San Francisco Mayor London Breed is backing the recall of three members of the city's school board.
In a lengthy Facebook post on Tuesday afternoon, Breed said she supports recalling Board of Education President Gabriela López, Vice President Faauuga Moliga and former Vice President Alison Collins in next February's election.
Breed said the school board's "priorities have often been severely misplaced," calling for leadership that isn't "distracted by unnecessary influences or political agendas" amid the San Francisco Unified School District's "dire fiscal situation" and lagging educational outcomes due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
"It was clear from the start that this recall effort was a grassroots effort led by parents; that's who got out there and collected the signatures," Breed wrote in the post. "I am supporting the parents' call for change."
Some parents criticized the board for San Francisco public schools remaining closed for in-person learning during much of last school year, as well as its since-reversed efforts to rename 44 schools and the decision to end Lowell High School's merit-based admissions system after students' criticism of ongoing racism.
Collins dropped an $87 million lawsuit against the board and the San Francisco Unified School District in September, which argued her civil rights were violated when she was removed as vice president and stripped of district committee assignments after recall organizers unearthed tweets she wrote in 2016 about Asian Americans. Collins said the tweets were taken out of context.
Breed would appoint any recalled board members' replacements. Any replacements would be up for election in November.
A union representing 6,500 school district employees, United Educators of San Francisco, said last month when the recall election was announced that recalling the board members would give Breed too much control over the Board of Education.
"We need an independent board that will fight for the resources our students deserve, not a board beholden to City Hall," union president Cassondra Curiel wrote in a statement, highlighting the election's estimated $8 million cost. "The distraction of a special recall election with potential mayoral appointments is NOT what our students and educators need most at a point of real crisis for our classrooms."
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