SFUSD Budget Cuts and Roosevelt Middle School

Dear RMS Families,

Following Ms. Leicham’s email last Thursday regarding the possibility of district-wide budget cuts, we know many of you may be wondering how these changes could affect RMS and what we, as a community, can do to support our school.

Below is an overview of the potential impacts and how we can mobilize together. These are examples only and no decisions have yet been made; however, this is a very realistic, educated conversation about what budget cuts might look like at Roosevelt.

---

How Potential Budget Cuts Could Impact RMS

1. Reductions to Support Staff  (Counselors, Wellness, Social Workers, Security)
​
What this could mean for RMS:

• Losing even one counselor would increase caseloads to more than 300 students each, significantly reducing the amount of academic, social-emotional, and high school transition support available—especially for 8th graders.
• If the Wellness Center is closed, we would lose nursing support and essential conflict-resolution and crisis-intervention services.

Why this matters: Student mental health and well-being must come first if SFUSD expects students to succeed academically. Wellness center staff, counselors, social workers, and nurses are critical in supporting students experiencing trauma, loss, instability, or other stressors. These staff also oversee 504 Plans, ensuring students receive their accommodations.

Campus safety would also be affected. With recent incidents in SF schools, including a shooting at a local high school, adequate supervision during arrival, departure, recess, and lunch is essential.
​
2. Cuts to Teachers and Programming (Shift from 7 periods to 6, loss of health class, reduced special education services)

What this could mean for RMS:

• Class sizes could increase.
• Students who need additional academic support (ELL, supplemental math, intervention blocks) may lose access to it.
• Health class could be eliminated.
• Fewer electives would be available, limiting students’ opportunities to explore interests.
• A 6-period day means longer classes and fewer elective choices overall; wheel electives may be removed entirely.
• Students in the Mandarin Immersion track would likely be unable to participate in any other electives such as band, art, or home economics.

Why this matters: Our current 7-period schedule provides flexibility to support students with IEPs, multilingual learners, and students who need intervention. It also ensures students are exposed to a broad range of learning areas (Spanish, Art, Computer Science) they would not experience otherwise.

3. Cuts to Operational Staff  (Clerks)

What this could mean for RMS:

• Slower response times to family calls and questions.
• ​Reduced accuracy and timeliness in attendance reporting.
• Fewer staff to manage school supplies, resources, and essential paperwork.
• Greater risk of payroll errors, which impacts staff retention.

4. Cuts to Site Administration

​Why this is critical: Consistent, accessible leadership is essential for school safety, family communication, effective decision-making, and smooth daily operations. Administrative cuts directly affect a school’s stability.

---

​What Our RMS Community Can Do

1. Attend the School Board Meetings on Tuesday, 12/9 and Tuesday, 12/16 at 555 Franklin Street. (Public open session begins at 6:30pm.)

You do not need to speak--a strong presence makes a difference. Large attendance shows the Board and Superintendent that families are deeply concerned and engaged.

2. If You Wish to Give Public Comment

• Each meeting includes one hour of public comment.
• You must sign in to speak.
• Comments are limited to 1 minute, so it helps to prepare your remarks in advance.

3. If You Cannot Attend in Person
You may submit written comments to: [email protected]

4. Advocate for All Schools, Not Only RMS

• Every student in SFUSD deserves a fully funded school with comprehensive academic and social-emotional support.
• Fewer, fully supported schools with inclusive programming are better for students than maintaining many under-enrolled schools with limited services.

(Click here for more information about 2025-26 School Board meetings, including agendas and how to observe via Zoom.)

Suggested Talking Points for Public or Written Comments

Support staff is essential to the academic and social-emotional growth of middle school students. Reduction in Counselors, Wellness, Social Workers, Security would strain if not eliminate student access to mental-health and wellness support and would also compromise campus safety.

Cuts to teachers and programming will limit the education our kids receive and increase the workload of already hard-working teachers. Additional academic support should be available to all students who need it, and teacher and programming cuts will endanger that support. Our current 7-period schedule provides flexibility to students who need extra academic support. It also ensures students are exposed to a broad range of learning areas they wouldn't experience otherwise; health education is also extremely important at this age.

Cuts to Operational Staff and Site Administration will directly negatively affect our school's stability and ability to efficiently communicate with families. Consistent, accessible leadership is essential for school safety, family communication, effective decision-making, and smooth daily operations.

How will cutting school budgets entice families to attend SFUSD? Cuts may close the deficit on paper, but they also weaken the schools themselves — which only reinforces the beliefs of families who choose independent options. The budget cuts risk creating a cycle of lower enrollment, which then leads to more budget cuts.

---

​Thank you for taking the time to stay informed. Our collective voice is powerful. By showing up, speaking up, and advocating together, we can help ensure that RMS—and all SFUSD schools—receive the resources our children deserve.

If you have questions, please click here to submit them to the RMS PTSA Board. We’ll do our best to track down answers and share with the community.

Sincerely,
The RMS PTSA Executive Board