What Parents Should Know About SFUSD’s Policy 5023
In 2021, San Francisco Innovate parent leaders tackled an important issue impacting parents of English Learner students with Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) in the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD).
A backlog of translation and interpretation services for families of students with IEPs resulted in many parents having to wait months to access information about their child’s IEP in a language they understood. Parent Leaders took action by working with district leaders in SFUSD to design Policy 5023: a translation and interpretation policy that was unanimously passed by the school board on Tuesday, March 1st 2022.
SFUSD’s Policy 5023 is a major step forward for the community, as it recognizes the importance of providing essential tools for non-English speaking parents and guardians to actively participate in their child’s education.
Parents know their children best and it is important that they understand their students’ needs in order to support them. This policy not only proves what’s possible when school districts welcome parent leadership and engage parents as partners, it also empowers non-English speaking communities to understand how to advocate for their students’ rights. With SFUSD’s Policy 5023, IEP meetings are no longer limited to one hour, ensuring parents have ample time to discuss and understand contents of the IEP documents.
Get involved by clicking the button below to contact our Community Organizer, Belen, and see our list of additional parent resources.
Understanding the SFUSD Translation and Interpretation Policy
April 2024
On Tuesday, March 1, 2022, the San Francisco Unified School District adopted Policy 5023 to increase accessibility for translation and interpretation services in IEP meetings, Board meetings, Special Education Documents and more. Parents in California have the right to translation and interpretation services if 15% or more students speak a language other than English.
Learn key aspects families should know about SFUSD’s Policy 5023.
How is SFUSD’s Policy 5023 different from California’s law on language interpretation & translation accessibility?
The Board recognizes that parents/guardians who speak a language other than English must have the opportunity to work with schools in respectful partnership and to help their children succeed in school. (Education Code 51100)
District Translation Requirements
This Board Policy applies to the San Francisco Unified School District and the County Office of Education.
The San Francisco Unified School District serves a population fluent in 52 distinct languages. English Learner students make up 28% of SFUSD’s student population and 13% represent Students with Special Needs. According to the California Department Education in 2022-23, only two out of ten students with special needs were at grade level in English Language Arts (ELA). This is why it is so crucial for parents of English Learner students with an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) to have access to resources and materials to support their child’s learning a language they understand. If parents do not have timely access to important IEP meeting documents, that has a direct impact on their ability to support their children in school.
Key Definitions
- Translation is the transfer of the meaning of written text from one language to another.
- Interpretation is oral communication between two or more people who do not speak the same language.
State Law
California state law requires school districts to provide translation and interpretation services if 15 percent or more of the students enrolled speak a language other than English. SFUSD’s Policy 5023 distinguishes itself by establishing a standard for the rights of parents and families concerning translation and interpretation services, particularly tailored to support English Learner students with IEP’s.
- District-wide documents will be translated into the district’s 6 major languages: Arabic, Chinese, Filipino, Samoan, Spanish, and Vietnamese
- School-wide documents will be translated into languages spoken by 15% or more of the school population
- At the beginning of each school year, parents/guardians will get electronic information about their translation and interpretation rights
Examples of Documents That Are Translated
- Information about special education matters
- Report cards and other academic progress reports;
- Information about discipline and the disciplinary process
- Requests for parent/guardian permission for student participation in district/school sponsored programs and activities
- Promotional announcements given to students that contain information about school and district activities for which notice is needed to participate in such activities (e.g., testing, extracurriculars,activities requiring an application, parent-teacher conferences, open houses)
- Parent/guardian handbooks
- Documents concerning enrollment or registration
- Documents concerning academic options and planning
- Documents concerning screening procedures requesting a student’s language background, a parent/guardian’s preferred language of communication, and the process for refusing all or only specific EL services
- Information related to public health and safety; and any other written information describing the rights and responsibilities of parents/guardians or students and the benefits and services available to parents/guardians and students.
Written materials should be translated and provided to parents in advance of meetings, especially important documents like Individualized Education Plan (IEP) and assessments. These documents can be complex and require parents/guardians to read and understand the documents to participate fully in IEP meetings.
How Can Parents Help SFUSD’s Policy 5023 Succeed?
Join the movement with Innovate. Contact Belen to learn how to get involved in parent leaders’ language interpretation and translation accessibility campaign impacting parents of English Learner students with IEPs.
Spread the word – Share this one-pager with a parent in SFUSD.