Category: Education

By Madison Beveridge / Point Loma-OB Monthly / June 11, 2026

Noel Pomerleau of Point Loma High School, the San Diego Unified School District’s 2026 High School Teacher of the Year, teaches yoga, physical education and human body systems and has served in a variety of other roles, including coach, adviser and department chair.

Pomerleau, an educator for 14 years, has spent her entire career at Point Loma High.

“Students at this age often need the most support, and I love helping them understand how they learn best so they can move into the next phase of their lives with confidence,” she said.

The district annually honors award-winning teachers and other staff members at the “Stars in Education” event, which this year was May 20.

Pomerleau says the High School Teacher of the Year award is special to her because it sums up all she loves about her school.

by Scott Hopkins / Times of San Diego / June 3, 2026 

The sun shone brightly as the 100th graduating class of Point Loma High School was presented with diplomas during a 5 p.m. ceremony on May 28.

But along with the solar glow came mischievous gusty winds that sent some caps flying off the heads of Class of 2026 members.

While it was the final event for the 383 students, it was also the end of a 34-year career for Principal David Jaffe who was applauded enthusiastically by his final class.

By Katie Anastas / KPBS /  May 28, 2026 

On an April morning in downtown San Diego, Elizabeth Johnson and a half-dozen other parents with children in the San Diego Unified School District gathered to protest.

Johnson stuck letters onto a piece of cardstock to spell “teachers over tech.” Other signs read “less screens, more humans” and “ed tech is the biggest grift in education.”

The group is part of the local chapter of Schools Beyond Screens.

They stood in front of the Manchester Grand Hyatt outside of a sold-out conference, where school district leaders, college presidents, tech executives and startup founders were speaking about the latest in artificial intelligence and educational technology.

Johnson and a growing number of other parents are asking the district to reevaluate the role technology plays in its classrooms. They’re concerned about kids’ learning, attention spans, eyesight, privacy and social skills.

A resolution on the issue could go before the school board as soon as next month.

Winners Part of C-SPAN’s Annual Student Cam Competition

by Dave Schwab / Peninsula Beacon – Times of San Diego / May 27, 2026

Correia Middle School students were honored for their prize-winning documentaries in C-SPAN’s annual Student Cam competition.

C-SPAN, a public affairs network created in 1979 as a nonprofit public service, and Cox Communications run the annual Student Cam competition, which presents awards and recognizes winning students, grades 6-through-12, and their teachers, who serve as the StudentCam advisers.

In recognition of the United States’ 250th anniversary, C-SPAN, in cooperation with its cable and satellite television partners, challenged middle- and high-school students across the country to examine the enduring power and relevance of the Declaration of Independence.

For the challenge, students had one of two options: They could explore the Declaration of Independence’s influence on a key moment from America’s 250-year history, or focus on the Declaration of Independence’s impact on them or their community.

Through this project-based learning experience, students competing in the StudentCam competition conduct in-depth research, critical analysis, and original storytelling to explore matters of both personal and national importance.

On May 19 at Correia Middle School, Rachel Katz of C-SPAN recognized prize-winning students for their work.

by Ernie McCray

Attending a
Community College league of California
Trustees Conference
with Maria, my querida,
a trustee,
I happened upon
a session that very much interested me,
one regarding
protecting campuses
from ICE
who a while back
became a concern
to Santa Barbara Community College
when agents, nevertheless,
although they didn’t harass or arrest
any students,

By Lynne Miller

Ocean Beach Historical Society on May 21 hosted a celebration for Larry Zeiger’s 50-year anniversary of Musical Theater at Point Loma High School. “Gotta Sing, Gotta Dance” became a rite of passage for seniors.  Larry Zieger, often known as ‘Zeiger’, sometimes known as ‘Larmo’, moved to California and got his Masters in Film at San Diego State University.  He applied to the PhD program at USC, but luckily for us, the L.A. smog and the policies at USC changed Mr. Zeiger’s plans.

He decided to listen to the voices of professors and film experts who encouraged him to become a teacher. He stepped into the role of teacher at a time when Required Courses like English could be created, pitched and approved.  Larry offered credited English courses at PLHS  that taught film.  Students watched films, read screenplays and books about film production, wrote their own play, sometimes wrote songs, made the sets, learned to sing and dance and act, and then they rehearsed and rehearsed. Their marketing resulted in sell-out crowds and eventually to nationwide acclaim.

Zeiger’s presentation last week included a slide show that included each graduating class, from the first performance without a stage or auditorium to his 2007 swan song in a beautiful theater now labeled The Larry Zeiger Performing Arts Center.

Thursday, May 21, 2026, at 7:00 pm, at 1984 Sunset Cliffs Blvd., OB Joyfull, the Ocean Beach Historical Society presents: Gotta Sing – Gotta Dance! with Larry Zeiger.

Coming up is the 50th Anniversary of the first Gotta Sing Gotta Dance production at Point Loma High. Over 3,000 PLHS alums participated in this program, and many have gone on to become actors in theater, film, on Broadway – and even won Academy Awards and Tony Awards. And many have become famous musicians as well as doctors, lawyers, teachers, politicians, and lots more – but they all still sing and dance!

by Scott Hopkins / Times of San Diego / May 19, 2026

A first-time occurrence of any kind is big news at a 101-year-old school and Point Loma High’s boys volleyball team accomplished the feat May 16.

Playing in the San Diego CIF Div. V finals, the Pointers defeated Hoover High 3-0 to win the school’s first volleyball title.

The Pointers entered the playoffs as a No. 4 seed with a first-round bye. Next was a match against No. 5 seed Southwest of El Centro. The Pointers defeated them 3-0 before winning 3-1 in a huge match at No. 1 seed Del Lago Academy, sending them on to the finals against the No. 2-seeded Cardinals.

Both the Pointers and Cardinals had to travel to Oceanside’s MiraCosta Community College, site of the finals. But the Pointers arrived ready for action, led by head coach Ethan Phung and assistant Justin Phung.

By Michael Chen / 10News / May 14, 2026

A 16-year-old San Diego teen is on the island of Saipan distributing supplies — many of them donated by ABC 10News viewers — a month after a super typhoon devastated islands near Guam.

Devi Balachandra, a junior at High Tech High International, spoke via Zoom from central Saipan, part of the U.S. territory of the Northern Mariana Islands.

Super Typhoon Sinlaku made landfall a month ago, destroying and damaging thousands of homes across the islands. Balachandra, who was born in Saipan, was first interviewed in late April as she helped launch an online fundraiser and donation drive.

by Scott Hopkins / Times of San Diego /  May 11, 2026

Imagine this: It’s a hot August day in 2029 at Ocean Beach. The 72-degree water is filled with swimmers. Lifeguards perched inside the Santa Monica St. tower spot a distant swimmer, waving their arms in a frantic call for help.

A lifeguard rushes out of the tower to assist the swimmer, grabbing a float tank and fins before running to the water.

Before the lifeguard has a chance to put their fins on, a drone rises above the tower and propels straight for the drowning swimmer. Once overhead, the drone releases a flotation device, which the panicked swimmer immediately grabs onto. Meanwhile, the lifeguard dispatched is still swimming out through the breakers to the rescue.

Soon, this type of rescue could become a reality, that is, if three Point Loma High senior engineering students have their way.

High school students Noa McKinney, Elyjah Rodrigues, and Peter DeSalvo are now hard at work developing a working drone model as part of their senior project, under the tutelage of teacher J. Michael Tritchler.

By Arturo Castañares / La Prensa San Diego / April 29, 2026 

In the race for San Diego City Council’s 8th District, one candidate stands out as uniquely UNQUALIFIED to run for higher office: Antonio Martinez.

Martinez has served on the San Ysidro School Districts Board of Trustees since December 2012, but has also run and lost twice for the same San Diego City Council seat he is running for again this year. He lost twice to Vivian Moreno, in 2018 and 2022, and is now running when Moreno is termed out of office.

District 8 includes the San Diego communities of San Ysidro, Otay Mesa, Ocean View Hills, Barrio Logan, Logan Heights, and Sherman Heights.

Maybe serving on a local school board for 14 years would seem like a good background to run for higher office, but the San Ysidro School District is currently under financial distress and has certified that it may not be able to meet its current year and next two years’ obligations to pay teachers and staff.