San Francisco (August 18, 2025) - The San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) is excited to have every classroom covered with a qualified educator on the first day of school on Aug. 18, 2025, marking a major milestone in staffing efforts and improved operations across the district.
Across the district, SFUSD has filled 93.5% of general and special education classroom teaching positions — meeting its hiring goal ahead of the first day of school. Specifically, as of August 17, the district has filled 95.6% of vacant elementary school classroom positions, 87.4% of vacant K-8 positions, 91.2% of vacant middle school positions, and 93.9% of vacant high school positions. These numbers continue to climb daily, with many offers extended and pending contract signatures.
“We are proud of the progress our team has made to ensure every student starts the school year with a dedicated and qualified educator,” SFUSD Superintendent Dr. Maria Su said. “This reflects months of hard work and strategic improvements in our hiring processes. I want to extend my deepest appreciation to our Human Resources staff who have worked tirelessly to ensure our students have a qualified and caring teacher in their classroom.”
To accelerate hiring, SFUSD has streamlined several internal processes, including:
- Launching a new onboarding system using Red Rover to simplify paperwork and orientation.
- Making fingerprinting more accessible for new hires, who no longer need to visit district headquarters to complete the fingerprinting process.
- Hosting onboarding clinics to assist new employees in completing hiring requirements quickly.
- Holding regular office hours with principals to support site-based hiring needs.
Additionally, the district has built a robust substitute pool, including over 300 fully credentialed substitutes who are ready to step into classroom roles on the first day of school if needed. SFUSD is also collaborating closely with the California Department of Education, which is pre-approving positions to expedite placement.
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