In a development reflecting escalating national tensions between major school districts, Congress, parents, and communities over parental rights, curriculum content, and local governance, San Francisco Schools Superintendent Maria Su informed parents in an email this morning that she received a request to appear before the House of Representatives Committee on Education and Workforce at a hearing in Washington on June 10, 2026.
The hearing, “Breaking Trust: Attacks on Parental Rights, Inappropriate Content, and Legal Abuses in America’s Schools,” is being convened by Committee Chairman Tim Walberg (R-MI). Also invited was Dr. Aaron Spence, Superintendent of Loudoun County Public Schools. The local advocacy group Friends of Lowell intends to send its own delegation to D.C. to ensure its voices are heard.
Superintendent Su said she plans to use the opportunity to highlight SFUSD’s recent progress on student outcomes, curriculum modernization, and district operations. While initial congressional requests for testimony are voluntary, refusal frequently results in subpoenas.
That is exactly what happened with Chicago Public Schools CEO Dr. Macquline King. After King declined the committee’s invitations, Chairman Walberg issued a formal subpoena on May 13, 2026, compelling her to testify at the June 10 hearing.
The full committee hearing is scheduled for 10:15 a.m. ET on Wednesday, June 10, 2026, in Room 2175 of the Rayburn House Office Building. The hearing will be live-streamed here for public viewing.
The Voice of San Francisco reached out to Superintendent Su and the Board of Education for further comment but the SFUSD response was that the announcement was all that they were sharing at this time.
The congressional appearance comes as SFUSD faces mounting local criticism and legal challenges over its controversial “Voices” ethnic studies curriculum. Over the past several weeks, legal action has been taken alleging multiple state and federal violations, including:
- Lack of open meetings and notifications under the California Brown Act
- Lack of independent review for Voices and rigged committees
- Misappropriation of taxpayer funds
- Civil rights violations of SFUSD students
- SFUSD employee domination of curriculum adoption
The advocacy group ConnectedSF relayed that more than 300 San Francisco parents have submitted letters urging the Board of Education to halt the adoption of the “liberated ethnic studies” program, which critics say prioritizes political activism over genuine education about cultures and history.
Voices faces criticism for reducing diverse cultures to broad categories narrowly focused on themes of oppression, resistance, and activism. Parents and members of the public report difficulty accessing the full curriculum, and elements such as the “wheel of power” framework are expected to face court challenges on civil rights and discrimination grounds.
Funding of the program has also come under scrutiny. The $7.3 million for Voices comes from the Public Education Enrichment Fund (PEEF), which voters approved in 2004 and 2014 specifically to enrich extracurricular programs in arts, music, sports, and gifted education. The fund’s oversight council determined that diverting these dollars to a two-semester ethnic studies mandate, which does not satisfy University of California social studies requirements, is a misappropriation. The Board of Education overrode the council’s recommendation and approved the spending anyway.
Friends of Lowell has formally asked Mayor Daniel Lurie to intervene under city charter authority to ensure the board’s actions are legally compliant.
