Mayor London Breed on Tuesday called for an immediate halt to San Francisco’s school closure process, citing widespread confusion and concern among parents, educators, and staff.
Breed said the proposed closures and mergers list, released last week, has made “a precarious time for our public schools even more chaotic.”
The mayor expressed her loss of confidence in the superintendent’s ability to manage the process, stating that the plan is unlikely to benefit students and the San Francisco Unified School District in the long term.
“Whatever this current proposed school closure process was meant to accomplish, or could have accomplished, is lost,” Breed said in a statement.
In response to a request for comment, the district shared a letter from Superintendent Matt Wayne standing by the plan.
“It is my responsibility to ensure that SFUSD can be the best possible school district for each and every one of our 49,000 students,” Wayne said in the Tuesday note. “Without having the courage to make deep changes and difficult decisions, we cannot expect to meaningfully improve student outcomes.”
Titled “Doing Right by All San Francisco Students,” the letter addressed the community as a whole and did not directly respond to Breed’s statement.
The mayor’s opposition adds to the growing backlash from City Hall leaders and parents, who are organizing protests of the closure plan.
The Board of Supervisors has passed a resolution unanimously urging the district to reevaluate the closure plan; President Aaron Peskin, who is running for mayor, has been the most outspoken critic. Daniel Lurie and Mark Farrell, also front-running mayoral candidates, signed a letter expressing concerns that the plan would unfairly target Asian American students and families.
“I ask the school district to halt their plan to close schools,” said Supervisor Connie Chan, who led the resolution. “Because closing schools will not fix the district’s budget, but it will tear apart our communities.”
Breed emphasized the urgent need to balance the district’s budget by December in order to prevent a state takeover. She noted that district staff and the School Stabilization Team are addressing critical operational issues, including teacher credentialing and budget oversight of special education.
The mayor warned of challenging times ahead for the school district, with “painful but necessary decisions” on the horizon. She stressed the importance of maintaining local control of public schools to ensure quality education for San Franciscans.