COLLEGE GRADUATES
The following students recently graduated from the University of Georgia: Alexander Primo of Carlsbad, Meaghan Perry of Oceanside, Grace Mines of Rancho Santa Fe and Alfred Quan of San Diego.
RISING STARS
The Encinitas Chamber of Commerce recently celebrated four high school seniors from the San Dieguito Union High School District as December Rising Stars: Joely Klaristenfeld of Canyon Crest Academy, Shiri Adato of La Costa Canyon High School, Yanira Morales of San Dieguito Academy and Jenny (Jiwon) Ryu of Torrey Pines High School.
POP WARNER
Oceanside Pop Warner received the Pop Warner Community Star Award by Pop Warner Little Scholars, the nation’s youth football and cheer and dance organization. The award recognizes the program for exemplifying Pop Warner’s core values of community service and impact.
STUDENT ARTISTS
Two students from Carlsbad-based Pacific Ridge School earned countywide honors in the digital art category for the 2025 Youth Art Month Exhibition, sponsored by the California Art Education Association: senior Nico Bisconti, who took first place, and senior Hayden Donahue, who earned second place. Other students who also have artwork on display include Gia Gutierrez, Samantha Smith, Ethan Jochelson, Judith Curiel, Jaime Aharoni, Coco Ye, Owen Hughes, Luca Collins, Jackson Winters, Ethan Yi, Audel Mobasher, Mathew Shore, Maggie Singer and Michael Fredericks. The exhibition is open to the public until Jan. 11 at the Poway Center for the Performing Arts.
GOLDEN BELL
The Escondido Union High School District was selected as a winner of the 2025 California School Boards Association Golden Bell Award in the professional learning category for its innovative Arc of Learning and Studio Cycle programs, which contributed to a 12% increase in English Language Arts and a 6.5% increase in math proficiency districtwide.
COLLEGE CARE PACKAGES
The Alumni Association of The Grauer School, based in Encinitas, prepared care packages for each student in last year’s graduating class during the fourth annual College Care Package Party. Alumni parents donated items including microwave popcorn, hot chocolate, cake-in-a-mug, Rice Krispies treats, warm socks, Starbucks gift cards, Emergen-C packets and granola bars. Class of 2025 parents and staff assembled the packages with personalized notes from teachers and staff in each box before mailing them to campuses nationwide and in Canada.
CLIMATE LEADER
The Solana Center for Environmental Innovation in Encinitas received the 2025 Climate Leader Award during the Third Annual Regional Climate Recap on Dec. 4 by the San Diego Climate Collaborative.
BABY GIRAFFE
Mawe, a Masai giraffe at the San Diego Zoo, welcomed her first calf on Nov. 30. Guests can now see the mom and her calf bonding in the maternity area in the giraffe habitat in the Urban Jungle area of the zoo. Both Mawe and the baby’s father, Chifu, were also born at the zoo. The new calf joins another young giraffe, Lemayian, who was born in July.
ENCINITAS PROJECT
Formerly known as Patrons of Encinitas Parks, The Encinitas Project has officially launched its expanded mission and new website, TheEncinitasProject.org, to serve as a supporter of the city’s Parks, Recreation and Cultural Arts Department. The non-profit is kicking off its mission with the Senior Scholarship Challenge, an initiative to ensure Encinitas seniors can access classes and activities. Every dollar donated will be matched up to $5,000, for a total campaign goal of $10,000, until Dec. 31.
POKER FUNDRAISER
The La Costa 35 Athletic Club raised over $500,000 at its 14th Annual Texas Hold ‘Em Poker Tournament last month to benefit the Boys and Girls Clubs of Carlsbad. The event featured 17 poker tables with nearly 160 participants.
NEURON CLINIC
The Neuron Clinic has installed the NeuroLF dedicated brain PET system at the San Marcos location. The system serves as the cornerstone for the clinic’s newly established Alzheimer’s and Dementia Care Center. The clinic is the first independent neurology practice in the nation to own and operate a NeuroLF system, which makes it possible to perform in-office, dedicated brain PET imaging – a critical tool for the early and accurate detection of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.
