Healthy Development Measurement Toolkit

Indicator PI.2.h Ratio of public school population to citywide school-aged population

Data Source

Demographic Analyses and Enrollment Forecasts: San Francisco Unified School District. July 2002. Report by: Lapkoff & Gobalet Demographic Research, Inc. on Behalf of SFUSD. Accessed on July 15, 2006: http://www.demographers.com/SANFRANEXECSUMLETTERHEAD.pdf

Chart and graph prepared by City and County of San Francisco, Department of Public Health, Environmental Health Section.

Explanation and Limitations

Comparison of San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) enrollment data with U.S. Census data reveals the racial/ethnic distribution of public school attendees relative to racial/ethnic distribution in the general population of San Francisco.

The ratio of SFUSD enrollment to all 5-19 year olds reveals the relative attendance levels in public schools. Values less than 1 indicate under-representation in the public school system compared to all 5-19 year olds of that particular ethnicity. Values greater than 1 indicate that students of the particular ethnicity are over-represented in the public school system, relative to their general population.

It is possible to do an analysis of racial/ethnic demographics of schools at the neighborhood level using census data and SFUSD school specific historic profiles (available at: http://portal.sfusd.edu/template/default.cfm?page=school_info.profiles dating back to 1998). However, because so many students attend schools outside of their own neighborhood (because of the Student Assignment System and/or because there is not a grade-appropriate school in their neighborhood), there does not appear to be much added value to calculating this indicator at a neighborhood level. Citywide measures still reflect demographic shifts. However, individuals wishing to get more specific can do so by using these web accessible information.

Similar to many other urban areas, San Francisco public schools face the challenge of trying to create a high quality, integrated academic environment that compensates for existing racial, ethnic and economic segregation by neighborhood. The education-related indicators in Objective PI.2 seek to illustrate these tensions/tradeoffs by providing multiple different indicators affecting the accessibility and quality of educational facilities in San Francisco. One measure alone cannot capture the complexity of student achievement nor the various push and pull factors causing children and families to leave or move to San Francisco. Therefore educational achievement and performance must be considered both within the broader context of neighborhood, social and economic conditions which are addressed in other parts of the HDMT.

Valuing the historic and social importance of integration, San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) has experimented with a number of different school assignment policies to promote diverse, high performing schools. Currently, SFUSD allows any student to apply to any school in the city. However, there are often situations where there are more requests for spaces at a particular school than seats available. Whenever requests are greater than the number of seats available, the SFUSD uses a Student Assignment System to guide student selection.

The Student Assignment System involves a formula that calculates the probability that in a given grade randomly chosen students will be different from each other based on five race neutral factors. The factors include extreme poverty (defined as living in public housing, being homeless or being a foster youth), socioeconomic status, home language, academic performance rank of sending school, and academic achievement status. As could be expected, not all students can be placed in their top choice school. According to the SF Unified School District, 63% of students in grades K-12 were assigned to their first choice school and 82% were assigned to a school of their choice in the 2008-2009 school year. For more information on the SFUSD Student Assignment System, visit: http://portal.sfusd.edu/template/default.cfm?page=policy.placement.process

Students not included in SFUSD enrollment are not enrolled in public school, attend private school, are in juvenile detention or county run schools, or have developed other alternative educational arrangements. According to Lapkoff & Gobalet, "Private school enrollments account for 30 percent of total enrollment in all San Francisco schools, or 25 percent of all K-12 students who reside in San Francisco. This compares to about ten percent of K-12 students in California, and to about 11 percent nationwide." (Page 2, http://www.demographers.com/SANFRANEXECSUMLETTERHEAD.pdf)

Some students complete school before age 19, but because of their age at the time of the census, they would be counted as unenrolled students, thereby underestimating the number of students having received public school education.

It is important to note that demographic analyses and forecasts may be used to reinforce the status quo and therefore, not address the needs of people who you may want to bring into a community or prevent from having to leave a community. For example, a demographic forecast may show that a certain neighborhood is projected to have fewer and fewer children attending public schools over the next two decades. The school district may subsequently decide to phase out the school in that neighborhood and invest resources in other schools. By phasing out the school, future families with young children will be less likely to move to this neighborhood and existing residents will either need to move, send their child to public school in another neighborhood, or send the child to private school.

Why is this a Community Health Indicator?

Integrated schools aim to uphold the value of equality in the quality of educational opportunities to children regardless of ethnic or economic background. In contrast, high levels of private school attendance can suggest real or perceived concerns with the quality of public education and/or limited social commitment to equal opportunity in public education. In theory, more equality in educational opportunities (i.e., similarities between schools in the number of experienced teachers) may contribute to greater social mobility and reduce future social stratification, outcomes associated with life expectancy, and other health outcomes. However, the quality of education is only one factor in child development and success. Equalizing school quality may not overcome differences in resources provided by advantaged families outside of schools.