San Francisco voters have several qualified candidates to consider in this year's race for the San Francisco Board of Education. And for the first time in many years, a gay man and a transgender woman have a good chance at election. We recommend that city residents vote for Mark Murphy and Jamie Rafaela Wolfe. Straight ally Emily Murase is running for re-election and we support her bid as well.
Murphy, a gay man who works in communications, is passionate about San Francisco public schools. Murphy is not a parent, but has been involved in the schools by working with various parent and teacher organizations and is on the Prop H (Public Education Enrichment Fund) Community Advisory Committee, which provides oversight and feedback on the $50 million within the San Francisco Unified School District that supports 17 programs including sports, libraries, arts and music, and many more. From 2007-2012 Murphy served on the San Francisco Human Rights Commission's LGBT Advisory Committee where he focused on LGBT youth issues. His husband of 19 years is an elementary school teacher in the district.
Murphy's goals include more engagement with parents and starting a conversation about the whole child experience, addressing what he calls a "significant achievement gap among black and brown children." That includes providing after school programs, vision and dental care through the health department, and improving academics and curricula. Murphy also believes officials need to know students better, for example, addressing the causes of their absenteeism. Funding for these activities come through Prop H, which has added school nurses and social workers to sites.
Murphy has a good working relationship with district Superintendent Richard Carranza, who he said is working to improve schools both academically and financially.
Wolfe is a trans woman who is an educator, school administrator and behaviorist at a non-public school in the city where the district sends students who have behavior problems or other special needs. In her interview with us, Wolfe said two important issues are equitable access for students and increasing green policies for schools, including gardening programs in which students would eat the fruits of their labor while learning social skills.
The district's school assignment system is widely disliked; Murphy said he supports children attending the school in their neighborhood, or assignment area. Unfortunately, that isn't always possible as the district works to distribute enrollment across the city. Wolfe told us she sees the school system as "very segregated" and thinks the assignment area policy needs to be examined again. At the same time, she wants to make sure the city's schools are diverse because, "when there's diversity people are safer." She elaborated: "When there's diversity I'm not attacked because I'm trans. Now, I'm accepted." In other words, diversity sensitizes students to others who are different.
Wolfe also supports increased physical education, saying that sports teaches students about teamwork, cooperation, and their abilities. She is a strong supporter of AB 1266, the new state law that ensures transgender students' full participation in all activities, and maintains that continuing education and outreach is needed for district staff, parents, guardians, peers, families, and community members about the importance of diversity and validation of people's gender identity regarding safety and inclusivity.
Murphy and Wolfe would bring different philosophies and leadership styles to the school board, but both are qualified and LGBT. And that perspective has been missing on the school board for the past several years.
"Identity politics is difficult at times," Murphy told us. Nevertheless, the LGBT community should be represented on the school board, which oversees 56,000 students. For LGBT and questioning students �" and parents �" it would be good for them to know there is someone like them on the governing body who understands their issues.
Wolfe also pointed to the lack of LGBT representation on the seven-member school board and said that needs to change. There has never been a trans person on the board, she noted.
"As an educator and trans identified, students will know they'll have an advocate on the school board," Wolfe said. "I want to make sure schools are open to all."
Murase is running for her second four-year term. She strongly supports LGBTs.
"I consider myself a member of the LGBT community," Murase said in her questionnaire, adding that it's important that board members "engage and serve all of the diverse communities of San Francisco."
While on the board Murase secured a $40,000 grant for the district to implement the now-annual Internet Safety Day, a crucial topic for students navigating social media. She is a strong supporter of the aforementioned AB 1266.
All three candidates support Common Core, a set of education standards that California adopted. It, in Murase's words, "releases educators from the tyranny of prescribed textbooks and high stakes testing and empowers them to find their own materials."
We're endorsing Murphy and Wolfe because they are qualified and would bring a much-needed LGBT perspective to the district. As trans issues continue to be in the news �" especially at schools �" and gender non-conforming students often struggle to find acceptance on school campuses and in their own families, the district's leadership would be well-served by these two out candidates. We're endorsing Murase because she has been effective and inclusive of LGBT students and families who use public schools.