To: Mayor London Breed and the City of San Francisco
From: Those who love education and our City College of San Francisco

When public education was established in the 20th century, a high school diploma was enough to lift workers into the middle class. But in 21st century San Francisco, most living wage jobs require a higher education. City College makes that higher education available to San Franciscans.

Our CCSF is both the first stop and a place of second chances for access to a quality public higher education in our great City. We serve full- and part-time students, degree and transfer-bound students, senior citizens, new parents, high school students, immigrants, low-income and communities of color, transgender students, foster youth, formally incarcerated, veterans, and those seeking to improve their career prospects. City College is a cornerstone of our City’s economy, adding more than $300 million in economic value by training nurses, medical technicians, firefighters, pre-school educators, restaurant and hospitality workers, aircraft mechanics, and more. Without the college, San Francisco would not be able to fill our growing need for many key services.

Unfortunately, while national Education Secretary Betsy DeVos deeply undercuts public education in America, the State of California is now reducing funding for many of the classes and programs that City College offers, creating a growing gap between what the state funds and what CCSF needs to serve our community. With hundreds of sections already lost, students and faculty endure larger classes and reduced access. Also lost are key supports like program coordinators, counselors, and reduced service hours for labs and libraries— all key ingredients in helping students succeed, particularly those students with the greatest need. If unaddressed, these budget cuts will force the college to eliminate one out of every three classes it offers.

In order to prevent this and preserve San Franciscans’ access to free, quality higher education, we call on San Francisco to establish a Community Higher Education Fund (CHEF), modeled on the Public Education Enrichment Fund (PEEF), which provides funding to the Pre-K-12 system for programs underfunded by the state, such as libraries, arts, and preschools. In a similar way, the CHEF would bridge the gap between state funding and San Francisco’s higher education needs, supporting programs like English as a Second Language, Career and Technical Education, Ethnic Studies, Transitional Studies, and more.

Even as national and state supports wane for free, quality public education, we know that San Francisco values City College. Since 2017, the City has been supporting students by paying their tuition through the Free City program. Just as Free City supports students directly, CHEF will support the college that those students attend and empower City College to restore, maintain, and re-grow a full, diverse set of programs to meet the educational needs of 21st Century San Francisco.

At a fully funded CCSF students will have a right to:

• Free quality education with diverse offerings that meet student needs.

• Modern facilities, excellent faculty, staff, and administrators.

• Outstanding academic counseling, library hours, and student support programs.

• Graduate, complete certificates, reach their career and personal goals, and enrich their lives.
  
  

With a fully funded CCSF San Francisco will be able to:

• Support our diverse communities, ensuring students of color have the support they need to graduate and/or transfer.

• Maintain a well-trained workforce, providing our residents with their medical, firefighting, pre-school and hospitality needs through CCSF graduates entering or re-entering the workforce.

• Support families through child and language development classes.

• Continue to transform lives and lift people out of poverty.

• Support CCSF’s ability to keep the community in our community college and fulfill its mission by addressing the lifelong learning needs of all students!

Yes! We endorse funding our future by establishing a Community Higher Education Fund for San Franciscans to continue accessing quality, public, higher education at City College of San Francisco.