months until i couldn't afford it anymore. it was actually really expensive and i actually, you know, could rationalize it if i was going to benefit from it for five days a week but my son was going to be going back to school for two days a week but i was still going to have to pay the full amount, the full five days and it seems like we have the space in these emergency centers as some kids are going back on mondays, tuesdays, some on tuesdays, thursdays. some of the centers might be operating at half the capacity on certain days of the week and couldn't we utilize that space for the children of teachers. >> clerk: that's it. >> okay. thank you. >> clerk: hello, kelly. can you hear me okay?

>> we can. >> okay. hi. thank you so much for taking my public comment. i'm kelly. i'm a mother of three kids. two are special education kids and one is a transgender girl. i just want to put a really big plug and piggy back on all of the special education parents that have piped up about just getting a little more cohesive planning but also i think that across the board, i really hope that mental health screening and a wellness presence on every single school site doesn't get missed. and i say that feeling a little naive after hearing how much work still has to be done. >> thank you. >> hello, susie. >> hello.

it's actually vivian and i am in 8th grade. before that i went to sfk. so i've been in the school system my entire life and i really want a date to be set so middle schoolers and high schoolers can go back to school safely. we can't be isolated. we have to be supported in our learning i have a sister who goes to a private school and she's in middle school and they're going back every other week and i just think it's unfair that public schools don't get the same opportunities and i know it's really hard but you guys are in charge and we need your help. thank you. >> clerk: thank you. hello, joe. >> hi. thank you for taking my call. i'm a parent of a 1st grader at glen park school. i wanted to echo that last caller. she's a middle school student who has no plan to return to the classroom. that's pretty bad and it's

actually very unprecedented of all the top 25 metro areas in the country sfusd is the only one without a plan to re-open middle and high schools. that's totally unconscionable and we need to focus on re-opening middle and high schools, we also need to focus on communicating more effectively. we've heard very inconsistent information about re-opening guidelines from the district to principals. that normal class sizes can be done and that they can set up normally. they don't need 6' of spacing anymore. we need a plan for middle and high schools and i heard alcan walk and chew gum at the same time. maybe we should move forward and actually make a plan for the rest of the district.

thank you. >> clerk: hello, gerald. last time, gerald. thank you. >> hi there. >> clerk: go ahead. >> thanks for taking my call. i just wanted to repeat what a couple of the callers have mentioned about the need for out of school time programs and onsite after care eventually at least if not immediately. it is difficult with you to expect people to come back and send their kids to school five days a week and pick them up at 1:30 kind of in the middle of the day. i understand we need to get things back going, but i would also like to make sure that especially, hopefully the spring especially come the fall that we don't have any obstacles to having some of these other programs to return

to schools. furthermore it's my opinion that commissioner collins should resign. >> clerk: thank you. hello, chris. >> sorry. i was washing dishes. thank you so much. can you hear me? >> yes. >> okay. i'm calling in because i have a number of colleagues both at the high school division and also in other areas who are special education teachers and who will be working with vocal groups who need child care. i also know that staff members at our site who aren't educators will need more child care options available to them and you guys need to help them. they can't afford some of the options that are available in the city and they can't afford to spend this time because they

are spending longer hours planning and preparing for the return of students and you really do need to find a way to support them. we want to come back. we want to come back safely, but that shouldn't be at the cost of our own children and families either. i also just love for you guys to be more clear in your communication for families. i have a student on my case load whose dad doesn't have an e-mail address so he couldn't get the survey. >> clerk: thank you for your time. thank you. hello, sharon. sharon, are you there? >> hi. sorry. i've been on the line for so long. a thousand people. just wanted to say i feel like all these conversations are going to be distracted by

collins racist tweets and this incredibly pro and con system that marginalizes our voices. that's all i have. >> clerk: hello, julie. hello, julie, are you there? okay. hello, linda? linda? >> i'm sorry. can you hear me? >> i can now. sorry. this is julie. i was trying to get through. i'm a commissioner on the commission on the status of women. i just wanted to emphasize a safety issue for families that rely on public information. i've called for hearings in the past about extra security and

it only happens between narrow hours and given that public transportation will be more limited that's something to address. the other thing i want to address and bullying and we worked with that with the department. but i think as we go to in person learning especially for the asian students and also really to address this issue with parents who are limited english proefficient and finally i believe trading an unconscious bias throughout the district as well as in the schools but i really want to focus on making sure there's good mental health for these students and i know a lot of students are afraid to go back to school and the attack is twice as high for women and girls. thank you. >> clerk: thank you. hello, chris. >> hi guys. thanks for taking my public comment tonight. i want to also stress what other callers have said that we

need to get a plan in place for middle school and high schoolers. i listened to some of the city attorney's arguments and the district attorney's arguments yesterday and i heard there was a plan, it just hasn't been shared. please share it with us, we really want to know and want additional support for those on i.e.p.s and those with disable abilities. i also think it's important to clear up the communication that's been shared prior. i know the m.o.u. allowed some desks to be placed apart. a lot of schools are only going two days a week as a result at the elementary level. so i think we need to get desks moved. thanks guys for hearing my comments and let's get everybody who wants to return

back in school in an equitable way. thank you. >> clerk: thank you. hello, brandy. >> hi there. i just want to say a huge thanks to the board for just being steadfast and patient and careful and not doing a rushed re-opening. i know that new york city has had to close many schools since their buildings re-opened and i'm also wondering if in this plan and i apologize if you mentioned this in the meeting and i missed it that there is consideration of the new variant, the b117 variant that has hit european schools really hard is much more contagious. i'm wondering if you're talking about spacing kids apart knowing this is more contagious

and children are more susceptible to getting this new strain of coronavirus that that is factored in because that's really important. also, i know it's really hard for a lot of middle schoolers and high schoolers to wait, also, there are some health risks in sending kids back to school who are unvaccinated especially middle school and high school. so i just appreciate you being patient with all of that and keeping us all safe. thank you. >> clerk: thank you. >> hello, carla. >> i'd like to just thank you all for your time and attention. this is extremely overwhelming. i sometimes feel like i'm in the indiana jones movie and i'm in front of the boulder there

were lots and lot officer questions and that brings me to the need for much more clear communication especially for our special education families but also for our special education teachers and paras. so everybody's on the same page and we can all move forward. exciting news for me, i got to be in my classroom today to see the inside of my classroom and i get to go back the first week of april and set it up. i get to be with my kids again and i'm extremely excited. that being said, i would like to look forward to perhaps a five day opened in the fall and this is just a time for getting kids back in the class and this be a training process that we can learn and collect data from. you can go back and forth between distanced learning and in person once we just get everyone in place so we're not

wasting time trying to go back and recon figure. >> thank you. that's the time. >> clerk: that's the time. >> i'm sorry. thanks everybody. bye. >> clerk: hello, iris. >> hi. i just wanted to ask nowhere in that presentation did i see any work being done to get enough students back to qualify for the state's re-opening money and the district would be eligible for up to $18 million and i just don't understand why we're not doing the work to make that happen because the district's looking at a huge deficit. why aren't things being done to get the state re-opening money? thank you.

>> clerk: thank you. hello, bonita. >> hi. thank you for taking my call. i am a transitional kindergarten teacher at cobb elementary school and i have something to read from a student in the 5th grade named naja. she says, "i don't think it's fair how the kids at school get four hours of learning, but the people on zoom only get two and a half hours. education is very important in everyone's lives. speaking of the kids on zoom after they get out of zoom, do you know what they're going to do? they are just going to hop on their phones and play games. the phones are not allowed in class. when you're at home, you can do

whatever you want. i think that someone should try to figure out how to get all of us in class together because this is so irritating. so why did the kids on zoom have to get up so early so our teacher can teach us and the kids going to school get up at 8:00 so they can get ready to go to school. how is that fair?" >> clerk: thank you. >> thank you. >> clerk: hello, laura. >> hi. it's great that some students are going back to school this spring. my kids are really excited about that. they've been sitting at home all year watching me go to teach in person at the private school where i work where our students have been in person safely since october. now, they're finally getting a chance. but i am really disappointed that there are as of yet no plans returning middle and high school students to the classroom. we need a plan to return all

kids back to in person schooling this year. we're now one of the last schools to re-open. we don't even have a plan for it. considering the fact that it's been available to all students and teachers this is ridiculous. i'm also really upset to hear that guidelines are being set. despite the fact that the m.o.u. specifies that classes can be set up for the normal number of students. we need better and clearer communication about setting up school sites to welcome back as many students who want to return. >> clerk: thank you. that's your time. hello, ashley. >> hi, thank you. so i wanted to ask that we consider ensuring that our students have safe transportation options to and from school on day one and opening schools back up. we have to think about our

families moving safely as they make their trek to and from school. we'd like to propose coordinating with muni to arrange for a elementary school students and other tenderloin neighborhoods. not only will this minimize the possibility of outbreaks at school, but it will alleviate any families still walking through the neighborhood, the tenderloin neighborhood. i also want to say thank you all for what you've been doing. i understand this is a big issue in trying to re-open schools safely is a large task. and thank you for everything you guys have been doing. i understand it's a big issue that we all have to deal with and we also have to think about our teachers, our people as well and we want to make sure that they're safe. thanks. >> clerk: thank you. hello, it says

[inaudible] method. >> hello. my name is angela rosa. that's my business name. but i wanted to share, i am president at dianne feinstein elementary school. i'd also like to ask our i.e.p. students if special attention is all that they need in returning back to school. i also want to share the action of the board and racist comments by allison collins has been distracting to all measures you guys have taken in such a positive way. please make sure students return back in a safe way. thank you. >> clerk: thank you. hello, mary.

>> yes. hi. i am a filipino proud educator here for the district this is such a heavy lift. i want to say that one, i stand in solidarity our asian american community and our black and brown students that we have to make sure our board keeps it together. we are relying on the board of education to work together to help our students and families and what i'm seeing right now is a disjointed board. the questions and decisions that can be made on behalf of

our students and families. i am pleading with you all to have a restorative conversation where you're talking together to make things right. we are restorative practices district. so in order to make sure that we are safely supporting our students again and coming back to school, i'm asking you as a board to make sure that you work it out so you that you can be there and show up for our students and families. >> clerk: hello, ms. wendy, i had to promote you to panelist so your video will be seen unless you turned it off. are you there? ms. wendy? okay. hello, sara. >> hi. this is going to be really short since most a lot of people have made the same points that i wanted to

highlight. as an elementary school parent, i appreciate the work that's been done around in-person learning plans. my kids are excited to get back. and so i thank you for that. but we still have no in learning plan for middle and high school students. san francisco is one of the last big cities in the nation to not have a plan to re-open those schools. and the middle school and high school students of san francisco unified deserve the exact same opportunities. thank you. [please stand by]

>> my question now is, what will the school be like.

now we live in a small what drew -- one bedroom apartment in the richmond district. i would like to know how to get in touch with the school district in order for that school to be able to -- [indiscernible]. >> i'm sorry. >> this is only to comment on the return to in person learning update. >> okay. i have no idea what the return to learning update is like for our school. >> thank you. >> hello, dp. >> hello. good evening. i just have a quick question. on the website you guys have this tuition based thing regarding prekindergarten and i was just wondering, for the return of in person learning, does that still count?

>> thank you. hello, evette? >> thank you so much. i appreciate everyone's comments tonight about connecting and restorative justice. i won't go into that too much. restorative practices are also a lot of things that black and brown children don't experience at school in many ways because they, unfortunately, are left out of the conversations. i would like to clarify the transportation when we go back to school. i also would like to recognize we will focus on the returned to school of special ed children. for all of the grades. we do have the amount of space, and according to c.d.c., the amount of space of regulated. also, when someone mentions that

two and half hours is standard for children, that has been happening. i would like other people to remember that there shouldn't be that many changes, considering we are all about to be vaccinated in the city. finally, i will hang up. please see that your children are able to get in. this includes five full days for not -- for all your children, which includes middle and high school students. >> thank you. good night. >> hello, hope? >> thank you. >> i'm sorry, we can't hear you. we can't hear you. >> okay. you can't hear me at all?

>> that is better. go ahead. >> okay. i just want to think the board -- i want to thank the board. [indiscernible] >> okay, i'm sorry. it's breaking up. [indiscernible] i would like to extend the support. i would love to have conversation about how we will safely support the students. i echo everything that has been said. we need to stop focusing on all this other stuff and we need to focus on our babies. keep this work -- it is a lot of us on the ground doing it. we can't do this if we are fighting when our children are the priority. >> thank you. >> hello, rob?

hello, rob, are you there? hello, meredith? >> i forgot i had my hand raised. i just want to echo some of the comments. it is a disgrace that we don't have plans to bring back students. we are seeing we are the last in the nation of the top 25 district, top 25 metro areas. we are a national -- in terms of reopening, we need to prioritize middle and high school. it is incredibly important. we had a number of families, the middle of -- a number of middle and high schoolers present talking with the media and sharing their stories.

we were sharing stories of how their struggles continue and how they have been left behind. there is still no plans for most middle and high school students. we need to get with it. thanks. >> thank you. >> yes? >> go ahead. >> good evening. i here to speak on behalf of one of the students at the school. i a fifth-grader at the elementary school. i writing this letter today to tell you about how i feel about going back to school and to support the students will continue online learning. i concerned about the proposed

schedule. we all have the same amount of time because it is unfair that people who can't come to school have to wake up earlier than the people who are going to school. why do you make online learning so short? can you please change this? >> thank you. president lopez, that concludes public comment. >> thank you. there are a lot of speakers on this item and i do want to open it up to our student delegates and commissioners if you would like to ask questions or make comments. >> hello, yes. i have multiple questions if that is okay. i apologize if my wi-fi is acting up.

i really having issues today. the first question i have is, is there a way to access the translated version -- version of the dashboard? >> i will answer that. the dashboard bids shall -- itself, which shows the progress towards different indicators is in a programme. there is another part of it that is embedded on the website that uses google translate. for families and students, the return safely plan is all on the website there. it is the best place to get detailed information, as well as the family digest that goes out. we share with all of our staff the key messages for families because we know for a lot of families you're