“I didn’t always know I wanted to be a doctor. Actually, I hadn’t really considered medicine until my sister was diagnosed,” says 17-year-old Natalie Martinez. Natalie and her family are Carpinteria locals. On the weekend, they enjoy hiking the Franklin Trail and visiting family in Ventura. But their lives were upended when Natalie’s 13-year-old sister, […]
This week I met up with Emily Stone, an MUS alumna and current graduate student at the University of Oxford. After earning her bachelor’s degree at Barnard College, Columbia University studying Environment Sustainability and Human Rights, Emily made the move to the U.K. to pursue her passion for conservation science. In our conversation, Emily introduced […]
Dear Montecito! I miss you! I can’t wait to be home for Spring Break next week! I’m getting ready to finish my second year at the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami, and a lot has happened since the last time we spoke about my single “Oblivious,” which at the time was […]
Dear Montecito, I am writing you from a London Heathrow flight bound to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York. From there I will transfer to Dallas Fort Worth before finally touching down in Santa Barbara where I haven’t been for 13 months. Stay off the roads tonight, people – I’m going straight to […]
“I hadn’t imagined myself working in the nonprofit sector when I started college,” says Joan Curran. Joan was a freshman at the University of San Francisco when she began her federal work study and – as she would later realize – began her career. Joan joined the team at a San Francisco–based nonprofit called Career […]
Who doesn’t love a full circle moment? Today we have yet another wonderful featuree who is an alumna of the Mission Scholars program. Inspired by her time in the program and her upbringing here in Santa Barbara, Kristine Carrillo is a current senior at Brown University where she studies International and Public Affairs and Education […]
New schedule, new workload, new classes and more. Moving from the end of high school to the beginning of freshman year is one of the biggest transitions a student will experience, even when they are as college-ready as Annika Wagner. Last year Annika graduated from Dos Pueblos High School with a 4.85 GPA, 34 college […]
Today’s topic: future physicians and an enviable education. Santa Barbara’s tourists dream about moving here for the great food, beaches, and shops. But as locals we know that one of the best things about living in Santa Barbara is the education available to our children. From world-class extracurriculars at our elementary schools to a country-topping […]
December is a festive season. A month of family. A month of moderate weight gain. But for many featurees of the Dear Montecito column, December is first and foremost the end of the semester. To reflect on the end of term, we are reading a piece by Osiel Ocampo. Osiel was born and raised in […]
You know what keeps me awake at night? My stream of consciousness! Ba dum tss! If you’re not laughing, just know that a joke like that would kill at a cognitive psychology conference. But don’t worry, you’re not missing out because this week I am bringing the psychology conference to us with a little help […]
Growing up, moving out, heartache, and more. To quote singer-songwriter Dawson Fuss in his 2023 release: “When will these growing pains give my bones a break?” We last spoke to Dawson in April of 2021 about his musical beginnings. Two years later, the Teen Star and Cate School alum is now a sophomore at the […]
About a year ago I published a top 10 list: The Do’s and Don’ts of College According to Santa Barbara Alumni. The advice I received above and beyond anything else? If you have the chance to study abroad, do it. As I close my fifth and final year in Scotland, the place I moved to […]
There’s a new club in town! The Commission on Culture, Arts, and Joy Justice (CCAJJ) is a new student government associated organization at UCSB founded by PhD student Charlene Macharia. This week I spoke to Macharia to find out what it means to do creative activism and how social justice activists can keep progress moving […]
What does it mean to retain innocence in the age of information? This week, 22-year-old Daian Martinez answers this question for us. Daian is a talented young writer whose recent work as a Raab Writing Fellow at UCSB explored the big and little things that affect today’s youngest generation. After seeing her zine “In the […]
In the Dear Montecito column, we have hosted writers, musicians, and filmmakers. This week, we are branching into a new medium with Lauryn Rousseau, a 2021 graduate of UCSB and the owner of Kawaii Klaws, a boutique nail art studio. Q. How did you get interested in nail art? A. My cousin was really into […]
“You don’t have to be a scientist to love and protect the ocean,” says marine biologist Scott Simon. Simon is the director at UCSB’s teaching aquarium, the Research Experience and Education Facility (or REEF for short). Although used as a lab facility by the university, the REEF is primarily devoted to public outreach and serves […]
Most high schools in California require around 60 hours of community service in order to graduate. What does it mean when a student does 40 times that amount? Eighteen-year-old Annika Wagner is a 2023 graduate of Dos Pueblos High School. During her junior high and high school years, she completed more than 2,000 hours of […]
Dear Montecito, Welcome to the 99th edition of Dear Montecito! Even though this column was started three years ago, I have been looking forward to our 100th edition practically since Day 1. It is not unpopular to say 100 is a very nice number. It is round and also somehow circular in that it encourages […]
This week I spoke to Cassidy Miller, one of the publicity coordinators of UCSB’s Students for Reproductive Justice committee, to learn more about how students promote health care advocacy and reproductive rights on campus. Q. What does Students for Reproductive Justice do? A. Students for Reproductive Justice is a subcommittee of the UCSB Associated Students’ […]
Deep in the Ojai Valley hills sits Shepherdess Land & Livestock Co., along with their youngest recruit, Crane School alumna Regan Williams. Regan had a long-standing interest in farming and working with animals, recently picking up classes in holistic land management. But it wasn’t until Regan met her new boss Cole Bush, founder of Shepherdess […]
I have a real interest in how UCSB organizations support student life. When I scheduled a meeting with the Basic Needs Committee chair Tessa Veksler, I expected to hear about all my pet favorites – food bank initiatives, menstrual health events, etc. But as the academic term comes to a close, Tessa reflected more broadly […]
This week I am joined by the co-editor of UCSB’s WORD Magazine, Makenna Gaeta. As a junior studying Communications and Journalism, Makenna reflects on her transition into a leadership role at WORD and what it means to be in creative control. Q. What is WORD Magazine? A. WORD is a completely student-run arts and culture […]
One of my favorite types of articles are the industry-insider sort of stuff. What do experts know that we don’t know? Unfortunately, I couldn’t get an expert this week, so I asked my friend Jakob Hammer to join me instead. (Only kidding!) Please enjoy our light-hearted conversation about the behind-the-scenes of culinary school. Q. You […]
Twenty-year-old Isa Johanson is a current sophomore at UC Berkeley and an alumna of MUS, Santa Barbara Junior High, and Santa Barbara High School. From her first Earth Day and subsequent internship with Kathi King of Community Environmental Council to the 2018 mudslides, Isa describes the influence growing up in Montecito had on her current […]
Dear Montecito, What do journalists and academics have in common? They know how to ask good questions. As I begin to write my master’s thesis, I have been thinking a lot about the idea of the good question. After all, a thesis is itself essentially just a good question. And as I begin this process, […]
The first time I spoke to Clare Ogle we were sitting across from each other in high school AP Biology. Four and a half years later, Clare is a graduate of University of Washington in Seattle, where she recently completed her major in marine biology with a minor in Arctic studies. She now puts that […]
Founded in 2013, UCSB’s Zero Waste Committee was formed to address the university’s goal to reduce waste and redesign their consumption. As a national leader in sustainability initiatives and awareness, the university’s goals are in part maintained by the Zero Waste Committee, represented today by public outreach coordinator Caroline Bancroft. In our interview, Caroline talked […]
Santa Barbara’s young art scene emphasizes identity, voice, and change. All three can be found in the work of 21-year-old Isa Saldivar. Working their way out of the foster care system, Isa came to Santa Barbara as a queer, Chican@ outsider – a perspective that continues to inform their art. In our conversation, Isa reflects […]
Ask me what our greatest Montecito exports are and I’ll say: Spanish-style tile, Pierre Lafond wine cake, and talent! Although born and raised in Los Angeles, today’s Dear Montecito feature has strong roots in Montecito that have inspired her to take up theater. Eleven-year-old Sadie Brickman Reynolds grew up hearing about her mother’s career in […]
Dear Montecito, I took a walk on Miramar Beach on January 6, about 20 hours after the first of the storm system had left our local area. Now in general I find writing about the beach to be a tricky thing. Perhaps because it is well-worn territory or simply too easy to become sentimental. Perhaps […]
It is always a pleasure to host artists in the Dear Montecito column. I feel that their stories and reflections help ground us, particularly when the current event landscape feels so urgent and so claustrophobic. As the opening to our 2023 column, I wanted to invite a young writer to use this space to reflect […]
‘Twas the trail blazing campaign, called Walk Montecito! Seeking funds from donors, to make the project complet-o, With leadership from Geoff and our good friend Abe, We are grateful to the team at Bucket Brigade! In April of 2022, the Santa Barbara Bucket Brigade launched a campaign to address one of the ongoing health and […]
Early career singer-songwriter Makena Tate attributes her confidence on stage to her Santa Barbara upbringing. The Crane School alumna says: “Being at Crane really gave me this great foundation for what I love now. It felt like there was no judgment, that everyone there wanted you to succeed. But having supportive teachers like Shana Arthurs […]
When a motocross racer crashes in the middle of nowhere, a mysterious man responds in haste. But who is he – A lonely doctor? A good Samaritan? A satanic mechanic? Watch Matthew Rollins’ new short film Whiskey Throttle to find out! Q. How did this project get started? A. I took a year off from […]
Increasingly, the idea of intersectionality is finding its way into our everyday conversations. This is a topic we explored in this column when talking to the Westmont Feminist Society, who hold up a mission to promote diversity and education. This week we’re talking to Anusikha Halder, the head of the Trans & Queer Commission at […]
Established in 1982, Future Leaders of America was a joint initiative by Santa Barbara and Oxnard County to address pressures facing Latinx youth. By providing programming to encourage education and leadership, the founders created an environment where students learn what it means to effect change in their community. Today, we’re speaking to up-and-coming community leader […]
As a kid, Leah Martin was a strong student and good friend. She enjoyed theater and all things media. But her landscape began to shift when she was diagnosed with Reverse-Slope Hearing Loss. Reverse-Slope Hearing Loss is a degenerative disorder that causes a person to progressively lose their hearing, starting with lower tones. By 15 […]
Over in the sunny cove of Santa Barbara City College, a small health revolution is brewing. At the helm is Student Program Advisor Becky Bean, ASW. With a background in the nonprofit sector and social work, Bean was excited to collaborate with the Student Health Services team at SBCC and spearhead their new wellness program: […]
Happy new school year! From interviewing people for this column, I have learned a lot about what it means to be a young person, and I have learned a lot of what it means to be a student. In honor of the new academic year, this edition of Dear Montecito is for the new college […]
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, questions concerning “education accessibility” become central to our discussion about school. But as the team at Cal-SOAP Santa Barbara knows, barriers to education did not simply appear with the pandemic lockdowns. At California Student Opportunity and Access Program (Cal-SOAP), they ask: What is keeping students out of higher […]