After years of financial crisis, the San Francisco Unified School District has balanced its budget and is on the path to solvency, it announced Friday.
Superintendent Maria Su has made $113 million in cuts, largely through staffing reductions. She will present the 2025-26 school year’s budget to the Board of Education on Tuesday. If approved the following week, it will be submitted to the state for approval.
“I have been laser-focused on our budget,” Su told reporters Thursday. “We’ve had to make a lot of really tough decisions.”
Some of those tough decisions include reducing opportunities for professional development to employees and access to internships for students. They also include pausing the Environmental Science Center and shared-schoolyard program.
The district’s annual budget is around $1.3 billion. Last year, the state downgraded the district’s financial status to “negative” and imposed strict oversight, including restrictions on teacher hiring. Some of those restrictions have been partially lifted. SFUSD will seek a revised fiscal rating in December, aiming to remove state oversight altogether.
Much of the staffing reduction came through a popular early retirement program that was accepted by more than 300 teachers. Additionally, the district will lay off 200 employees from its central office. Teacher layoffs that were originally planned were rescinded, marking a major victory for the union.
Because of staffing cuts and a wave of retirements, concerns have been raised about impacts on the quality of education. District officials said they will ensure that every school retains essential staff, including principals, teachers, and clerks.
Phil Kim, president of the school board, said the budget must reflect the district’s commitment to investing in education while addressing fiscal challenges, and he’s confident that it will have the state’s approval.
“Despite the difficult decisions we’ve had to make, we’re on a clear path toward positive fiscal certification,” Kim said.
However, the district needs to make more cuts, and school closures — a highly sensitive issue after the failed 2024 process — may still be on the table.
Su confirmed that SFUSD will need to make more cuts in 2026-27, citing lower-than-expected state funding and rising costs for special education.
Su said she plans to conduct a comprehensive review next year of underutilized classrooms and school buildings. Some may be repurposed for transitional kindergarten, which is a state-mandated program with rising demands, or for special education.