wanting to tell everyone about the good work they have been doing for the summer. a preamble is important. there has been a lot of news about the frustration advanced because of cuts over a unified school district. it is appropriate to be concerned. the one under $13 million budget deficit -- the $113 million budget deficit they face means they have to face tough choices. one of the choices announced with immediate impact is for the summer. they're looking to cut roughly 75% of the summer school programs that are traditionally being afforded to our youth.

they will just be keeping open some special education programs and programs that are essential to getting credits that high school students need to graduate. overall, the cut is substantial. traditionally, there had been 8000 slots for students. those are being impacted. with that expectation and knowledge, the city came together and a number of months ago. the department has started organizing and assessing their own unique capacity for the summer months. they started to figure out ways where we could fill in the blanks. there's nothing more pronounced than what recreation and parks is doing. we're standing here in hamilton. this has been transformative here in the west end edition. we have driven by this dilapidated playground and center for years. it has been about a month or six

weeks that we've been celebrating the results that is this area. behind me is the brand new library that was redone. there's not playground, tennis courts, and the extraordinary recreation center -- there is now the playground, tennis courts, and extra ordinate recreation center. large contributions will completely revitalize the old softball fields. it is not just new fields, it will be new lighting, fencing, etc. you can see the work that kaiser helped to fund. we will eventually get rid of the fence that divides the neighborhood. all of this is to make the point that parks and recreation is moving in the right direction. we have not used money as an excuse not to do better and do more. every survey done of the recreation and parks department

independent of the city has shown higher satisfaction, war engagement, and more enthusiasm for this system. that is why, in some ways, it should not surprise you that phil ginsberg and members of the commission have committed to do something extraordinary, considering the limitation of resources. i will allow phil to accounts -- announce exactly what it is. he has been very enthusiastic. [applause] >> i do not know where to go from there. let's jump right into it. we're offering three times as many summer camps this summer as we did last year. mayor newsom: you are tripling the number of summer camp opportunities. you are doing that in this economic environment compared to last year. >> we are tripling the number of

summer camp opportunities. we will have 57 different camps, that is triple the number of which offered last year. 28,000 slots triple the number that we offered last year. in partnership with the housing authority, we're going to offer camp registration slots to all children live in public housing units for free. [applause] mayor newsom: that is a big deal. people are wondering how you can afford to do this. >> three strategies. partnership, we've worked closely with the people that you see here today. we're all supporting each other to make this happen. scholarships, we've been talking a lot about raising money philanthropic league and for special events. -- philanthropically and through

a special events. we've increased the scholarship fund so that no one is denied access because of inability to pay. we do charge for summer camps, with the exception of the kids who do not have the ability to pay. through cost recovery, scholarship, and recovery, we're able to pull this off. i like to credit a lot of our staff. the staff is working harder. that is the fourth strategy. they're doubling and tripling their efforts this summer. that is the other way we're able to do this. mayor newsom: if you need information about where, when, and how to avail yourself of this, just call or go to the website. rpd@sfgov.org they threw out the www years

ago. >> you can also go to sfrec.com we will be doing outreach for kids and families that walk into the recreation centers. information is going out to all of the kids through the school district next week. and 311. mayor newsom: call 311 before the budget messes with it. the president of the housing authority commission is here. phil ginburg referenced a partnership with the housing authority that offers free access to the kids. >> i want to extrapolate briefly. it takes leadership, the mayor, the chairman, the key staff. what it really takes is a phone call from phil.

he called and asked if we could help. he said if we help, our kids could come free. that is how it happened. mayor newsom: we're also manning the swimming program substantially. >> you are good at this. >> we're increasing the learn to swim program by 200%. axil drowning is the second leading cause of death among our children. -- drowning is the second leading cause of death among our children. we're committing ourselves to prevent an of drowning the summer. mayor newsom: is there a cap on the slots of a housing authority? >> there is no cap. any kids and lived in a public housing units -- that lived in a public housing unit will be able to participate in the summer program at no cost.

>> good morning. the mayor was too modest to knowledge this, but during our tenure on the board of supervisors, i served as the chairperson of the park and recreation committee. the mayor served on that committee. it is about 10 years ago that we began to lay the groundwork for the refreshment, redevelopment of all of these parks and recreational facilities in the city and county of san francisco. i remember the days when you could study astronomy from the ceiling of this facility and geology from the floor. thanks to these efforts, we now have this beautiful facility for this community. i know we are living in tough times. robert shuler said that tough times never last, but tough people do. we have been tough enough in this community to collaborate,

and to turn to each other and not on each other during times of tough challenge. 1st abbas, the department of youth and families -- first baptist, the department of youth and families have established freedom schools so that children k through 12 will be able to go to school during the summer without charge and be engaged in a learning experience that is fun, exciting, creative, and involving the entire family and community. we will have two sites. there will be one here in the western addition. the second site will be at the willie brown academy on silver avenue. i am excited and very pleased with what the housing authority and all of these agencies and community-based organizations have put their minds, hearts, and the will and resources to

make sure that in the city of st. francis, children will be able to have fun experiences and of paralyzed by violence and unsafe conditions. thank you very much, mr. mayer and mr. ginsburg. mayor newsom: we're going to amplify at some of the summer offerings we're going to make available. >> good morning. i am the director of children, youth, and their families. we're going through some really tough economic situations. however, we're still prioritizing the children, youth, and families that live in the great city of san francisco. one thing the mayor was very concerned about was the lack of summer school. it is not enough just to have a summer program. it does not matter if we have a

great program that is only three or four hours. it really does not help the working families in the city, our working families and our city. what we wanted to do and did through the most recent rfp process was to expand summer programs. if you get funding from our department, and you need to provide at least five or six hours of summer programming so that parents and families can go to work. the program will be meaningful for them. they can actually use it. for this round, we were able to fund close to $2.4 million of summer services. this is beyond what we did last year. mayor newsom: that is what people want to know. >> it is definitely and enhancement. under the leadership of the mayor, who said we wanted to

make sure the families to live in the city have opportunities in the city so that they can go to work. $2.4 million in summer programming is available for families in the city. that equates to 54 different sites throughout the city. in partnership with the school district, we're leveraging the state dollars that the school district brings to the table so that we can build the comprehensive summer program. on top of all that, we are continuing all of our other programs. we're asking the other funded programs to make sure that they run a year-round program. we do not stop services when school ends. we want to make sure that the youth employment programs will continue for the entire summer, the child-care programs will continue throughout the summer. the family resource programs will continue throughout the summer.

we're really excited. this is an odd went to our current funding programs. -- this is an arguugment to our current funding programs. we want to be more strategic with funding to ensure that children involved in our programs will have the opportunity to learn and to leave our programs ready to succeed in school. we want to make sure that all the programs we're funding are of high quality. it is exactly what reverend brown was talking about. it makes sense and is appropriate for the needs of our community. thank you, to all of our partners. we partnered with parks and recreation as well to ensure that our services will be available at the recreation centers. summer lunch. thank you. dcyf, in partnership with the

usda, the housing authority, and rec and parks,, this year we will be able to provide 5000 meals per day. last year, we only provided 4500 meals per day. this year, it will be 5000 meals per day at over 113 sites throughout the city. it is meeting the basic needs of our families, making sure the young people have all the necessities so that they can enjoy the camp experiences and enrichment programs that we have. did i miss anything? thank you. mayor newsom: the person who inspired all of us to do this because of the bad news she provided aus. >> every day feels like bad news for me. we could not do so much of what we do as a school district

without our partners here. this continues to speak to the leadership of the mayor and the relationships that we have together to ensure that our kids are off the streets and doing something meaningful during the summer. it was really difficult for the school district and knowledge that out of the 8000 kids would typically serve during the summer with a summer school, many of the kids are henry's kids, in public housing. they have challenges. we're not able to provide to them because of the state funding cuts. we're focusing on the high schoolers and seniors that need extra credit to graduate and the special ed students. that is about as far as we can go. this is really meaningful for all of the department heads to step up the way that they have and bring forward a high-quality programming. the school district is looking

at this not only as a way for our kids to get extended learning and insensure by the time outside of the question is meaningful, but these folks are making sure that their people are trained. we are making sure that there is professional development to bring high-quality programming to our kids. this is not about bringing our kids to a place where they can hang out for a few hours. this is about extended learning. this is about summer learning and making sure that during the niner 10 weeks when they're not in school, that they are doing something meaningful. it took the city to step up to make sure that would happen. from the school district side, we are going to make sure that summer becomes a little bit shorter and shorter over the next few years. so much of the learning is lost during summertime. i am really glad that the kids will have a great opportunity to have experiences that will be

meaningful. when they come back early this year on august 16, they will have had some experiences that will enrich their academic skills and levels. it will not be just another loss of summertime. i am really grateful to the mayor and all of my colleagues who are really stepping it up. this is going to be a difficult summer with the budget cuts. we're talking about $113 million. tonight, we will be talking about activating our layoff notices. this is a really difficult time. we want to make sure the kids feel safe and secure and know that they have a place to go. thank you to the city of san francisco for making that happen. [applause] mayor newsom: another important partner is our librarian. >> thank you very much. it is a pleasure to be here. we just want the family path.

it is 17 different cultural, recreational, educational institutions. you go to any neighborhood library. you pick up a pass and it is free. it is an amazing opportunity. we've seen significant interest from our residents and san francisco -- and san francisco to use that. we're partnering with the other developments -- departments. i want to focus on how important reading is during the summer months. there is a gap there. by the time the kids get back to school, sometimes they may lose up to a great in their breeding -- reading attainment. [siren]

i will take a timeout. when the kids do not read during the summer months, they may lose more than a grade in terms of their reading skills and abilities. that is where the library kicks in. during the summer, we're proud to partner with the various city agencies to make sure that kids continue to read. our belief is that kids that read, succeed. last year, we had 11,000 youngsters participating in the reading program and the t program. i want to showcase the poster we have this year. it is educational and environmentally friendly. it is called a "glow with the flow -- "go with the flow." this was designed by a teenager. we had a contest. this one is "water your

imagination." we are expecting thousands of kids to participate this year. we're very proud of the fact that we're partnering with the wrec department and other departments to take the reading program into the neighborhoods, beyond the library. we want to make sure we partner and make this a very successful year. we understand how important is during the tough times for the education program that the library is very much part of the reading skills development. i am really proud to be here to talk about the programs. if you have any questions, i would be happy to answer those. mayor newsom: please explain the other. >> for the first time ever, we have extended care. kids can be dropped off as early as 8:00 and picked as late as 6:00.

my wife and i have struggled to a drop of kids and pick them up as well. we're also meeting the needs of working families as well. mayor newsom: i want to also thank our nonprofit partners. one of the big efforts engaged in over a number of months it was a predicate of the family pass was in gauging the family -- academy of sciences, the wax museum,. please believe it or not, -- ripley's believe it or not, and the exploratorium. we ask them what they could do. the california academy of sciences added 10,000 additional free slots this summer for kids. the zoo 100. the asian art museum, moma.

they are stepping up to the plate. this is a way of doing more with less, being created, not excepting the status quo as absolute, and working more creatively to solve and address a significant issue. the purpose of this was to focus on what is right and not necessarily indulging in what is going wrong, particularly with the burden placed on the school districts with the summer program. we want to celebrate the collective efforts of everyone you see who made it all happen. i am happy now. we're all happy. we're happy to answer any questions. through our jobs now program and state grants that the development offices gotten, we will be enhancing our summer jobs program. we're very blessed because of the jobs now framework that we

are able to provide 100% wage subsidies for individuals with independence. that allows us to hire supervisors and staff to oversee the enhancements of some of the men to ship -- mnentorship and other training programs. without that, it would have been difficult to subsidize the support and management of the summer jobs. a combination of grants and the jobs now funding allows us to make enhancements. call 311 if a child wants to get a summer job. if you want to get a child into a summer camp, call 311. if you want to learn about anything we have talked about, including the family pass at the library, call 311 for more information.

you can pick up a family pass at the library. it is available today. it is an extraordinary thing. i think you have 90% participation in those who redeem the passes. people are redeeming them at an unbelievable levels. >> during the summer, people worry about violence. this is the answer is jobs. mayor newsom: the answer is jobs and activities. i have never been able to do this, even in the good years. i been in local government for 15 years. during the dot.com boom, no one ever announced that every child in public housing would get free access to a summer program. we just announced that. i do not think there's anything

more important. it is one thing to get another -- summer job and another to keep people busy. in terms of cognitive development, the biggest concern we have in terms of learning is the summer months. if the mind is not engaged figuratively and literally, if you lose about two months of achievement. it is critical that we get people into these dynamic programs. jobs alone are not good enough. these summer camp opportunities are learning environment. they are critical. 100% of the children in public housing will be afforded that opportunity. >> we also have a jobs program called workreation. we hire teenagers who are no longer eligible to participate in the camps. we will be hiring 110 kids from around the city to be assistant

counselors in the summer programs. that is through the partnership with the department of children use and families. this is the 50th university this year of the program. -- this is the 50th anniversary this year of the program. >> it is one of the better programs i have seen in haight- ashbury. what programs bring education to the forefront? mayor newsom: maria is shaking her head. then reverend brown will amplify. >> we're partnering with two other departments to find the early education service area. we invest a significant amount of money and blend with school districts dollars and headstart dollars to ensure that if a family in san francisco once a

child care slot, they will have the opportunity to have that slot. with different types of subsidy programs to support families and all income levels. as the mayor said, if any families are interested in a child-care slots, please call 311. they can also go to the children's council to learn more about the availability of slots. >> there is no question, we need to provide jobs. that is essential. i would underscore one significant thing. someone referred to spikes in violence in various communities. naacp's considered judgment is that whenever people given knee- jerk response when violence happens, if you give kids something to do, we will not have this happen. that is not necessarily so. you have people that are professional criminals. we know who they are. the d.a. and police department

know who they are. our concern ought to be to put this into perspective and focus on those persons who are professional, career criminals who have terrorized communities, all crcommunities. i hope, pray, and appealed to you, and control you -- cajole you members of the press that the recent spat of crime against asians is not traditional. crime exists everywhere. we must turn to each other and work together on this issue of people or opportunistic clique committing acts of violence --

the people who are committing opportunistic acts of violence. blacks and hispanics are more likely to be victims of crime in this city than other ethnic groups. if you would get that out there, it would help us to make sure the people take advantage of opportunities and not have any excuse to the perpetrator of violence and uncivilized behavior. mayor newsom: any further questions? >> off topic? mayor newsom: nice try. anything else on this topic? pick up one of these. call 311. thank you for doing more with less. thank you to all department heads for their outstanding leadership. thank you