Our First Event a Success!

A week has passed since our first Plus One for Schools event took place. I'm happy to report it was a success. We managed to get the word out pretty well through a combination of posts to local parent/school mailing lists and even some press hits such as in the SF Examiner and Mission Loc@l

On the morning of the event it looked like rain, but after a few incantations of “rain rain, go away, come again some other day!!" the sun started to make an appearance. By the time noon rolled around, it was actually quite a pleasant day. We had the following vendors:

Soul Cocina
Mad For Madeleines
Adobo Hobo
Gumbo Cart
SF Delicious Chef
Bike Basket Pies
MaliNumNum Treats
Local Flavor
Pearl's Kitchen
Sweet Constructions
We also had some great music by parent band The Melees

All told, we raised $455.00. Not bad for a first test and a few hours on Mother's Day. It was actually a bit more than I had expected. The vendors were all incredibly gracious and said they'd do it again. Several of the parents who came by told me this was the first time they'd actually had the chance to check out the food cart scene about which they'd heard so much. The kids had a great time goofing off and being...kids. The whole vibe was rather like a big family picnic.

The next step is to try an event at a fixed location. I'm thinking of La Victoria Bakery, because they're in the neighborhood, Roger cooks there, and they present live music: sounds like a no-brainer. Do you have other suggestions? Use the comments field to chime in, and don't forget to follow our adventures Twitter @plusone4schools.

For a quick photographic look at the day, I've embedded a link to a
MemoryMiner photo story:

Many thanks to everyone who helped out. Onward!

Introducing Plus One for Schools

During my “radical youth” teenage years in Chapel Hill, NC, I remember a popular bumper sticker that read “It will be a great day when schools have all the money they need and the Air Force needs to hold a bake sale to buy a bomber.” Fast-forward some 30 years, and as the proud parent of a kindergartner at a San Francisco public school, I find it incredibly disturbing that our social priorities are still so misguided. Things have only gotten worse in the last few years. Depending on how you take into account cost-of-living differences, California now finds itself hovering at, or near last in the nation with respect to per-pupil spending for its public schools. Is anyone proud that we're winning the race to the bottom?!

Over the next two years, the San Francisco Unified School District is facing a $113 million deficit. At SF Community School which my son attends, we're looking at a reduction of over $100,000 for next year alone. Given the super lean budgets of the last few years, when faced with such a drastic year-over-year reduction, there simply are no good options, merely the choice of which limbs to amputate.

The way in which budgets are passed in California, and how school funds are apportioned is a complex and contentious subject, but suffice to say, what we're currently spending is not enough.

Not even close.

Raising money for schools is nothing new: parents and students have been doing it for decades, but it's usually been for things one could reasonably call “extras” such as band trips, or after-school club activities. These days, public school parents regularly have to raise tens of thousands each year in order to fund Physical Education programs, teachers assistants, classroom supplies, etc.

Meaningful changes to the budgeting process will take years, but in the meantime, we've got a crisis on our hands, and I'm not willing to just sit back while our kids' education is at stake.

A few months ago, I had an idea which I call “Plus One For Schools.” The premise is simple: while we can't earmark how we want our tax dollars spent (if only!), we could chose to donate to schools on a regular basis through everyday purchases. What if when you went to buy a meal, or a drink in bar, or attend a concert, you could opt to add a dollar (i.e. the "plus one") to help close the budget gap for a school you care about? If your favorite food cart vendor, bar or theater would match your dollar would you be more inclined to patronize them? I know I sure would, and I bet a ton of other folks, particularly parents, feel the same way.

Ideas are a dime a dozen: it's execution that counts, so with the most generous assistance of Roger Feely, of Soul Cocina fame we're going to put this idea to the test on Sunday May 9th at Precita Park from 12-3 PM. Mark the date in your calendar. When you buy a meal from any of the assembled food cart vendors, you'll have the opportunity to add 1$ per plate to support our school. Participating vendors will throw in $1 as well.

We'll have a table there with information about our school, some herbs from the school garden to give away, and if possible some acoustic music and games for everyone to enjoy. Come chat with parents about our school in particular and the state of public schools in SF in general. If you're already a school parent you know about the challenges we face. If you're not a parent, but think you will be one day, and would like to live in San Francisco, the state of schools will be immensely important to you. Good schools come from good communities, and good communities come from good schools.

We're taking a tiny first step here, let's see where it goes. My fondest hope is that we can turn this into a regular activity so that the question “Hey, are you doing Plus One For Schools today?” will become a common question with “We sure are!” being the common response.

I'll be posting more on this blog with updates about our first event. If you want to get in touch by email, by all means please write to plusoneforschools at gmail dot com. On Twitter I'll be posting updates @plusone4schools.