By Jill Tucker
San Francisco Chronicle

With a stormy financial front headed toward San Francisco schools, Mayor Gavin Newsom offered to help the district Friday with $30.6 million from the city's rainy day fund. Facing a $40 million shortfall, district officials were preparing for massive layoffs and program cuts - including cutting more than 500 teachers and staff. "This is perilous," the mayor said of the potential impact. "This is ominous. This is simply not acceptable." Newsom's proposal must be approved by the Board of Supervisors. In 2003, city voters passed Proposition G, which required the city save excess revenue during good economic times.

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By Leslie Rule
Project Supervisor, KQED Digital Storytelling Initiative

The importance of the Internet in a 21st education is a given. It is barely possible to do research without the Internet. The Library of Congress, the Smithsonian, Black History, Latina History, pictures, videos, speeches – the main source of knowledge is no longer found in books, it’s found on the web. Without 24/7 connectivity as the norm, young people, especially students who dream of a college education, are at an overwhelming disadvantage. Material for high school exit exams and other standardized tests is in great abundance on the web, but try to locate offline help – it’s expensive, difficult to find and often outdated. Entrance requirements and applications to college? Found on the web. Help and support for health issues? Found on the web. Read more »

By Alec Ross, One Economy Corporation and Simon Rosenberg, NDN

We believe that America needs to put a laptop in every backpack of every child.  We need to commit to a date and grade certain: we suggest 2010 for every sixth grader.  These laptops need to be wirelessly connected to the Internet, and children need to be able to take them home.  Local school districts should choose how best to do this, but there needs to be federal funding and simple, federal standards.  Funds and strategies for how training our teachers to lead this transformation need to be part this commitment.  We believe it will cost at first $2 billion a year to provide every 6th grader a laptop, about what we spend in Iraq every week. Hardware costs continue to plummet each year, and the idea of a $200 laptop or classmate PC is coming ever closer to reality.  It is not a question of resources, but of vision and political will.  Libya has just announced a national commitment to give all its school children a laptop.  If Libya can do it, so can America.    Read more »

By Commissioner Hydra Mendoza
San Francisco Board of Education
 
In recent years, many models for improving our education system have emerged from around the country.  Chicago, Boston and New York City went to full mayoral control of their school systems while Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has fought for increased influence over the schools in his city.  Every city has to choose what works best for them. Gavin Newsom and reformers like myself have chosen a different path. By blurring the lines between city government and our school district, we hope to form a collaboration to improve San Francisco's school district. Read more »