Superintendent Vincent Matthews Releases Report of Findings Following Listening and Learning Tour
Press Release from SFUSD:
November 15, 2017 (San Francisco) - At the November 14 Board of Education meeting, Dr. Vincent Matthews presented a report regarding his observations and findings after several months of listening and learning about the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD).
After taking the helm of SFUSD in May 2017, Dr. Matthews convened seven community forums across the city and visited 57 out of 122 schools to observe classrooms and meet with principals.
Dr. Matthews also reviewed several data points, including the district's budget and student achievement over time by subgroups.
The report recognizes the district for its years of fiscal responsibility and recommends that SFUSD focus its limited resources on serving African American students better.
"All ethnic subgroups have risen over time. This is the mark of a good district, and the SFUSD has been a good district for decades. However, the gap between groups that have been achieving at lower levels and groups achieving at higher levels has not significantly narrowed," said Superintendent Matthews. "Our district leadership, staff and community members are deeply committed to eliminating the opportunity gap. All students can and want to learn and we as the adults in the system have the responsibility for making that happen."
School board commissioners echoed many of the superintendent's observations and agreed that the district must do more to address the needs of African American students.
"When I met the superintendent, I was impressed when he said the student and educator relationship is the most important relationship in our school system. The superintendent sees that we have a long way to go -- we are missing the mark with some of our most vulnerable students. The school board knows that, we have a superintendent who knows that, and we are committed to eliminating the achievement gap together," said Board President Shamann Walton.