The District of San Francisco is part of the International Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools - commonly known as the De La Salle Christian Brothers, or Christian Brothers. The District, founded in San Francisco in 1868, shares in the Institute's mission of conducting schools and cooperating in creating educational communities inspired by the vision and traditions of Saint John Baptist de La Salle, founder of the Christian Brothers. Our schools are Catholic schools, based on core principles that characterize them as uniquely Lasallian. Their educational policies are centered on the young, designed to prepare them to take their place in society, and characterized by the determination to make the means of salvation available through a quality education and by an explicit proclamation of Jesus Christ.

The District of San Francisco includes the entire West Coast of the United States. In the province, the Brothers conduct Saint Mary's College of California, ten high schools, one middle school, four community-based educational centers for young people and adults, a retreat and conference center, and a recovery facility for adult victims of substance abuse. In the 2000-2001 school year, over 9,000 students, more than half of them Catholic, attend District schools (total includes only undergraduates at Saint Mary's College). Recognizing an interdependence with other districts and regions of the Institute, the District has developed partnerships with Brothers and Lasallians in other parts of the world, particularly in Asia and Africa, through the assignment of Brothers to ministries outside the District, providing the services of Lasallian Partners, and sharing financial resources and expertise.