartment with Torres’ parents and brother in the Excelsior District, a working-class neighborhood in the southeastern part of the city. Since the pandemic, the rent stayed at $4,000 until a couple of months ago, when Torres said the landlord bumped it up by 10%.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said she hopes that city leaders “can target the bigger issues that people in San Francisco face like the rent.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Rent is really expensive. Super expensive,” she said. “I really love this city. I love the diversity, and I want my children to grow here.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">‘Hard to live here’ \u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In several interviews, parents of young children echoed Torres’ concern, praising the family-friendly policies but citing the high cost of housing, limited availability of family-sized apartments and an unpopular school lottery as reasons they may eventually leave.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096523\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres holds her 5-month-old son Angel in her mother’s kitchen in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“People who locked in their [mortgage or rental] rates during the pandemic are happy to stay, but those that want to move or want to expand out of their one-bedroom or two-bedroom apartments really do find it hard to live here,” said Vai Sundaresan, a tech worker who was laid off when she was pregnant with her 1-year-old daughter. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said one reason she and her husband, who also works in tech, can afford to live in San Francisco is that they bought their house four years ago. “But if we were to move now, it would be hard.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Sauter is keenly aware of this trend: In the 15 years he’s lived in San Francisco, he said he’s seen friends leave after they start a family. He became a dad himself more than a year ago and said he’s now getting a closer glimpse into the challenges of parenting in the city.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It almost feels destined when you have a first child, or certainly a second child, that you just expect someone to move away,” Sauter said. “That’s not healthy for a city.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>To encourage developers to build larger, family-sized apartments, Sauter co-authored an incentive to allow developers to add another floor if they build apartments with two or more bedrooms. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The incentive is part of a state-mandated effort to address California’s housing shortage. The city’s proposal, which Lurie branded the “Family Zoning Plan,” was approved in December 2025 and allows for the construction of some 36,000 additional homes and apartments, largely in neighborhoods with access to public transit, parks, retail, and community facilities.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In addition to championing the rezoning amendment and expanded paid parental leave, Sauter is also looking to add more diaper-changing tables and lactation rooms in public spaces and improve transit access for families with young kids. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But for some families, a bigger issue is the public school system.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Hitomi Wada and EJ Macayan, a couple who own a small business in the Tenderloin District, said they’re grateful to save $3,000 per month in infant care under the city’s expanded Early Learning for All program but aren’t sure what they’ll do when their 1-year-old son reaches school age. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wada said she’s heard “nightmare stories” of navigating San Francisco Unified School District’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11641238/how-the-san-francisco-school-lottery-works-and-how-it-doesnt-2\">lottery\u003c/a> — a complicated assignment system intended to desegregate schools but one that has also led to long waitlists and confusion, leaving families anxious about whether they’ll get into their preferred school. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The district wants to overhaul the system but has \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12082156/sfusd-wants-to-fix-its-lottery-system-then-look-again-at-closing-schools\">repeatedly delayed replacing it\u003c/a>, though officials said this year, 65% of families got into their top-ranked school. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“He’s only 15 months old, but we’re already thinking, ‘What is our strategy for navigating that portion?’ and trying to figure out what best fits us,” Wada said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Lurie’s hands are tied when it comes to resolving this problem: By law, an elected school board governs the district, which is funded by the state.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He said the city does set aside around $100 million annually from its general fund to support public school libraries and the district’s arts, sports and college readiness programs. The city also increased access to free or discounted after-school care “to help bridge the gap between the time that school ends and parents are done with their job,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We have more work to do, but we’ve made some progress, especially on this early childhood [initiative],” Lurie said. “We’re going to lean in on transit; we’re going to lean in on building more affordable housing.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wada and Macayan said their heart is in San Francisco, but they’re not sure how long they can sustain their life in the city.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We do want to stay,” Wada said. “We want to make it work for as long as possible.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But as they look into the future, Wada said they’re already bracing themselves for what comes next: “When we do have to leave, where do we want to go?”\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "sf-naacp-calls-on-san-francisco-unified-to-hold-racist-behavior-accountable",
"title": "SF NAACP Calls on San Francisco Unified to Hold Racist Behavior Accountable",
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"headTitle": "SF NAACP Calls on San Francisco Unified to Hold Racist Behavior Accountable | KQED",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>The NAACP San Francisco branch, along with parents and community advocates, accused the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/sfusd\">city’s public school district\u003c/a> of failing to take action against anti-Black rhetoric after multiple incidents at district high schools. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>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 racial justice nonprofit. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Coleman Advocates Youth Justice Director Rachel Jones said that after the student used the “N-word,” a physical altercation ensued. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Video footage of the incident, posted by KTSF, shows a child being shoved in the school hallway. Board of Education candidate \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DdXZAgoAQ6I/?img_index=2\">Laurance Lee said\u003c/a> on social media that the television station reported that a “Chinese American special education student was attacked after class,” and had been bullied before. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Jones said Wednesday that “a physical response to a conflict is unacceptable, but racial slurs also cause significant harm and trauma.” She said the student had previously used the language last year, prompting classmates to ask administrators to intervene — but they didn’t feel that they got the support they needed.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12036911\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The San Francisco Unified School District Administrative Offices in San Francisco on April 18, 2025. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This is not an isolated incident,” said Yolanda Williams, the vice president of the NAACP San Francisco branch. “Every Black child that enters the San Francisco Unified School District deserves respect, they deserve to be safe and they deserve to be in an educational environment that is free from racial hostility.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Following the incident, Lincoln administrators sent an email to families, saying they had been made aware of “multiple instances of hate speech” on campus.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“At Lincoln, there is no place for slurs of any kind … discriminatory, hateful or demeaning language,” the letter reads. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>SFUSD said in a statement that district leaders were meeting with the families involved in the Sept. 4 incident, as well as community stakeholders, including the NAACP. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We are implementing restorative practices to ensure that students directly impacted by the incident receive the support they need,” the district wrote via email. “We are also focused on providing support for the broader Lincoln High School community to ensure every student has access to any resources they need and that it is made clear that we do not accept behavior of this kind anywhere at SFUSD.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The incident at Lincoln occurred just days after SFUSD announced that it had removed Lowell High School’s varsity baseball coaching staff and that the team would \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12097872/sfs-lowell-hs-baseball-team-to-forfeit-3-games-remove-coaches-after-investigation\">forfeit three games\u003c/a> next spring after an incident of racial taunting last season. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The coaches have been on leave since May, when \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/lowell-high-racial-misconduct-baseball-22271411.php\">reports surfaced\u003c/a> that they were present during the school’s junior varsity championship game against Lincoln High School, where “alleged race-based taunting by Lowell’s varsity players” occurred.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“In this school district today, the N-word is used repeatedly at the elementary, middle and high school levels,” Rev. Amos C. Brown said Wednesday. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He said that after the Sept. 4 incident, the school was slow to respond, and he blamed the school’s principal for not taking independent ownership for the letter sent to families. He called the message “generalized,” and said it lacked specific details or information about what, if any, repercussions there have been for the students involved. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The district did not respond to a question about whether it had taken any disciplinary action.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Far too many principals have sought to sweep under the rug instances when Black children have been victimized by racialized, bigoted language,” Amos said, noting that Superintendent Maria Su has met with the NAACP and “been supportive.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Virginia Marshall, a member of the NAACP, addressed Su specifically: “However, you must get the word out to your principals. You must get to word out to your assistant superintendents … to say to them, ‘the N word is never ever allowed.’”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-09-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12046127\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-09-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-09-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-09-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Maria Su speaks during a press conference at the school district offices in San Francisco on April 21, 2025. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In 1979, the San Francisco chapter of the NAACP sued SFUSD, alleging that the district was engaging in racial discrimination and maintaining segregated schools. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The case led to a consent decree requiring the district to accelerate efforts to achieve academic excellence for all students, particularly African American and Latino students, and to eliminate racial and ethnic segregation in schools and programs. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“During that time, under the consent decree of the early years, African American students thrived in SFUSD,” Marshall said. “We fear that we are at that threshold again — we should not have to sue the school district for our children to thrive.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The organizations called on the district to increase accountability for racist language and behavior on its campuses. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Marshall said the schools must make it “their number one priority to make sure that all children receive a great education, and that all children are safe and all children feel that they are part of [their] school.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Video footage of the incident, posted by KTSF, shows a child being shoved in the school hallway. Board of Education candidate \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DdXZAgoAQ6I/?img_index=2\">Laurance Lee said\u003c/a> on social media that the television station reported that a “Chinese American special education student was attacked after class,” and had been bullied before. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Jones said Wednesday that “a physical response to a conflict is unacceptable, but racial slurs also cause significant harm and trauma.” She said the student had previously used the language last year, prompting classmates to ask administrators to intervene — but they didn’t feel that they got the support they needed.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12036911\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The San Francisco Unified School District Administrative Offices in San Francisco on April 18, 2025.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12036911\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The San Francisco Unified School District Administrative Offices in San Francisco on April 18, 2025.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“This is not an isolated incident,” said Yolanda Williams, the vice president of the NAACP San Francisco branch. “Every Black child that enters the San Francisco Unified School District deserves respect, they deserve to be safe and they deserve to be in an educational environment that is free from racial hostility.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Following the incident, Lincoln administrators sent an email to families, saying they had been made aware of “multiple instances of hate speech” on campus.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“At Lincoln, there is no place for slurs of any kind … discriminatory, hateful or demeaning language,” the letter reads. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>SFUSD said in a statement that district leaders were meeting with the families involved in the Sept. 4 incident, as well as community stakeholders, including the NAACP. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We are implementing restorative practices to ensure that students directly impacted by the incident receive the support they need,” the district wrote via email. “We are also focused on providing support for the broader Lincoln High School community to ensure every student has access to any resources they need and that it is made clear that we do not accept behavior of this kind anywhere at SFUSD.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“We are implementing restorative practices to ensure that students directly impacted by the incident receive the support they need,” the district wrote via email. “We are also focused on providing support for the broader Lincoln High School community to ensure every student has access to any resources they need and that it is made clear that we do not accept behavior of this kind anywhere at SFUSD.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The incident at Lincoln occurred just days after SFUSD announced that it had removed Lowell High School’s varsity baseball coaching staff and that the team would \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12097872/sfs-lowell-hs-baseball-team-to-forfeit-3-games-remove-coaches-after-investigation\">forfeit three games\u003c/a> next spring after an incident of racial taunting last season. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The incident at Lincoln occurred just days after SFUSD announced that it had removed Lowell High School’s varsity baseball coaching staff and that the team would \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12097872/sfs-lowell-hs-baseball-team-to-forfeit-3-games-remove-coaches-after-investigation\">forfeit three games\u003c/a> next spring after an incident of racial taunting last season. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The coaches have been on leave since May, when \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/lowell-high-racial-misconduct-baseball-22271411.php\">reports surfaced\u003c/a> that they were present during the school’s junior varsity championship game against Lincoln High School, where “alleged race-based taunting by Lowell’s varsity players” occurred.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The coaches have been on leave since May, when \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/lowell-high-racial-misconduct-baseball-22271411.php\">reports surfaced\u003c/a> that they were present during the school’s junior varsity championship game against Lincoln High School, where “alleged race-based taunting by Lowell’s varsity players” occurred.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“In this school district today, the N-word is used repeatedly at the elementary, middle and high school levels,” Rev. Amos C. Brown said Wednesday. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“In this school district today, the N-word is used repeatedly at the elementary, middle and high school levels,” Rev. Amos C. Brown said Wednesday. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>He said that after the Sept. 4 incident, the school was slow to respond, and he blamed the school’s principal for not taking independent ownership for the letter sent to families. He called the message “generalized,” and said it lacked specific details or information about what, if any, repercussions there have been for the students involved. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>He said that after the Sept. 4 incident, the school was slow to respond, and he blamed the school’s principal for not taking independent ownership for the letter sent to families. He called the message “generalized,” and said it lacked specific details or information about what, if any, repercussions there have been for the students involved. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The district did not respond to a question about whether it had taken any disciplinary action.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Far too many principals have sought to sweep under the rug instances when Black children have been victimized by racialized, bigoted language,” Amos said, noting that Superintendent Maria Su has met with the NAACP and “been supportive.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Far too many principals have sought to sweep under the rug instances when Black children have been victimized by racialized, bigoted language,” Amos said, noting that Superintendent Maria Su has met with the NAACP and “been supportive.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Virginia Marshall, a member of the NAACP, addressed Su specifically: “However, you must get the word out to your principals. You must get to word out to your assistant superintendents … to say to them, ‘the N word is never ever allowed.’”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Virginia Marshall, a member of the NAACP, addressed Su specifically: “However, you must get the word out to your principals. You must get to word out to your assistant superintendents … to say to them, ‘the N word is never ever allowed.’”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-09-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12046127\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-09-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-09-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-09-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Maria Su speaks during a press conference at the school district offices in San Francisco on April 21, 2025.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-09-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12046127\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Maria Su speaks during a press conference at the school district offices in San Francisco on April 21, 2025.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In 1979, the San Francisco chapter of the NAACP sued SFUSD, alleging that the district was engaging in racial discrimination and maintaining segregated schools. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In 1979, the San Francisco chapter of the NAACP sued SFUSD, alleging that the district was engaging in racial discrimination and maintaining segregated schools. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The case led to a consent decree requiring the district to accelerate efforts to achieve academic excellence for all students, particularly African American and Latino students, and to eliminate racial and ethnic segregation in schools and programs. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The case led to a consent decree requiring the district to accelerate efforts to achieve academic excellence for all students, particularly African American and Latino students, and to eliminate racial and ethnic segregation in schools and programs. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“During that time, under the consent decree of the early years, African American students thrived in SFUSD,” Marshall said. “We fear that we are at that threshold again — we should not have to sue the school district for our children to thrive.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“During that time, under the consent decree of the early years, African American students thrived in SFUSD,” Marshall said. “We fear that we are at that threshold again — we should not have to sue the school district for our children to thrive.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The organizations called on the district to increase accountability for racist language and behavior on its campuses. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Marshall said the schools must make it “their number one priority to make sure that all children receive a great education, and that all children are safe and all children feel that they are part of [their] school.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Marshall said the schools must make it “their number one priority to make sure that all children receive a great education, and that all children are safe and all children feel that they are part of [their] school.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"excerpt": "San Francisco Unified said in a statement that district leaders are meeting with families affected by the racist incident on a school campus.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>The NAACP San Francisco branch, along with parents and community advocates, accused the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/sfusd\">city’s public school district\u003c/a> of failing to take action against anti-Black rhetoric after multiple incidents at district high schools. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>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 racial justice nonprofit. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Coleman Advocates Youth Justice Director Rachel Jones said that after the student used the “N-word,” a physical altercation ensued. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Video footage of the incident, posted by KTSF, shows a child being shoved in the school hallway. Board of Education candidate \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DdXZAgoAQ6I/?img_index=2\">Laurance Lee said\u003c/a> on social media that the television station reported that a “Chinese American special education student was attacked after class,” and had been bullied before. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Jones said Wednesday that “a physical response to a conflict is unacceptable, but racial slurs also cause significant harm and trauma.” She said the student had previously used the language last year, prompting classmates to ask administrators to intervene — but they didn’t feel that they got the support they needed.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12036911\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFUSD-06-BL-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The San Francisco Unified School District Administrative Offices in San Francisco on April 18, 2025. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This is not an isolated incident,” said Yolanda Williams, the vice president of the NAACP San Francisco branch. “Every Black child that enters the San Francisco Unified School District deserves respect, they deserve to be safe and they deserve to be in an educational environment that is free from racial hostility.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Following the incident, Lincoln administrators sent an email to families, saying they had been made aware of “multiple instances of hate speech” on campus.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“At Lincoln, there is no place for slurs of any kind … discriminatory, hateful or demeaning language,” the letter reads. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>SFUSD said in a statement that district leaders were meeting with the families involved in the Sept. 4 incident, as well as community stakeholders, including the NAACP. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We are implementing restorative practices to ensure that students directly impacted by the incident receive the support they need,” the district wrote via email. “We are also focused on providing support for the broader Lincoln High School community to ensure every student has access to any resources they need and that it is made clear that we do not accept behavior of this kind anywhere at SFUSD.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The incident at Lincoln occurred just days after SFUSD announced that it had removed Lowell High School’s varsity baseball coaching staff and that the team would \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12097872/sfs-lowell-hs-baseball-team-to-forfeit-3-games-remove-coaches-after-investigation\">forfeit three games\u003c/a> next spring after an incident of racial taunting last season. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The coaches have been on leave since May, when \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/lowell-high-racial-misconduct-baseball-22271411.php\">reports surfaced\u003c/a> that they were present during the school’s junior varsity championship game against Lincoln High School, where “alleged race-based taunting by Lowell’s varsity players” occurred.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“In this school district today, the N-word is used repeatedly at the elementary, middle and high school levels,” Rev. Amos C. Brown said Wednesday. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He said that after the Sept. 4 incident, the school was slow to respond, and he blamed the school’s principal for not taking independent ownership for the letter sent to families. He called the message “generalized,” and said it lacked specific details or information about what, if any, repercussions there have been for the students involved. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The district did not respond to a question about whether it had taken any disciplinary action.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Far too many principals have sought to sweep under the rug instances when Black children have been victimized by racialized, bigoted language,” Amos said, noting that Superintendent Maria Su has met with the NAACP and “been supportive.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Virginia Marshall, a member of the NAACP, addressed Su specifically: “However, you must get the word out to your principals. You must get to word out to your assistant superintendents … to say to them, ‘the N word is never ever allowed.’”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-09-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12046127\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-09-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-09-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-09-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Maria Su speaks during a press conference at the school district offices in San Francisco on April 21, 2025. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In 1979, the San Francisco chapter of the NAACP sued SFUSD, alleging that the district was engaging in racial discrimination and maintaining segregated schools. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The case led to a consent decree requiring the district to accelerate efforts to achieve academic excellence for all students, particularly African American and Latino students, and to eliminate racial and ethnic segregation in schools and programs. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“During that time, under the consent decree of the early years, African American students thrived in SFUSD,” Marshall said. “We fear that we are at that threshold again — we should not have to sue the school district for our children to thrive.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The organizations called on the district to increase accountability for racist language and behavior on its campuses. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Marshall said the schools must make it “their number one priority to make sure that all children receive a great education, and that all children are safe and all children feel that they are part of [their] school.”\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "a-bay-area-teacher-was-acquitted-of-sexual-abuse-hes-on-trial-again-for-new-allegations",
"title": "A Bay Area Teacher Was Acquitted of Sexual Abuse. He’s on Trial Again for New Allegations",
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"headTitle": "A Bay Area Teacher Was Acquitted of Sexual Abuse. He’s on Trial Again for New Allegations | KQED",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Editor’s Note: This story includes details of alleged sexual misconduct against minors. \u003c/em>\u003cstrong>\u003cbr>\u003cbr>\u003c/strong>For the second time in his teaching career, a former \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/bay-area\">Bay Area\u003c/a> elementary teacher is on trial over allegations that he sexually abused his students.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Matthew Shelton, 44, faces 12 felony counts of lewd acts on four children during his tenure at the Benicia Unified School District. Prosecutors say the alleged abuse took place between 2018 and 2022 at Robert Semple Elementary School, where he was a fifth-grade teacher, and during a field trip with students in Oakland.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But the trial is also putting a spotlight on Shelton’s tumultuous first year teaching in 2007, when students at Phillips Edison Elementary School in Napa accused him of similar allegations. And it comes as Benicia Unified faces three lawsuits from students who allege the district failed to protect them by hiring Shelton, despite the abuse allegations in Napa.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Shelton, then 25 years old, was a popular third-grade teacher at the Napa school when he was accused of inappropriately touching four students. He was criminally charged, and three students testified against him during a six-day trial in 2008. Jurors deliberated for just 20 minutes before finding him not guilty. Benicia Unified hired him six months later.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>During opening statements at a Fairfield courthouse on Monday, prosecutor Barry Shapiro argued that Shelton’s pattern of abuse continued at his new school. He told the jury that Shelton went on to touch Benicia elementary students on the buttocks or vaginal area, and that he had a student touch his penis, just as the students in Napa alleged nearly two decades ago.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-11-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12101865\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-11-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-11-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-11-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Robert Semple Elementary School in Benicia on Sept. 28, 2026. (Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Shapiro said adults trust teachers to keep their children safe. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This case is about a teacher who violated that trust consistently over the span of 15 years at two schools in multiple grades,” Shapiro said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Shapiro painted Shelton as a sophisticated actor who had both the “knowledge and opportunity” to isolate girls and get away with the abuse, even in a classroom with other students present. Shelton instructed his Benicia students to applaud when adults entered his classroom, Shapiro said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But one day in December 2022, Shapiro said the students were distracted and failed to clap. A teacher walked in and saw Shelton by his desk, holding hands with another student and “swaying back and forth.” The next day, several students complained to Principal Christina Moore that he made them uncomfortable by placing his hands on a classmate’s thigh, pinching a student’s arm, and moving his hand down to the pockets of a student’s pants.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Moore contacted the school’s resource officer and Benicia Unified put Shelton on leave. Months later students disclosed more serious allegations to Benicia police.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Defense attorney Amanda Bevins denies any sexual motivation on Shelton’s part. She described him as a husband, father and dedicated educator who devoted his entire career to teaching, even after being wrongfully accused nearly two decades prior. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Bevins said that in the 2007 case, a group of disgruntled friends made allegations against Shelton to their principal. Flash forward to 2022, she said another friend group at Robert Semple Elementary School — upset that Shelton singled out one of the girls and made her cry — complained to their principal about Shelton. Nearly two decades apart, the two friend groups both concocted claims against him, she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Bevins asked the jury to pay attention to how the allegations changed over time and were influenced by schoolyard gossip, employee break room chatter, media coverage, repeated interviews by police and lawyers and civil lawsuits.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The seriousness of the accusations does not tell us whether they are true,” Bevins said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said Shelton was acquitted in Napa and he did not abuse his students in Benicia. “Nothing plus nothing is nothing,” Bevins said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">‘I didn’t deserve that’ \u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But details of Shelton’s short tenure teaching in Napa continue to reverberate in this trial. Former students who testified against Shelton in 2008, his former Napa teaching colleagues, and the detective who investigated the case were on a recent list of potential witnesses. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>After opening statements, one of the students who testified against Shelton during the Napa trial, now in her late 20s, took the stand again to face her former social studies teacher. She told the jury that in 2007, she saw Shelton touch one of her classmates on the crotch and another on the butt during class. KQED does not generally name victims of alleged abuse without their consent. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>With her voice occasionally breaking, she testified that Shelton had also touched her butt after she went to his desk to ask a question. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-21-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12101868\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-21-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-21-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-21-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Solano County Law and Justice Center in Fairfield on Sept. 28, 2026. (Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I was extremely shocked. I was confused. I wasn’t sure whether or not it was OK,” the former student said. “I had never been touched like that before.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Another alleged victim in the Napa case told KQED in a recent interview that Shelton was well-liked and touched students by playing games with them, picking girls up and pretending to be Superman.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>When she was interviewed by police in 2007, the student alleged that Shelton moved her hands across her “private spot” or made her touch his groin.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But she said the same educators who comforted her, hugged her and told her she was safe later defended Shelton during the trial, testifying that the girls who accused him were lying. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>When it was her turn to testify, she recalled sweating and shaking “not realizing the trauma that was coming up then.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said she was just a kid holding a teddy bear in a courtroom filled with adults, including Shelton. She became confused by the attorney’s deluge of questions.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It was all basically to prove that I was wrong,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said she can still remember the expression on Shelton’s face. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The smirk,” the former student said. “He was getting satisfaction from us getting confused.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>After Shelton was acquitted in 2008, the state’s teacher licensing agency reviewed the allegations against him in Napa to determine whether he should be allowed to continue working in California public schools, according to records from Napa Valley Unified. In addition to the criminal case, the agency also reviewed allegations from other students who said Shelton touched them on the stomach, rubbed their fingers and patted girls’ heads “like a dog.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Nine people provided “very favorable” letters on Shelton’s behalf, including his defense attorney, former assistant principal and other third grade teachers, according to the agency’s investigative report. A teacher said one of the alleged victims “does a lot of lying” and that Shelton is “very kind-hearted.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>At the time, Shelton cited as evidence an evaluation from a psychologist who said: “This young man very clearly does not exhibit those personality traits or demographic factors that empirical research has shown to be present in most child molesters.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Shelton told the teacher licensing agency he was looking forward to continuing his career as an educator. His credential was reinstated in 2008, and months later Benicia Unified hired him. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A parent of one of the alleged victims in Benicia told KQED that it was “disgusting” that the state gave Shelton back his teaching credential. KQED is not naming the parent to protect the identity of her daughter.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Why are we hiring people that have those types of allegations?” the mother said. “He needs to be away from kids.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said her daughter, now a teenager, is still afraid of being taught by male teachers because of what happened to her. “There were plenty of times over the last three years where she has broken down, cried and said, ‘I didn’t deserve that.’”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-13_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12101989\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-13_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-13_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-13_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Robert Semple Elementary School in Benicia on Sept. 28, 2026. (Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Benicia Unified Superintendent Chris Calabrese declined to comment on Shelton’s hiring. Shelton resigned from Benicia Unified in 2023 after allegations surfaced that he touched students inappropriately. He was subsequently hired by the West Contra Costa Unified School District as an assistant principal. The district put him on leave when a parent of one of the victims informed the district he was under investigation by police.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>A spokesperson for West Contra Costa Unified said in a written statement that his credentials were valid when they hired him. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Shelton sued Napa Valley Unified and Benicia Unified in 2024 to stop the districts from releasing records of complaints against him, arguing doing so would impede his right to an impartial jury. The First Amendment Coalition \u003ca href=\"https://firstamendmentcoalition.org/case/shelton-v-napa-valley-unified-school-district/\">intervened\u003c/a> on behalf of this reporter and both districts released the records.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>Since 2025, California law has required all public schools to check with every previous employing school to see if prospective teaching candidates had ever been reported to the state for credible or substantiated complaints of egregious misconduct.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12097322/california-teacher-misconduct-bill-administrator-discipline-al-muratsuchi\">this month,\u003c/a> prompted by reporting by \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12082980/california-fired-teacher-sexual-harassment\">KQED and \u003cem>ProPublica\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, clarifying that the teacher licensing agency may discipline educators who do not share their full employment histories and administrators who do not thoroughly vet applicants. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-11-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12101865\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-11-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-11-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-11-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Robert Semple Elementary School in Benicia on Sept. 28, 2026.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-11-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12101865\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Robert Semple Elementary School in Benicia on Sept. 28, 2026.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Shapiro said adults trust teachers to keep their children safe. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“This case is about a teacher who violated that trust consistently over the span of 15 years at two schools in multiple grades,” Shapiro said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Shapiro painted Shelton as a sophisticated actor who had both the “knowledge and opportunity” to isolate girls and get away with the abuse, even in a classroom with other students present. Shelton instructed his Benicia students to applaud when adults entered his classroom, Shapiro said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Shapiro painted Shelton as a sophisticated actor who had both the “knowledge and opportunity” to isolate girls and get away with the abuse, even in a classroom with other students present. Shelton instructed his Benicia students to applaud when adults entered his classroom, Shapiro said. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But one day in December 2022, Shapiro said the students were distracted and failed to clap. A teacher walked in and saw Shelton by his desk, holding hands with another student and “swaying back and forth.” The next day, several students complained to Principal Christina Moore that he made them uncomfortable by placing his hands on a classmate’s thigh, pinching a student’s arm, and moving his hand down to the pockets of a student’s pants.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>But one day in December 2022, Shapiro said the students were distracted and failed to clap. A teacher walked in and saw Shelton by his desk, holding hands with another student and “swaying back and forth.” The next day, several students complained to Principal Christina Moore that he made them uncomfortable by placing his hands on a classmate’s thigh, pinching a student’s arm, and moving his hand down to the pockets of a student’s pants.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Defense attorney Amanda Bevins denies any sexual motivation on Shelton’s part. She described him as a husband, father and dedicated educator who devoted his entire career to teaching, even after being wrongfully accused nearly two decades prior. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Bevins said that in the 2007 case, a group of disgruntled friends made allegations against Shelton to their principal. Flash forward to 2022, she said another friend group at Robert Semple Elementary School — upset that Shelton singled out one of the girls and made her cry — complained to their principal about Shelton. Nearly two decades apart, the two friend groups both concocted claims against him, she said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Bevins asked the jury to pay attention to how the allegations changed over time and were influenced by schoolyard gossip, employee break room chatter, media coverage, repeated interviews by police and lawyers and civil lawsuits.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“The seriousness of the accusations does not tell us whether they are true,” Bevins said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>She said Shelton was acquitted in Napa and he did not abuse his students in Benicia. “Nothing plus nothing is nothing,” Bevins said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But details of Shelton’s short tenure teaching in Napa continue to reverberate in this trial. Former students who testified against Shelton in 2008, his former Napa teaching colleagues, and the detective who investigated the case were on a recent list of potential witnesses. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>But details of Shelton’s short tenure teaching in Napa continue to reverberate in this trial. Former students who testified against Shelton in 2008, his former Napa teaching colleagues, and the detective who investigated the case were on a recent list of potential witnesses. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>After opening statements, one of the students who testified against Shelton during the Napa trial, now in her late 20s, took the stand again to face her former social studies teacher. She told the jury that in 2007, she saw Shelton touch one of her classmates on the crotch and another on the butt during class. KQED does not generally name victims of alleged abuse without their consent. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>After opening statements, one of the students who testified against Shelton during the Napa trial, now in her late 20s, took the stand again to face her former social studies teacher. She told the jury that in 2007, she saw Shelton touch one of her classmates on the crotch and another on the butt during class. KQED does not generally name victims of alleged abuse without their consent. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>With her voice occasionally breaking, she testified that Shelton had also touched her butt after she went to his desk to ask a question. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I was extremely shocked. I was confused. I wasn’t sure whether or not it was OK,” the former student said. “I had never been touched like that before.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Another alleged victim in the Napa case told KQED in a recent interview that Shelton was well-liked and touched students by playing games with them, picking girls up and pretending to be Superman.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>When she was interviewed by police in 2007, the student alleged that Shelton moved her hands across her “private spot” or made her touch his groin.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But she said the same educators who comforted her, hugged her and told her she was safe later defended Shelton during the trial, testifying that the girls who accused him were lying. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>When it was her turn to testify, she recalled sweating and shaking “not realizing the trauma that was coming up then.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>She said she was just a kid holding a teddy bear in a courtroom filled with adults, including Shelton. She became confused by the attorney’s deluge of questions.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“The smirk,” the former student said. “He was getting satisfaction from us getting confused.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>After Shelton was acquitted in 2008, the state’s teacher licensing agency reviewed the allegations against him in Napa to determine whether he should be allowed to continue working in California public schools, according to records from Napa Valley Unified. In addition to the criminal case, the agency also reviewed allegations from other students who said Shelton touched them on the stomach, rubbed their fingers and patted girls’ heads “like a dog.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>After Shelton was acquitted in 2008, the state’s teacher licensing agency reviewed the allegations against him in Napa to determine whether he should be allowed to continue working in California public schools, according to records from Napa Valley Unified. In addition to the criminal case, the agency also reviewed allegations from other students who said Shelton touched them on the stomach, rubbed their fingers and patted girls’ heads “like a dog.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Nine people provided “very favorable” letters on Shelton’s behalf, including his defense attorney, former assistant principal and other third grade teachers, according to the agency’s investigative report. A teacher said one of the alleged victims “does a lot of lying” and that Shelton is “very kind-hearted.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Nine people provided “very favorable” letters on Shelton’s behalf, including his defense attorney, former assistant principal and other third grade teachers, according to the agency’s investigative report. A teacher said one of the alleged victims “does a lot of lying” and that Shelton is “very kind-hearted.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>At the time, Shelton cited as evidence an evaluation from a psychologist who said: “This young man very clearly does not exhibit those personality traits or demographic factors that empirical research has shown to be present in most child molesters.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>At the time, Shelton cited as evidence an evaluation from a psychologist who said: “This young man very clearly does not exhibit those personality traits or demographic factors that empirical research has shown to be present in most child molesters.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Shelton told the teacher licensing agency he was looking forward to continuing his career as an educator. His credential was reinstated in 2008, and months later Benicia Unified hired him. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Shelton told the teacher licensing agency he was looking forward to continuing his career as an educator. His credential was reinstated in 2008, and months later Benicia Unified hired him. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>A parent of one of the alleged victims in Benicia told KQED that it was “disgusting” that the state gave Shelton back his teaching credential. KQED is not naming the parent to protect the identity of her daughter.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>A parent of one of the alleged victims in Benicia told KQED that it was “disgusting” that the state gave Shelton back his teaching credential. KQED is not naming the parent to protect the identity of her daughter.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Why are we hiring people that have those types of allegations?” the mother said. “He needs to be away from kids.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>She said her daughter, now a teenager, is still afraid of being taught by male teachers because of what happened to her. “There were plenty of times over the last three years where she has broken down, cried and said, ‘I didn’t deserve that.’”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Benicia Unified Superintendent Chris Calabrese declined to comment on Shelton’s hiring. Shelton resigned from Benicia Unified in 2023 after allegations surfaced that he touched students inappropriately. He was subsequently hired by the West Contra Costa Unified School District as an assistant principal. The district put him on leave when a parent of one of the victims informed the district he was under investigation by police.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>A spokesperson for West Contra Costa Unified said in a written statement that his credentials were valid when they hired him. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Shelton sued Napa Valley Unified and Benicia Unified in 2024 to stop the districts from releasing records of complaints against him, arguing doing so would impede his right to an impartial jury. The First Amendment Coalition \u003ca href=\"https://firstamendmentcoalition.org/case/shelton-v-napa-valley-unified-school-district/\">intervened\u003c/a> on behalf of this reporter and both districts released the records.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>Since 2025, California law has required all public schools to check with every previous employing school to see if prospective teaching candidates had ever been reported to the state for credible or substantiated complaints of egregious misconduct.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12097322/california-teacher-misconduct-bill-administrator-discipline-al-muratsuchi\">this month,\u003c/a> prompted by reporting by \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12082980/california-fired-teacher-sexual-harassment\">KQED and \u003cem>ProPublica\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, clarifying that the teacher licensing agency may discipline educators who do not share their full employment histories and administrators who do not thoroughly vet applicants. \u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Former Benicia elementary teacher Matthew Shelton has pleaded not guilty, for the second time in his teaching career, to allegations that he sexually abused his students. ",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Editor’s Note: This story includes details of alleged sexual misconduct against minors. \u003c/em>\u003cstrong>\u003cbr>\u003cbr>\u003c/strong>For the second time in his teaching career, a former \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/bay-area\">Bay Area\u003c/a> elementary teacher is on trial over allegations that he sexually abused his students.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Matthew Shelton, 44, faces 12 felony counts of lewd acts on four children during his tenure at the Benicia Unified School District. Prosecutors say the alleged abuse took place between 2018 and 2022 at Robert Semple Elementary School, where he was a fifth-grade teacher, and during a field trip with students in Oakland.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But the trial is also putting a spotlight on Shelton’s tumultuous first year teaching in 2007, when students at Phillips Edison Elementary School in Napa accused him of similar allegations. And it comes as Benicia Unified faces three lawsuits from students who allege the district failed to protect them by hiring Shelton, despite the abuse allegations in Napa.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Shelton, then 25 years old, was a popular third-grade teacher at the Napa school when he was accused of inappropriately touching four students. He was criminally charged, and three students testified against him during a six-day trial in 2008. Jurors deliberated for just 20 minutes before finding him not guilty. Benicia Unified hired him six months later.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>During opening statements at a Fairfield courthouse on Monday, prosecutor Barry Shapiro argued that Shelton’s pattern of abuse continued at his new school. He told the jury that Shelton went on to touch Benicia elementary students on the buttocks or vaginal area, and that he had a student touch his penis, just as the students in Napa alleged nearly two decades ago.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-11-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12101865\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-11-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-11-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-11-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Robert Semple Elementary School in Benicia on Sept. 28, 2026. (Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Shapiro said adults trust teachers to keep their children safe. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This case is about a teacher who violated that trust consistently over the span of 15 years at two schools in multiple grades,” Shapiro said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Shapiro painted Shelton as a sophisticated actor who had both the “knowledge and opportunity” to isolate girls and get away with the abuse, even in a classroom with other students present. Shelton instructed his Benicia students to applaud when adults entered his classroom, Shapiro said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But one day in December 2022, Shapiro said the students were distracted and failed to clap. A teacher walked in and saw Shelton by his desk, holding hands with another student and “swaying back and forth.” The next day, several students complained to Principal Christina Moore that he made them uncomfortable by placing his hands on a classmate’s thigh, pinching a student’s arm, and moving his hand down to the pockets of a student’s pants.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Moore contacted the school’s resource officer and Benicia Unified put Shelton on leave. Months later students disclosed more serious allegations to Benicia police.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Defense attorney Amanda Bevins denies any sexual motivation on Shelton’s part. She described him as a husband, father and dedicated educator who devoted his entire career to teaching, even after being wrongfully accused nearly two decades prior. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Bevins said that in the 2007 case, a group of disgruntled friends made allegations against Shelton to their principal. Flash forward to 2022, she said another friend group at Robert Semple Elementary School — upset that Shelton singled out one of the girls and made her cry — complained to their principal about Shelton. Nearly two decades apart, the two friend groups both concocted claims against him, she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Bevins asked the jury to pay attention to how the allegations changed over time and were influenced by schoolyard gossip, employee break room chatter, media coverage, repeated interviews by police and lawyers and civil lawsuits.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The seriousness of the accusations does not tell us whether they are true,” Bevins said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said Shelton was acquitted in Napa and he did not abuse his students in Benicia. “Nothing plus nothing is nothing,” Bevins said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">‘I didn’t deserve that’ \u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But details of Shelton’s short tenure teaching in Napa continue to reverberate in this trial. Former students who testified against Shelton in 2008, his former Napa teaching colleagues, and the detective who investigated the case were on a recent list of potential witnesses. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>After opening statements, one of the students who testified against Shelton during the Napa trial, now in her late 20s, took the stand again to face her former social studies teacher. She told the jury that in 2007, she saw Shelton touch one of her classmates on the crotch and another on the butt during class. KQED does not generally name victims of alleged abuse without their consent. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>With her voice occasionally breaking, she testified that Shelton had also touched her butt after she went to his desk to ask a question. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-21-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12101868\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-21-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-21-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-21-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Solano County Law and Justice Center in Fairfield on Sept. 28, 2026. (Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I was extremely shocked. I was confused. I wasn’t sure whether or not it was OK,” the former student said. “I had never been touched like that before.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Another alleged victim in the Napa case told KQED in a recent interview that Shelton was well-liked and touched students by playing games with them, picking girls up and pretending to be Superman.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>When she was interviewed by police in 2007, the student alleged that Shelton moved her hands across her “private spot” or made her touch his groin.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But she said the same educators who comforted her, hugged her and told her she was safe later defended Shelton during the trial, testifying that the girls who accused him were lying. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>When it was her turn to testify, she recalled sweating and shaking “not realizing the trauma that was coming up then.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said she was just a kid holding a teddy bear in a courtroom filled with adults, including Shelton. She became confused by the attorney’s deluge of questions.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It was all basically to prove that I was wrong,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said she can still remember the expression on Shelton’s face. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The smirk,” the former student said. “He was getting satisfaction from us getting confused.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>After Shelton was acquitted in 2008, the state’s teacher licensing agency reviewed the allegations against him in Napa to determine whether he should be allowed to continue working in California public schools, according to records from Napa Valley Unified. In addition to the criminal case, the agency also reviewed allegations from other students who said Shelton touched them on the stomach, rubbed their fingers and patted girls’ heads “like a dog.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Nine people provided “very favorable” letters on Shelton’s behalf, including his defense attorney, former assistant principal and other third grade teachers, according to the agency’s investigative report. A teacher said one of the alleged victims “does a lot of lying” and that Shelton is “very kind-hearted.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>At the time, Shelton cited as evidence an evaluation from a psychologist who said: “This young man very clearly does not exhibit those personality traits or demographic factors that empirical research has shown to be present in most child molesters.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Shelton told the teacher licensing agency he was looking forward to continuing his career as an educator. His credential was reinstated in 2008, and months later Benicia Unified hired him. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A parent of one of the alleged victims in Benicia told KQED that it was “disgusting” that the state gave Shelton back his teaching credential. KQED is not naming the parent to protect the identity of her daughter.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Why are we hiring people that have those types of allegations?” the mother said. “He needs to be away from kids.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said her daughter, now a teenager, is still afraid of being taught by male teachers because of what happened to her. “There were plenty of times over the last three years where she has broken down, cried and said, ‘I didn’t deserve that.’”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-13_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12101989\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-13_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-13_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/20260928_BeniciaTeacherTrial_GC-13_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Robert Semple Elementary School in Benicia on Sept. 28, 2026. (Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Benicia Unified Superintendent Chris Calabrese declined to comment on Shelton’s hiring. Shelton resigned from Benicia Unified in 2023 after allegations surfaced that he touched students inappropriately. He was subsequently hired by the West Contra Costa Unified School District as an assistant principal. The district put him on leave when a parent of one of the victims informed the district he was under investigation by police.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>A spokesperson for West Contra Costa Unified said in a written statement that his credentials were valid when they hired him. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Shelton sued Napa Valley Unified and Benicia Unified in 2024 to stop the districts from releasing records of complaints against him, arguing doing so would impede his right to an impartial jury. The First Amendment Coalition \u003ca href=\"https://firstamendmentcoalition.org/case/shelton-v-napa-valley-unified-school-district/\">intervened\u003c/a> on behalf of this reporter and both districts released the records.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>Since 2025, California law has required all public schools to check with every previous employing school to see if prospective teaching candidates had ever been reported to the state for credible or substantiated complaints of egregious misconduct.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12097322/california-teacher-misconduct-bill-administrator-discipline-al-muratsuchi\">this month,\u003c/a> prompted by reporting by \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12082980/california-fired-teacher-sexual-harassment\">KQED and \u003cem>ProPublica\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, clarifying that the teacher licensing agency may discipline educators who do not share their full employment histories and administrators who do not thoroughly vet applicants. \u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>Who showed you how to register to vote, find reliable information or recognize that your voice matters?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A series by KQED Education, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/education/538821/the-next-250-or-youth-voices-on-democracy\">The Next 250: Youth Voices on Democracy\u003c/a>, explores those questions through stories created by young people participating in the KQED Youth Media Challenge and the New Voters summer fellowship.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In the second installment, three young organizers reflect on what motivated them to get involved in voter registration and electoral campaigns. New Voters founder Jahnavi Rao also discusses with KQED’s Almetria Vaba how civic participation can begin long before someone casts a ballot.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Listen live on 88.5 KQED on Monday, Sept. 28, at 5:20 p.m. and Tuesday, Sept. 29, at 12:50 p.m. The segments are also available on the KQED app.\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>Who showed you how to register to vote, find reliable information or recognize that your voice matters?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A series by KQED Education, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/education/538821/the-next-250-or-youth-voices-on-democracy\">The Next 250: Youth Voices on Democracy\u003c/a>, explores those questions through stories created by young people participating in the KQED Youth Media Challenge and the New Voters summer fellowship.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In the second installment, three young organizers reflect on what motivated them to get involved in voter registration and electoral campaigns. New Voters founder Jahnavi Rao also discusses with KQED’s Almetria Vaba how civic participation can begin long before someone casts a ballot.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Listen live on 88.5 KQED on Monday, Sept. 28, at 5:20 p.m. and Tuesday, Sept. 29, at 12:50 p.m. The segments are also available on the KQED app.\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>San Francisco’s new \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/sfusd\">Mandarin immersion campus\u003c/a> has an official — temporary — home. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The highly anticipated K-8 dual language school will be housed on the campus of the Mission Education Center beginning in fall 2027, before moving onto a permanent site. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This is an exciting moment for San Francisco families who have been asking for a TK-8 Mandarin Immersion school,” Superintendent Maria Su said in a statement. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We are excited to take this next step toward opening this new school as part of the vision to grow and expand learning opportunities at SFUSD to strengthen our schools.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-11-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12037008\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-11-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-11-BL_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-11-BL_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-11-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-11-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-11-BL_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Unified School District Superintendent Maria Su speaks during a press conference at the school district offices in San Francisco on April 21, 2025. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>SFUSD said that beginning in the fall, the new school and MEC, which has traditionally served newly arrived Spanish-speaking immigrant students, will be co-programmed on the campus at 1670 Noe St. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In its first year, the district said it expects to have three kindergarten and one transitional kindergarten classroom dedicated to Mandarin immersion. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>They plan to add more grades each year in a phased approach.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Unified School District announced that it would launch the new school in July 2025 after years of requests for more seats in language programs — which have traditionally amassed long waitlists and drawn families to SFUSD. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The initiative also came shortly after a group of city parents proposed plans to open a similar charter school, an effort that could have siphoned funding and students away from the district.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>That effort was \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12053745/sf-school-board-to-vote-on-new-mandarin-charter-school-facing-likely-rejection\">rejected by the school board\u003c/a>, which cited concerns about its educational model and the negative financial impact on SFUSD, in August 2025. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Liana Szeto, who founded the nation’s first Chinese Immersion public school — Alice Fong Yu K-8 — in San Francisco, is leading the new school’s development as a special advisor, but additional details about the program are still sparse. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Since taking the helm of SFUSD two years ago, Su has said she’s focused on expanding language pathways and transitional kindergarten to boost enrollment after years of decline.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250825-SFUSDMISSIONEDCENTER-08-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12053561\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250825-SFUSDMISSIONEDCENTER-08-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250825-SFUSDMISSIONEDCENTER-08-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250825-SFUSDMISSIONEDCENTER-08-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Mission Education Center, a bilingual elementary school in the San Francisco Unified School District, in San Francisco’s Noe Valley neighborhood on Aug. 25, 2025. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“For my family, this represents an amazing opportunity for my kids to connect to their heritage and connect with their Chinese-speaking family,” said parent Abby Chao, who is Chinese American, and hopes to send her three children to SFUSD Mandarin immersion schools. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Earlier this year, she co-founded the group Friends of SF Mandarin School, a parent advocacy group which worked with the district to establish the new school. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This school will double the number of Mandarin seats that are available at kindergarten” from 66, Chao said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“For all families, it is another reason to choose SFUSD.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Last year, SFUSD also added Spanish immersion transitional kindergarten classes at MEC, but the rollout was shaky, as parents said the district failed to staff the classrooms with full-time teachers for months.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Unified School District announced that it would launch the new school in July 2025 after years of requests for more seats in language programs — which have traditionally amassed long waitlists and drawn families to SFUSD. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Earlier this year, she co-founded the group Friends of SF Mandarin School, a parent advocacy group which worked with the district to establish the new school. \u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "The highly anticipated K-8 dual language school will be temporarily located on the campus of the Mission Education Center beginning in fall 2027.",
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"headline": "SFUSD Reveals Location of New Mandarin Immersion Campus",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>San Francisco’s new \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/sfusd\">Mandarin immersion campus\u003c/a> has an official — temporary — home. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The highly anticipated K-8 dual language school will be housed on the campus of the Mission Education Center beginning in fall 2027, before moving onto a permanent site. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This is an exciting moment for San Francisco families who have been asking for a TK-8 Mandarin Immersion school,” Superintendent Maria Su said in a statement. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We are excited to take this next step toward opening this new school as part of the vision to grow and expand learning opportunities at SFUSD to strengthen our schools.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-11-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12037008\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-11-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-11-BL_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-11-BL_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-11-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-11-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250421-SFUSDCentralCuts-11-BL_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Unified School District Superintendent Maria Su speaks during a press conference at the school district offices in San Francisco on April 21, 2025. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>SFUSD said that beginning in the fall, the new school and MEC, which has traditionally served newly arrived Spanish-speaking immigrant students, will be co-programmed on the campus at 1670 Noe St. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In its first year, the district said it expects to have three kindergarten and one transitional kindergarten classroom dedicated to Mandarin immersion. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>They plan to add more grades each year in a phased approach.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Unified School District announced that it would launch the new school in July 2025 after years of requests for more seats in language programs — which have traditionally amassed long waitlists and drawn families to SFUSD. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The initiative also came shortly after a group of city parents proposed plans to open a similar charter school, an effort that could have siphoned funding and students away from the district.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>That effort was \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12053745/sf-school-board-to-vote-on-new-mandarin-charter-school-facing-likely-rejection\">rejected by the school board\u003c/a>, which cited concerns about its educational model and the negative financial impact on SFUSD, in August 2025. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Liana Szeto, who founded the nation’s first Chinese Immersion public school — Alice Fong Yu K-8 — in San Francisco, is leading the new school’s development as a special advisor, but additional details about the program are still sparse. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Since taking the helm of SFUSD two years ago, Su has said she’s focused on expanding language pathways and transitional kindergarten to boost enrollment after years of decline.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250825-SFUSDMISSIONEDCENTER-08-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12053561\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250825-SFUSDMISSIONEDCENTER-08-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250825-SFUSDMISSIONEDCENTER-08-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250825-SFUSDMISSIONEDCENTER-08-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Mission Education Center, a bilingual elementary school in the San Francisco Unified School District, in San Francisco’s Noe Valley neighborhood on Aug. 25, 2025. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“For my family, this represents an amazing opportunity for my kids to connect to their heritage and connect with their Chinese-speaking family,” said parent Abby Chao, who is Chinese American, and hopes to send her three children to SFUSD Mandarin immersion schools. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Earlier this year, she co-founded the group Friends of SF Mandarin School, a parent advocacy group which worked with the district to establish the new school. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This school will double the number of Mandarin seats that are available at kindergarten” from 66, Chao said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“For all families, it is another reason to choose SFUSD.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Last year, SFUSD also added Spanish immersion transitional kindergarten classes at MEC, but the rollout was shaky, as parents said the district failed to staff the classrooms with full-time teachers for months.\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "California Community Colleges Can Offer Up to 12 New Bachelor’s Degrees Under New Laws",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003c!-- Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ -->\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A set of bills signed into law by Gov. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/gavin-newsom\">Gavin Newsom\u003c/a> Friday aims to rein in the topsy-turvy expansion of bachelor’s degrees at California \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/tag/california-community-colleges/\">community colleges\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the bills themselves caused new friction: In a last-minute shift, the community colleges that were championing these bills came out to \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/higher-education/2026/09/community-college-bachelors-degrees-california/\">formally oppose them\u003c/a> after the lawmakers substantially revised the measures a day before a key constitutional deadline.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The two laws — \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202520260sb960\">Senate Bill 960\u003c/a> by Sen. Christopher Cabaldon, a Democrat from Napa, and \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202520260ab2694\">Assembly Bill 2694\u003c/a> by David Alvarez — allow college districts to have anywhere from two to 12 new bachelor’s degrees a year starting in 2028. The bills bake in accountability metrics: Districts with higher graduation and transfer rates will be permitted to add more degrees. The new caps do not apply to existing bachelor’s degrees at college districts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Today, 49 colleges \u003ca href=\"https://www.cccco.edu/About-Us/Chancellors-Office/Divisions/Educational-Services-and-Support/What-we-do/Curriculum-and-Instruction-Unit/Curriculum/Baccalaureate-Degree-Program\">either offer or will soon\u003c/a> offer 66 bachelor’s degrees. Districts would also need to prove that there’s a workforce need in their region to justify the creation of a bachelor’s degree. The caps apply to all districts, whether they have one campus or nine.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The community colleges opposed tying the number of degrees they can offer to student metrics, arguing that they punish districts that educate low-income students who are less likely to finish their certificates and associate degrees or transfer to a four-year university but would also benefit from more bachelor’s degrees offerings that are tied to local labor market needs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Other community college leaders said the bills’ numerous last-minute provisions were unclear.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12098502\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12098502\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/CommunityCollegeCM1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/CommunityCollegeCM1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/CommunityCollegeCM1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/CommunityCollegeCM1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Students walk through the MiraCosta College campus in Oceanside on Sept. 26, 2024. \u003ccite>(Adriana Heldiz/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“We’re being asked to … support a process that is not completely understood or vetted at the last minute, and so that’s just not great policymaking,” said Larry Galizio, president and chief executive of the Community College League of California, an association representing community college presidents and board leaders, in an interview for a previous story.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The bills directly address the central tension that buffeted relations between the community colleges and the California State University. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202120220ab927\">Since 2022\u003c/a>, the community colleges were allowed to introduce no more than 30 bachelor’s degrees annually, as long as they didn’t duplicate degrees offered by any Cal State or University of California campus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Cal State routinely objected to the bachelor’s degrees community colleges sought. And a few times the colleges went ahead with the degree programs anyway.\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\">[aside postID=news_12100707 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/20250929_UCBERKELEY_GC-1-KQED.jpg']\u003c/span>Community colleges and influential lawmakers said it was unfair to block the colleges from creating bachelor’s degrees that local students and employers wanted, especially if the existing UC or Cal State degree is at a university hundreds of miles away.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some students bemoaned the inability to earn bachelor’s degrees close to home. Many are priced out of relocating to those universities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There are 115 local community colleges in the state, far more than the 31 UC and Cal state campuses offering bachelor’s degrees.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The bills Newsom signed Friday allow community colleges to create bachelor’s degrees even if a nearby Cal State offers a similar program, but only if that Cal State program rejects more than 25% of applicants from that nearby community college three consecutive years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The bills also insert a process for handling an impasse between the colleges and Cal State, something missing in past law. A review by the state’s secretary of labor siding with the colleges would remove the Cal State system’s challenge to the degree. But If the labor secretary sides with Cal State, the district is barred from submitting an application for a similar program for five years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Cal State system, which opposed earlier versions of the bills, changed their position to neutral after the latest versions were published.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The community colleges are generally barred from duplicating a degree a UC campus offers, unless they come to a written agreement with the UC.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12069108\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12069108 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/GavinNewsomStateoftheState2026AP.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1337\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/GavinNewsomStateoftheState2026AP.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/GavinNewsomStateoftheState2026AP-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/GavinNewsomStateoftheState2026AP-1536x1027.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks during his State of the State address on Jan. 8, 2026, in Sacramento, California. \u003ccite>(Godofredo A. Vásquez/AP Photo)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Newsom vetoed a related community college bachelor’s degree bill — one that he’s rejected twice before. For the third year in a row, Assemblymember Esmeralda Soria, a Democrat from Merced, sought a bill to \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/higher-education/2024/09/nursing-shortage/\">allow students to earn a bachelor’s degree in nursing at a community college\u003c/a>, something they cannot currently do.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom wrote in his veto message Friday that the bill is unnecessary because of the two bills by Alvarez and Cabaldon he signed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It is neither necessary nor appropriate to authorize an additional pilot or create an exception to the framework, as this bill proposes,” Newsom wrote. “California’s public higher education segments should instead focus on implementing this newly created, comprehensive system.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/higher-education/2026/09/new-california-laws-community-college-degrees/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003c!-- Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ -->\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A set of bills signed into law by Gov. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/gavin-newsom\">Gavin Newsom\u003c/a> Friday aims to rein in the topsy-turvy expansion of bachelor’s degrees at California \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/tag/california-community-colleges/\">community colleges\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the bills themselves caused new friction: In a last-minute shift, the community colleges that were championing these bills came out to \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/higher-education/2026/09/community-college-bachelors-degrees-california/\">formally oppose them\u003c/a> after the lawmakers substantially revised the measures a day before a key constitutional deadline.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The two laws — \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202520260sb960\">Senate Bill 960\u003c/a> by Sen. Christopher Cabaldon, a Democrat from Napa, and \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202520260ab2694\">Assembly Bill 2694\u003c/a> by David Alvarez — allow college districts to have anywhere from two to 12 new bachelor’s degrees a year starting in 2028. The bills bake in accountability metrics: Districts with higher graduation and transfer rates will be permitted to add more degrees. The new caps do not apply to existing bachelor’s degrees at college districts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Today, 49 colleges \u003ca href=\"https://www.cccco.edu/About-Us/Chancellors-Office/Divisions/Educational-Services-and-Support/What-we-do/Curriculum-and-Instruction-Unit/Curriculum/Baccalaureate-Degree-Program\">either offer or will soon\u003c/a> offer 66 bachelor’s degrees. Districts would also need to prove that there’s a workforce need in their region to justify the creation of a bachelor’s degree. The caps apply to all districts, whether they have one campus or nine.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The community colleges opposed tying the number of degrees they can offer to student metrics, arguing that they punish districts that educate low-income students who are less likely to finish their certificates and associate degrees or transfer to a four-year university but would also benefit from more bachelor’s degrees offerings that are tied to local labor market needs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Other community college leaders said the bills’ numerous last-minute provisions were unclear.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12098502\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12098502\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/CommunityCollegeCM1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/CommunityCollegeCM1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/CommunityCollegeCM1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/CommunityCollegeCM1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Students walk through the MiraCosta College campus in Oceanside on Sept. 26, 2024. \u003ccite>(Adriana Heldiz/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“We’re being asked to … support a process that is not completely understood or vetted at the last minute, and so that’s just not great policymaking,” said Larry Galizio, president and chief executive of the Community College League of California, an association representing community college presidents and board leaders, in an interview for a previous story.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The bills directly address the central tension that buffeted relations between the community colleges and the California State University. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202120220ab927\">Since 2022\u003c/a>, the community colleges were allowed to introduce no more than 30 bachelor’s degrees annually, as long as they didn’t duplicate degrees offered by any Cal State or University of California campus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Cal State routinely objected to the bachelor’s degrees community colleges sought. And a few times the colleges went ahead with the degree programs anyway.\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/span>Community colleges and influential lawmakers said it was unfair to block the colleges from creating bachelor’s degrees that local students and employers wanted, especially if the existing UC or Cal State degree is at a university hundreds of miles away.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some students bemoaned the inability to earn bachelor’s degrees close to home. Many are priced out of relocating to those universities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There are 115 local community colleges in the state, far more than the 31 UC and Cal state campuses offering bachelor’s degrees.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The bills Newsom signed Friday allow community colleges to create bachelor’s degrees even if a nearby Cal State offers a similar program, but only if that Cal State program rejects more than 25% of applicants from that nearby community college three consecutive years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The bills also insert a process for handling an impasse between the colleges and Cal State, something missing in past law. A review by the state’s secretary of labor siding with the colleges would remove the Cal State system’s challenge to the degree. But If the labor secretary sides with Cal State, the district is barred from submitting an application for a similar program for five years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Cal State system, which opposed earlier versions of the bills, changed their position to neutral after the latest versions were published.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The community colleges are generally barred from duplicating a degree a UC campus offers, unless they come to a written agreement with the UC.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12069108\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12069108 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/GavinNewsomStateoftheState2026AP.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1337\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/GavinNewsomStateoftheState2026AP.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/GavinNewsomStateoftheState2026AP-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/GavinNewsomStateoftheState2026AP-1536x1027.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks during his State of the State address on Jan. 8, 2026, in Sacramento, California. \u003ccite>(Godofredo A. Vásquez/AP Photo)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Newsom vetoed a related community college bachelor’s degree bill — one that he’s rejected twice before. For the third year in a row, Assemblymember Esmeralda Soria, a Democrat from Merced, sought a bill to \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/higher-education/2024/09/nursing-shortage/\">allow students to earn a bachelor’s degree in nursing at a community college\u003c/a>, something they cannot currently do.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom wrote in his veto message Friday that the bill is unnecessary because of the two bills by Alvarez and Cabaldon he signed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It is neither necessary nor appropriate to authorize an additional pilot or create an exception to the framework, as this bill proposes,” Newsom wrote. “California’s public higher education segments should instead focus on implementing this newly created, comprehensive system.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/higher-education/2026/09/new-california-laws-community-college-degrees/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"info": "For decades, the process for how police police themselves has been inconsistent – if not opaque. In some states, like California, these proceedings were completely hidden. After a new police transparency law unsealed scores of internal affairs files, our reporters set out to examine these cases and the shadow world of police discipline. On Our Watch brings listeners into the rooms where officers are questioned and witnesses are interrogated to find out who this system is really protecting. Is it the officers, or the public they've sworn to serve?",
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"info": "Possible is hosted by entrepreneur Reid Hoffman and writer Aria Finger. Together in Possible, Hoffman and Finger lead enlightening discussions about building a brighter collective future. The show features interviews with visionary guests like Trevor Noah, Sam Altman and Janette Sadik-Khan. Possible paints an optimistic portrait of the world we can create through science, policy, business, art and our shared humanity. It asks: What if everything goes right for once? How can we get there? Each episode also includes a short fiction story generated by advanced AI GPT-4, serving as a thought-provoking springboard to speculate how humanity could leverage technology for good.",
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"soldout": {
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"title": "SOLD OUT: Rethinking Housing in America",
"tagline": "A new future for housing",
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"tagline": "True-life supernatural stories",
"info": "",
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