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Tell Governor Brown to appoint English Learner Advocate to State Board of Ed!
 Ed Trust – West, the ACLU, the CA Association of Bilingual Educators, and the California Latino School Boards Association are calling on Governor Brown to appoint an English learners advocate to the State Board of Education. The governor has the opportunity to do right by the more than 1.4 million English learners by choosing someone with a track record of fighting for English learner students and who understands the families and communities the students come from. Add your voice and let Governor Brown know you agree! Click here to sign the petition!
Congrats to the new SF Board of Ed Officers and Committee Members
Congratulations to the newly elected SFUSD Board of Education President, Emily Murase and the new Vice President, Matt Haney! Congratulations (and welcome) also to new Board Member Shamann Walton who has been appointed to serve on the Curriculum and Instruction Committee. We are excited to work with all of the returning and new board members this year to move forward our collective efforts and initiatives to increase equity and expand opportunities for SFUSD students!
Committee Assignments as of January 2015 (all mtgs are open to the public and take place at 555 Franlin St):
BUDGET AND BUSINESS SERVICES
1st Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. Rachel Norton, Chair; Hydra Mendoza-McDonnell, Jill Wynns; Liaisons: Myong Leigh/Joseph Grazioli
BUILDINGS, GROUNDS, AND SERVICES
3rd Monday at 6:00 p.m. Hydra Mendoza-McDonnell, Chair; Sandra Lee Fewer, Matt Haney; Liaison: David Goldin
CURRICULUM AND PROGRAM
1st Monday at 6:00 p.m. Matt Haney, Chair; Sandra Lee Fewer, Shamann Walton; Liaison: Dr. Luis Valentino
RULES, POLICY, AND LEGISLATION
3rd Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. Jill Wynns, Chair; Emily M. Murase, Ph.D., Rachel Norton; Liaison: Michael Davis
The Governor’s Proposed 2015-16 Budget: some good news for ed equity but, overall, a missed opportunity to better support struggling families.
This month, Governor Brown released his 2015-16 budget proposal. It includes a strategy for decreasing the state’s deficit and increasing the rainy day fund but lacks a similar vision for providing relief to the nearly 9 million Californians that are living in poverty.
The state received $3.6 billion more in tax revenue than projected in 2014, building upon consecutive years of increased revenue. Additionally, for each of last three years, the Governor’s early (January and May) projections consistently underestimated revenues by several billion dollars compared to the final figures for the fiscal year. The proposed 2015-16 budget, however, fails to leverage the opportunity of this moment to make meaningful investments in the safety next and in communities that have been left behind by the state’s recovery.
One noteworthy highlight of proposal is the commitment of another $4 billion for the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF). The passage and implementation of LCFF was a major milestone in the long-term movement for more equitable allocation of education funding in California. We applaud the Governor for this increased investment in California’s most under-resourced schools and highest-need students, and in the equity promise of LCFF.
While the LCFF increase – and a few other elements of the budget proposal – are definitely good news for our schools and communities, the proposed budget fails to offer any strategy or vision for addressing many of California’s biggest challenges: the growing gap between the rich and the poor, widespread poverty and unemployment, and a severely diminished safety net.
For a detailed reporting and analysis on the Governor’s proposed budget, visit the California Budget Project.
Leveraging State Wins for Local Change! Using Permanent LCFF Regs and LCAP Template for District Advocacy in 2015
 When: January 27, 2015 from 10-11:30 am
Where: Online. Register here!
Who: Local organizers and staff of organizations advocating around LCFF implementation.
Discussion topics will include:
- The permanent LCFF regulations and the new LCAP template: how to leverage these in local advocacy
- The annual update process: what to expect and how to advocate for LCAP improvements
- Opportunities to collaborate with County Offices of Education to promote meaningful LCAP oversight
Register here by Friday, January 23rd. For more information, please contact Rigel Massaro at rmassaro@publicadvocates.org.
Supportive School Discipline Initiative Webinar Series: Courts and Juvenile Justice
When: Wednesday, January 28th 12-1:30pm PT/3- 4:30pm ET
Register for this free webinar
 The 2014-15 SSDI Webinar Series will review the groundbreaking School Discipline Consensus Report: Strategies from the Field to Keep Students Engaged in School and Out of the Juvenile Justice System, released by the Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center in June 2014. T
his webinar will focus on preventing youth contact with the juvenile justice system whenever possible, improving services and supports for youth who are in juvenile justice facilities, and preparing youth effectively for reentering the community. Strategies that will be discussed include collecting, analyzing, and using school-based referral data to inform actions, using available diversion options effectively, implementing strategies for improving partnerships between courts and schools, improving behavioral supports and educational quality for youth in confinement, and ensuring the successful transition of students returning to school upon reentry into the community.
In the news:
Oakland: School district to expand restorative justice programs to all 86 schools, 1/15/2015 Contra Costa Times
Review of School Districts' 2014-15 Local Control and Accountability Plans, 1/20/15 Legislative Analyst’s Office
Stop being bullied: Let’s sue Mountain View, 1/25/15 SF Examiner
Parents try their hand at Common Core Math, 1/25/15 EdSource
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