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Day Around the Bay: California Implements Permanent Farm to School Breakfast and Lunch Program

Some Twin Peaks residents have been withholding their rent from a nightmare landlord for 32 months; activist Erin Brockovich highlighted Gilroy residents’ fight against a new Amazon data center; and California’s Farm to School program is now permanent

Arts & Entertainment

All SFUSD Educators to Receive $250 From Anonymous SF Tech Donor

Educators at San Francisco Unified School District will each be receiving a $250 gift card from an anonymous local benefactor who wanted to convey to local teachers how much they’re appreciated.

Saturday Links: Trump Signs Executive Order to Pay TSA Officers As Shutdown Resumes

Former SF Supervisor Jane Kim filed a police report against her fellow state insurance commissioner candidate; a Silicon Valley startup was instrumental in helping prepare for NASA's moon launch; and Trump orders DHS to pay TSA officers.

San Jose Parents, Teachers Blindsided By Potential Closure of Nine Elementary Schools

Concerned families, teachers, and community members packed the house at the San Jose Unified School District’s community meeting Tuesday evening after receiving news last week that up to a third of its elementary schools may be shuttered due to a 20-percent reduction in enrollment.

SF Teachers’ Strike Is Part of Statewide Campaign Helping 32 Districts Negotiate Contracts

San Francisco public school educators made national headlines Tuesday as they announced plans to bring a human banner to Ocean Beach the following day, with talks between union and district representatives slowly progressing and other unions across the state considering similar action.

SF Public School Teachers on Strike Monday, More Negotiations Planned for Noon

San Francisco Unified School District officials announced Sunday evening that teachers will go on strike Monday after their demands weren't met and city leaders unsuccessfully pleaded for a 72-hour pause, with negotiations starting back up at noon on Monday.

All Coaches at East Bay High School to Be Let Go at End of Their Seasons, Told to Reapply Next Year

Newark Memorial High School in the East Bay began dismissing all 45 of its athletic coaches and assistants at the end of their respective seasons last month, telling them they may be rehired next year as part of a new policy.

High School Seniors to Receive Automatic Acceptance at 16 California State Universities

Class of 2026 seniors with a minimum 2.5 GPA from 43 California school districts, including several in the Bay Area, can now automatically enroll at 16 schools in the CSU system, and in 2027, eligible seniors from all 937 districts statewide will automatically be accepted.

San Jose School Apologizes After Board Trustee Sings Off-Color 1940s Song at Christmas Program

At a San Jose elementary school concert, school board trustee and teacher Brian Wheatley went off-book and sang an unapproved, old-timey Christmas parody mentioning guns, which he’s reportedly sung over the years. The school principal swiftly cut him off and sent out an apology.

Day Around the Bay: City Hall Aglow With Animated ‘Winter Lights’ Show Through January 2

Sutter Health is continuing to provide gender-affirming care to minors despite federal pressure; last weekend’s viral incident has gained Hazie’s in Hayes Valley a lot of new customers; and City Hall honors its history and celebrates the holidays with a new animated light show.

Sunday Links: SFUSD Partially Ends Teacher Hiring Freeze, Launches 2025–26 Recruitment

Musk's SpaceX site in Texas is now called the city of Starbase, which is already making moves to restrict public access to local beaches; Black Oakland business owners rally to support restaurant Pierre Pierre following a shooting there on Friday; and SFUSD has partially lifted its hiring freeze.

Oakland Teens Push School District To Act On Lead In Drinking Water

Four Oakland high school students are demanding action on lead-contaminated drinking water in schools, saying it threatens the health and futures of thousands of youths. Their call echoes the lead crisis in SF’s Bayview-Hunters Point and the Mission.

Saturday Links: Arson and Vandalism Abound At Tesla Sites Nationwide And In France

Seven Telsa charging stations in Boston and a Tesla dealership in France were set on fire; sources say the Trump administration has been falsely flagging the business expenses of USAID and EPA employees as "fraud;" and Walgreens has been acquired by a private equity firm.

California Legislature Passes Bill to Ban or Limit Cellphone Use in Schools

California will likely soon become the fifth state in the nation to ban students from using smartphones in schools, though the full ban likely would not go into effect until the 2026-27 school year.

Some San Francisco Public Schools Face Closure as Enrollment Plummets

The school district of San Francisco, grappling with declining students and a looming budget deficit, is set to close or consolidate an unspecified number of schools by fall 2025, Superintendent Matt Wayne said.

A Few NorCal School Districts Are Now Just Flat-Out Defying the Mask Mandate

Kids walked out of class in one school district near Sacramento to protest the mask mandate, while other districts are just refusing to enforce mask-wearing, as tension grows over California dropping mask mandates in general — but not for schools.

Newsom Appears to Backtrack on Hardline Mask Guidance for Schools, State Will Leave Rules Up to Districts

After announcing guidance for California public schools on Monday that had been leaked out on Friday, and facing backlash from critics of Governor Newsom's pandemic response in general, the state's public health department is backtracking a bit.

California’s Largest-Ever $15 Billion School Bond Ballot Measure, Explained

There’s only one state ballot measure on the usually-crowded March 3 election slate, so let’s school ourselves up on what the $15 billion school construction bond proposes to do.

Arts & Entertainment

<i>This American Life</i> Highlights SF After-School Program That Put On A Children's Musical About Gentrification

The theme of this week's episode of NPR's This American Life, which premieres Friday, is "The Poetry of Propaganda," and one of the stories centers on a

History is So Gay: LGBT Americans to Be Added to CA Textbooks

The future school kids of California will soon learn the valuable contributions to history by members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community by reading about them in their textbooks. Yesterday, the

SF Restaurants, Food & Drink

SF Schools Still Need Better Food

Although the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program is being served up a Balboa High, San Francisco public schools still serve junk to kids. It's a big problem. Of what little money

Day Around the Bay

* Bay Area men all "rich, metrosexual brainiacs"? What about all the poor bartenders, and the 25% who are gay? (NBC Bay Area) * Free couch. (Sex Pigeon) * 4-alarm brush fire raging