Allow me to introduce you to the San Francisco Unified School District website. Right off the bat, is there anything on the homepage that raises alarms?
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Maybe it's the fact that there is no superintendent. Or that they are desperately seeking success stories. Or the calls for new teachers.
(As an aside: When I was a new teacher, I applied to the SFUSD the summer before the starting school year. I never heard a thing. Then I went to the HR office where the secretary had a hard time finding the application. When she finally located one, I filled it out again, handed it to the secretary, and...nada. ...until January of the following year when I was half-way through my first year of teaching in another school district when they called and asked me if I wanted a job. Where were they five months prior? Get it together, San Francisco.)
My favorite part of the SFUSD website is the FAQ, with reassurring exhanges like this:
Q: How many schools should I list on the enrollment application and in what order?
A: Parents/guardians should put down the highest number of school choices (up to a maximum of seven) that they believe would suit their children's educational needs. Parents/guardians should list their choices in order of preference, with one (1) being the first choice and seven (7) being the seventh choice. Families have a better chance of receiving a requested school assignment if they list multiple school choices on their enrollment application. If spaces are not available at the schools requested on the application, students will be assigned to a school selected by SFUSD. There is no disadvantage to listing 7 schools. Parents who do not list up to 7 choices run a higher risk of getting assigned to a school they did not request.
Q: Will my child be guaranteed placement in the school nearest to my home?
A: No. If there are enough spaces at a school to accommodate all students who want to attend, all applicants will receive assignment offers. If there are not enough spaces at a school to accommodate all students who want to attend, there is no guarantee that a student from the attendance area will receive an assignment offer.
Q: What happens if my child does not get assigned to any of the schools that I have listed on the enrollment application?
A: Your child will be assigned to a non-requested school, taking into account your home address and any language programs or other special needs your child may have.
Isn't it nice to know that in San Francisco control over a child's education is removed from the parents' hands almost from the get-go? Or, I should say, I have a 1-in-7 chance at steering my children towards an acceptable school.
As a former public school teacher, I absolutely support public education and think it can only improve if parents get involved (really involved, not just "talking the talk") and help to foment change. The hardest part for me to reconcile is that I'm just not sure I have it in me to "walk the walk" right now. And that's why we'll be looking at private schools, too.
I just want what's best for my child, you know?
