SF Rising is the leading coalition member of College for All, a statewide campaign to make college free again at the University of California, California State University and community college level--including for undocumented and formerly incarcerated students--by taxing the ultra-wealthy. 

Up until the 1970s, we as Californians enshrined public higher education as a democratic right and made sure it was practically tuition-free. Since then, we’ve watched politicians give the wealthy tax breaks while cutting higher education funding and raising tuition--pushing more and more students deeper into debt. Their cuts especially hurt working-class students and students of color. We, the people, have had enough. Students, teachers, community organizations and labor unions are proposing a ballot measure to tax the wealthy and restore free universal public higher education to CA residents. 

The campaign, College for All, creates about $4 billion in new revenue for grants dedicated entirely to student aid by taxing the inheritances of the wealthiest 0.2% of California’s families. This proposal expands Cal Grant eligibility to more than 330,000 working-class students who don’t attend college directly from high school, are formerly incarcerated, or are undocumented students considered residents under AB130 (the California Dream Act of 2011). It also increases living expense aid for working-class students by 80% to help ease the burden of non-tuition costs such as books, housing, and food.

The campaign is currently working with labor partners and state assembly members to propose a bill in the state legislature to place this measure on the 2022 ballot. Students are mobilizing their peers to put pressure on these stakeholders and communicate the crisis they’re experiencing for simply wanting to advance their lives and the lives of their communities.

If you’re a student wanting to get involved with this campaign, please learn more about SF Students Rising.

All of us regardless of race and place or how long we’ve been here want to live in the best places for our families. That’s why every one of us must show up and participate in the Census—so our communities get the recognition, representation, and resources we deserve.

President Trump has actively worked to stop communities of color from voting and keep our communities in the dark about healthcare enrollment. He will do the same when it comes to the Census.

One powerful way to fight his racism and oppression is to participate in the Census and make sure your family, friends, and neighbors do too. When all of us count ourselves into the Census—as communities of color, immigrants, and young people—we get the resources and political representation we're due.

By standing together and making sure each and every one of us—whether Black or white, native or newcomer, Latinx or Asian, from 9 months to 99 years old—is counted, we can take California to the power of we. When we count ourselves in, we get our fair share of funding for our children's classrooms, health clinics, transportation, and jobs in our neighborhoods, and we ensure that each of us has an equal say in our democracy.

2020 is the year we count. This is about our entire communities showing up and declaring that we matter, that we count, that our communities deserve recognition, representation, and resources.

SF Rising and our affiliate organizations are part of the grassroots movement ensuring that our communities count in the Census through door-to-door outreach and events. The 2020 Census will be available online and through a paper form starting in March 2020.

Volunteer with us to make sure our community counts!

What’s New

We’re kicking off petition circulation to place the revised measure on the ballot, with an even bigger base of support than we had last time. This fall we will also launch a public education campaign to increase visibility, strengthen support and expand the army of activists that will lead us to victory in November 2020.

Join us to gather petition signatures! Check the box on the form below that says Schools and Communities First signature gathering.

Then, help power our campaign with a contribution.

About Schools and Communities First

No matter what we look like or where we come from most of us pitch in for each other and hope to leave things better off for those to come.

But today a handful of corporations undermine all of us. Corporations like Chevron, Google and Disney rake in record profits, while they refuse to contribute to the schools where our young people learn, the roads we drive on, the buses we take to work. Then they divide us against each other by blaming Black and brown people for our problems, hoping we won’t notice so they can continue to reap the benefits of our contributions while refusing to put in their share.

That’s why we’re supporting the Schools and Communities First initiative on the November 2020 ballot. When we vote it in, we will restore the resources we need for our communities by ensuring that everyone pitches in for each other in California, including the wealthiest corporations. This initiative will make history by making sure that corporations pay their fair share of commercial property taxes. This will generate over $800 million every year for San Francisco’s public schools and our general fund. We’re ready to win in 2020!

When everyone is all in for all of us, we make California a place we’re proud to call home with world-class schools and universities, healthcare, affordable housing, and shared resources our families need. When we join together across racial differences to change the rules, we’ll restore the resources to truly educate all of our kids and truly support all of our families.

Learn more.