SF Schools Made Good Progress in 2006-07

Given the difficult period of school closures that spawned those calls, some skepticism regarding how well those demands would be heeded was also present. But as we think back on this school year, we can see that those requests were indeed taken seriously and that overall, much was accomplished, particularly in terms of hiring a superintendent and in deliberately not making policy decisions without sufficient information.

In January, the composition of the BOE changed and so far, hopes for a body that could engage in the kind of constructive debate that moves decision-making forward appear to be bearing out. Certainly board meetings are no longer rancorous and there seems to be an increased responsiveness to community members. The earlier meeting time (6pm) and the relatively recently adopted sunshine policy have made it much easier for the public to speak at board meetings. Parents have been consistently mobilizing on issues they care about and the BOE is increasingly attentive to those concerns.

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