San Francisco public schools are once again making headlines—this time for redefining what it means to pass. Under a new “Grading for Equity” policy unveiled by Superintendent Maria Su, students who score as low as 21 out of 100 on tests will now receive passing grades.

Yes, you read that right. A 21% is now considered a D.

The plan, revealed at the tail end of a 25-slide PowerPoint during a board meeting, caught many by surprise. Even more shocking: Su implemented it without seeking formal approval from the San Francisco Board of Education. According to local reports, board staffers admitted they have no authority to stop it.

The radical grading policy will go into effect this fall across 14 high schools. Among its sweeping changes: an 80% score earns an A, a 41% gets you a C, and students can retake final exams as many times as needed. Meanwhile, homework and weekly quizzes won’t count toward final grades at all.

The change follows a massive $110 million budget shortfall within the San Francisco Unified School District, though officials haven’t directly linked the grading shift to the financial crisis.

Critics are already blasting the move as a social experiment gone wrong. Parents have voiced concern that students will lose motivation, especially with no homework requirements and repeated opportunities to retake final exams until they pass. The biggest losers may be high-performing students whose class rankings—and access to scholarships—could take a hit under the new curve.

The “Grading for Equity” label has already been attached to failed experiments elsewhere. In California’s Dublin school district, a similar initiative awarded students 50% credit simply for making a “reasonable attempt” on an assignment. That plan was so controversial it was eventually scrapped.

But San Francisco appears ready to double down. Despite prior backlash over changes like eliminating merit-based admissions at top-performing Lowell High School, district leadership seems committed to the ideology of equal outcomes over academic standards.

Teachers can technically opt out of using the new grading rubric this fall, but students and parents will have no such choice. Critics argue it’s another example of top-down education reform that prioritizes politics over performance.

And while the city’s leadership claims it’s all about helping disadvantaged students, opponents argue this new approach will only lower the bar for everyone—while doing nothing to improve actual learning.

With training for teachers set to begin in August, and test standards dramatically weakened, it’s no wonder parents and education advocates are asking a hard question:

Is this about equity—or is it about hiding failure?

In the end, passing students who get just 21% right isn’t equity. It’s surrender.