We call on SFUSD leadership to stop the abrupt plan to close the Cantonese Dual Language Immersion (DLI) pathway at Garfield Elementary to kindergarten enrollment. This program sustains language, culture, and community, and is an integral part of a vibrant school community. We demand that district leadership engage SFUSD families as partners in decisions about the future of our school.

SFUSD’s Dual Language Immersion programs are among the only public-school Cantonese immersion pathways of their kind in the United States. They are not enrichment electives; they are high-impact programs that draw families to SFUSD and set SFUSD apart nationally. They were born of the unique history and heritage of our city and support academic achievement, biliteracy, and cultural belonging—key outcomes that align with SFUSD’s aim to prepare students for life, college, careers, and leadership in a global world.

At Garfield, the Cantonese DLI pathway is a cornerstone of school life, preserving ties to the community, and supporting cultural continuity for families who hold Cantonese language preservation as essential.

Many families have already enrolled with the expectation that this pathway would continue for those already at Garfield (TKers) and younger siblings and it is the only Cantonese DLI program on the north side of the city. Removing it for 2026–27 would force them to travel across the city for alternative DLI Cantonese programs, which are currently overenrolled and have impossibly long waitlists. For these families, enrolling their younger sibling in the GE pathway while their older siblings continue in the DLI program is not an acceptable choice. With little time left before the lottery deadline, they will have to contend with choosing between splitting their kids up across different schools, or trying to transfer the older siblings to a different school.

Closing down enrollment in the Cantonese DLI pathway will lead to a loss of nearly half our school over time, made even more rapid due to the foreseeable exodus of families wanting younger siblings to attend an immersion program. This makes our community vulnerable to possible school closure or merger. SFUSD promised that communities would be engaged for major decisions impacting schools and we expected them to keep this promise. We have had no engagement, no warning, and it is now less than two weeks before the lottery deadline. This is a major violation of our trust.

We understand SFUSD’s budget challenges. But decisions that affect heritage language programs and the futures of entire school communities need transparent dialogue with school leaders, parents, and community stakeholders, especially before the enrollment window closes.

We call on SFUSD Leadership to:
-- Stop the abrupt plan to close the Cantonese Dual Language Immersion (DLI) pathway at Garfield Elementary to kindergarten enrollment.
-- Engage Garfield families and the community in a transparent planning process before finalizing decisions about DLI programs for the 2026–27 school year.
-- Use a transparent process with community input for major program changes across the district. What happens at Garfield – one of the first public elementary schools in the city – sets a precedent.

Join us in the fight to preserve Cantonese at Garfield Elementary!