Supervisor Carmen Chu: School Assignment Process

After receiving many phone calls and letters from concerned parents regarding their child's school assignment, I requested a public hearing at the City Operations and Neighborhood Services Committee to discuss the San Francisco Unified School District's school admissions process.

Currently, the school district uses a "diversity index" to place students, which can sometimes result in a student being assigned to a school far from their home in an effort to create diversity at schools. Parents at the hearing expressed concerns that their children would have to spend hours riding public transportation to and from school.

At the hearing on April 17, members of the school district gave an overview of the admissions process and discussed some results of the current school assignment system.

Deputy Superintendent Myong Leigh indicated that the school district, with School Board approval, will begin the process of reviewing and evaluating the school assignment system. Please contact our office if you are interested in this issue so we can include you in future joint efforts with the school district and School Board.

Ocean Beach Renovation in the Works
Many will agree that we can improve conditions along Ocean Beach. In an attempt to do so, the Ocean Beach Vision Council was formed with the goal of developing a set of planning alternatives, with a 30 to 50 year horizon, for the beach.

I will be working jointly with other members of the council, which includes Assemblywoman Fiona Ma, Supervisor Jake McGoldrick, Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA) Superintendent Brian O'Neill, Jared Blumenfeld of the Department of the Environment, Scott Preston of the environment-based planning and design firm EDAW, Clark Manus of Heller Manus Architects, Jean Rogers of ARUP, Lara Truppelli of the Beach Chalet Brewery and Restaurant, and Gabriel Metcalf of the San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Association.

In the upcoming months, I will work with the council to ensure community input for a master plan for Ocean Beach. It is crucial to make sure the council's plans are developed with and supported by the community.

For more information or to offer feedback, call my office at (415) 554-7460 or e-mail chustaff@sfgov.org.

Carmen Chu is a San Francisco supervisor representing District 4.