SFUSD gets an 'A' in gentrification

One would think that this disappointing - yet predictable - move is based solely on statistics and budget, but it goes far beyond that and much deeper than the San Francisco Unified School District is willing to say.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the district loses 800 to 1,000 students of all races every year as families leave in search of cheaper housing or better schools, among other reasons. In addition to that revelation, low academic performance and low enrollment have been cited as reasons for closure. All this may very well be true, but in accepting this rationale, one must also believe that sending children who are in under-enrolled schools to schools across town that are already over capacity will somehow raise their test scores and help to alleviate the school district's budget pitfalls.

If it doesn't sound right to you, you are not alone. Obviously, denying our children an appropriate curriculum, educational materials and resources is not enough. The school district has to outright deny our children an education in their own communities.

Consider this: If you go to the SFUSD website (http://www.sfusd.edu), you'll see that most of these schools have actually raised their test scores in the past few years, which to me would be reason enough to keep them open, provide more resources and watch them flourish. But the school district says this is not enough.

In my opinion, the closing down of these schools is just another piece of the gentrification puzzle that is plaguing Black people and other poor people of color all over this city. According to Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, many students affected by last years' closures are now in schools that are targeted for closure this year. The proposed closures and mergers disproportionately affect San Francisco's African American, Latino and working class communities and threaten to devastate programs established with community support that have begun to show promising results city-wide, especially in Supervisor Districts 5 and 10, home to most Black San Franciscans.

Schools slated for closure are not only named for Black people but have the highest number of Black students in the city. The historically Black Fillmore, which had its only middle school, Benjamin Franklin, closed last year, has five more schools on the chopping block this year. How can we honestly say we believe that this school system is fair and just when even the Supervisors themselves doubt it?

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