Press Release Details
Press Release Message
San Francisco (January 28, 2026) - The San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) is proud to celebrate the 10-year anniversary of the African American Achievement and Leadership Initiative (AAALI), marking a decade of intentional action to improve educational experiences and outcomes for African American students across the district.
Launched in 2015, AAALI represents a sustained, districtwide commitment to addressing long-standing inequities in opportunity and achievement. Over the past 10 years, the initiative has grown into a comprehensive, coordinated system of support rooted in culturally responsive practice, family partnership, and high expectations for African American students. AAALI addresses persistent inequities in opportunity through its work to engage and empower African American students and families, coordinate comprehensive supports, ensure culturally responsive and rigorous instruction, and advance accountability for African American student outcomes.
“Marking 10 years is not just a milestone. It is a recommitment to partnership, accountability, and to the belief that when African American students are known, affirmed, challenged, and supported, they thrive,” said SFUSD Superintendent Dr. Maria Su. “Through the African American Achievement and Leadership Initiative, SFUSD remains steadfast in building the conditions where Black brilliance is not only recognized, but fully realized.”
Honoring the Roots of the Initiative
The origins of AAALI trace back to 2013, when then-Superintendent Richard Carranza convened a team to examine African American student outcomes and chart a new, more coherent districtwide strategy. In May 2015, the San Francisco Board of Education unanimously reinforced this commitment by adopting a resolution affirming the achievement and success of African American students and calling for coordinated support, transparency, and accountability.
To implement this work, SFUSD created a dedicated leadership role and appointed alumnus Landon Dickey in January 2015 as Special Assistant to the Superintendent. This marked AAALI’s shift from vision to sustained action, rooted in partnership with students, families, educators, and community organizations.
Ten Years of Action and Impact
Over the past decade, AAALI has developed into a PreK-12 ecosystem. Through collaborative programming, AAALI supports equitable access to high-quality instruction, cultural identity development, leadership development, wellness, family partnership and community engagement that benefits all students, while intentionally addressing opportunity gaps experienced by African American students. Signature efforts include the African American Parent Advisory Council, Black Star Rising, Mastering Cultural Identity, PITCH, Each and Every Student by Name, Saturday School Learning Labs, and Summer Learning Institutes.
Collectively, these efforts represent a coordinated strategy that improves student engagement, experience, and outcomes. District data and program evaluation indicate that students participating in AAALI-supported programming demonstrate stronger engagement, improved on-track indicators, higher rates of course completion and credit attainment, and increased persistence toward graduation. In fact, among African American boys, students enrolled in AAALI’s Mastering Cultural Identity program were about 14 percentage points more likely to remain in SFUSD than similar peers who did not participate, with 93% of MCI students staying in the district compared to 77% of non-participants (Dee & Pyne, 2023; summarized by California Education Partners, 2025).
AAALI has also contributed to meaningful improvements in school climate. Students report stronger relationships with adults and a greater sense of belonging. These conditions support attendance, motivation, and academic persistence.
Beyond individual outcomes, AAALI has helped drive system-level change across SFUSD. Over 10 years, the initiative has strengthened district capacity in culturally responsive pedagogy, healing-centered practices, student voice, family partnership, and the use of disaggregated data to guide improvement and accountability.
Looking Ahead
As AAALI enters its second decade, the initiative continues under the leadership of Executive Director Laticia Erving with a renewed commitment to students, families, educators, and community partners.
“This work is about changing conditions, not fixing children,” said Executive Director Laticia Erving. “It’s a liberatory commitment rooted in love, high expectations, and the belief that Black brilliance already exists. Our responsibility is to create the conditions for it to thrive.”
The Initiative will continue to expand culturally relevant curriculum and instruction, strengthen academic rigor across PreK-12, deepen connections between schools and families, establish racial affinity spaces that support belonging and retention, and advance learning environments free from bias and anti-Blackness.
Honoring Educators, Partners, and Champions
SFUSD and the African American Achievement and Leadership Initiative honor the educators, AAALI staff past and present, community-based organizations, and fiscal partners whose leadership and commitment have sustained this work. Teachers, counselors, administrators, advisors, and support staff across the District have advocated for equity, championed culturally responsive practice, and refused to accept inequity as inevitable. Their contributions are reflected in the lives of the students and families served by AAALI.
We are especially grateful for the leadership and vision of former Superintendent Richard Carranza, AAALI’s founding director Landon Dickey, and the public leaders who championed the Board resolution that launched this work, including former Board of Education Commissioners Shamann Walton and Matt Haney, and former Board President Dr. Emily Murase. We also acknowledge the continued stewardship of subsequent SFUSD superintendents, Myong Leigh, Dr. Vincent Matthews, Dr. Matt Wayne, and Dr. Maria Su, whose leadership sustained and strengthened this initiative over time.
Finally, we honor the enduring partnership of the African American Parent Advisory Council, the San Francisco Alliance of Black School Educators, the San Francisco NAACP, SPARK SF Public Schools, and our philanthropic partners, whose collaboration has been essential to advancing equity and opportunity for Black students and families in San Francisco.
###