DEAN’S LIST
The following students made the dean’s list at their respective schools: Jordan Schommer of Oceanside at Minnesota State Mankato; Allyson Evers of Encinitas at the University of Hartford in Connecticut; Taliah McKinnon of Escondido at Aurora University in Illinois; Carter Kermott of La Costa at Mercer University in Georgia; Whitney Ulrich of San Diego at the University of Tampa; Ava Milanowski of San Marcos and David Foster and Alexandria Washington of Oceanside at Iowa State University; and Brianna Millican of San Diego, Grace Pollard of San Marcos, Neve Walker of Rancho Santa Fe and Greer Wetmore of Encinitas at Seton Hall University in New Jersey.
HONOR SOCIETY
Rebecca Goates of Encinitas was recently elected into The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, the nation’s oldest and most selective all-discipline collegiate honor society, at Texas Tech University.
WOMEN IN TECH
San Pasqual High School seniors Alice Kuznetsov and Alena Nguyen were recognized by the National Center for Women & Information Technology for their achievements in computing and technology. Kuznetsov earned a national honorable mention in the NCWIT Aspirations in Computing High School Awards, while Nguyen was named a regional award winner.
VISTA CHAMBER
The Vista Chamber of Commerce won two prestigious awards from the Western Association of Chamber Executives: Best Newsletter/Magazine (Small Chamber) for its quarterly Vista Magazine, and Outstanding Chamber Program for its Velocity Summer Internship Program.
STARS OF THE MONTH
The Encinitas Chamber of Commerce recognized the following students as stars of the month for February: Stefan Grossfeld of Canyon Crest Academy, Riley Platenberg of La Costa Canyon High School, Joel Perez of San Dieguito High School Academy, Lia Doaniass of Sunset High School and Gary Ying of Torrey Pines High School.
POWER GRANTS
San Diego Community Power, San Diego Foundation and Calpine Community Energy will award $600,000 in grants to local nonprofits to fund projects or programs that contribute to a sustainable future for the San Diego region. Proposed projects or programs must serve Community Power customers in Chula Vista, Encinitas, Imperial Beach, La Mesa, National City and San Diego as well as unincorporated communities in San Diego County.
FOOTBALL PARTNERSHIP
California Bank & Trust has started a multi-year commitment with San Diego Football Club as an elite Chrome Club Partner. The sponsorship also names CB&T as the official bank of the football club as the team gears up for its inaugural 2025 Major League Soccer season in San Diego.
MEMORY CARE
Senior Resource Group, LLC, a developer and operator of luxury senior living communities, has promoted Melissa Dillon to Vice President of Memory Care. Dillon was also recently recognized at the 2024 Memory Care Innovation Awards.
SEALS LACROSSE
The San Diego Seals have signed former Notre Dame standout Pat Kavanagh to a two-year contract. Kavanagh was named the winner of the 2024 Tewaaraton Award and led Notre Dame to a second straight national championship while scoring a career-high and team-leading 80 points. He was also named the Atlantic Coast Conference Offensive Player of the Year while earning All-America honors from the United State Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association and All-ACC accolades.
RESTAURANT DESIGNER
Michael Benson of Encinitas, president of the Southern California Restaurant Design Group, a subsidiary of Johnson-Lancaster, will serve as president of New Las Vegas Restaurant Design Group.
COOK VOLKSWAGEN
The service team at Herman Cook Volkswagen in Encinitas has earned the top ranking in the Pacific Region for the Volkswagen Customer Satisfaction Index in 2024 over 110 other dealers.
CZECH PUPPETS
Carlsbad Sister City Ambassadors recently brought Czech Republic puppeteers Jan and Votya to perform their children’s play, “The Magic Schoolbag,” at Magnolia Elementary School. The puppeteers flew 6,000 miles from Carlsbad’s sister city, Karlsovy Vary, Czech Republic, to perform in San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego and Carlsbad.
