$50 Million Grant, Downtown Center Discussed at Board of Trustees Meeting
Acting Chancellor David Yee says the college is still in running for the Boundless SF grant.
The Board of Trustees meeting on Nov. 5 highlighted a range of topics including updates around the Boundless San Francisco grant by Lever for Change, a nonprofit organization. The award for the three top contenders will receive up to $50 million each, and City College is vying for one of those spots.
The meeting centered on the future of the Downtown Center, which the grant could help turn into a middle college, as students and trustees pressed the board to act on the site while students raised concerns about dropped enrollment.
Upon the board’s return to open session at 7:47 p.m., the current state and future plans for Downtown Center was one of the items mentioned first.
Acting Chancellor David Yee addressed how the school is on the way to the second level in the running for the Boundless San Francisco grant.
“We would also provide programs for students to attain certification or an AS degree … and also being able to serve the adult population in terms of employment and jobs. That’s what that grant would help establish,” he said.
Associated Students Mission Center President Lydia Hernandez urged to the board to reopen this spring 2027 for essential noncredit English as a second language classes and move the new classes to the Downtown Center.
“Do not leave the future of downtown education on hold while waiting for external grants or deals to settle,” Hernandez said.
Trustee Vick Chung stressed to the rest of the board that the board meeting item about Downtown Center needs to be an action item versus an information item so the board may be empowered to act.
“It feels as though if it doesn’t come back as an action item in December then it will ultimately be forgotten. Do we even have plans to have this on the agenda as an action item for December?” Chung urgently asked.
Student Chancellor Sofia Flores Guevara said students have been randomly dropped from classes during midterms. Interim Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Clint Cowden and Guevara are working together to investigate.
