Tag archives: students

Having books in the home has been proven to positively benefit children in many different ways. One 20-year study found that the mere presence of a home library, no matter how small, not only increases children’s vocabulary development and literacy, but also leads to increases in attention, academic success, and, eventually, job attainment.  The Santa […]

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 […]

The NatureTrack Film Festival was created as an extension of the NatureTrack Foundation, the nonprofit that combats “Nature-Deficit Disorder” by transporting county students outside via a variety of no-charge field trips from the seashore to the inland oak woodlands to engage curiosity and instill appreciation and awe of nature. The festival had a fine first […]

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 […]

Our town’s schools are holding their graduations from May 21 through June 9th this year. The eight local school graduations are covered in order of occurrence.  This issue has Our Lady of Mount Carmel and the YMCA Preschool. The Montecito Journal wishes much success and congratulations to our graduates, school faculty, staff and parents! Our […]

The 61-year-old Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara has awarded a total of $148 million in grants to students, with nearly $7.2 million this year to 1,864 recipients, retiring board chairman Matt Rowe told 200 guests at the annual dinner at the Santa Barbara Historical Museum. The scheme started humbly six decades ago with the awarding […]

Our town’s schools are holding their graduations from May 21 through June 9th this year. The eight local school graduations are covered in order of occurrence.  This issue has Cate School leading the charge with 71 graduates. The Montecito Journal wishes much success and offers congratulations to our graduates, school faculty, staff and parents! Cate […]

Two Westmont students won David K. Winter Servant Leadership Awards for showing vision, courage, humility, integrity, and competence as leaders. Angela D’Amour, Dean of Student Engagement, introduced the 23rd annual awardees, junior Joy Sturges from Redding and sophomore David Shiang from West Hills, on April 14 in Westmont chapel. The award recognizes the late David […]

The curtain may have closed on the inaugural Montecito Student Film Festival, but there is still a buzz about the spectacular young filmmaking talent in our community. For about five hours, cinephiles filled Westmont’s Porter Theatre to screen 20 student films on March 25.  In the end, Westmont sophomore Campbell Ralph of Fox Island, Washington, […]

Dunn School’s Kalyan Balaven, head of school for the private co-ed college prep boarding and day school in Los Olivos, had no idea of the floodgates that would open when he decided to find a way to help a student from the Ukraine who early last year was initially only seeking a few extra days […]

Westmont hosted a community event with education and financial representatives exploring the best ways low-income students can fund a college education on November 15. About 100 underprivileged high school students and their families attended “Affording Your Dream College,” which was held in partnership with several county education initiatives.  “Education is the most powerful and transformative […]

About 320 first-year students and a record-setting 70 transfers begin arriving at Westmont for Orientation (August 25-28) and the start of the fall semester (August 29). “We’re thrilled to welcome the class of 2026 and the largest group of transfer students in Westmont’s 85-year history,” says Irene Neller, Vice President for Enrollment, Marketing and Communications. […]

Westmont senior Chloe White earned the Etienne Gros Prize for Academic Excellence in Literature this summer after graduating from the French Honors program at the Institute for American Universities (IAU) in Southern France. “Since your arrival, we have all been very moved, very touched by your work — always thoughtful, always documented — and by […]

A tight-knit cohort of five Westmont student teachers shared inspirational stories about their experiences in the classroom at an emotional Celebration of Teaching April 28 on campus. Linda Ngo, Sam Cordes, Hannah Boelter, Simon Janzen, and Shae Caragher,who all earned California Preliminary Credentials, spoke at the event, held for the first time since 2019.  “Teaching is […]

“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell just as sweet.” Shakespeare employed that now famous line in his play Romeo and Juliet to imply that the naming of things is irrelevant. The Riviera Ridge School might beg to differ.  The highly-esteemed independent educational institution that serves […]

Our town’s schools held their 2022 graduation ceremonies from May 29 through June 10. The eight local school graduations are covered in order of occurrence, in two news reports, part one today and part two on June 16. This issue has Cate School with 66 grads, Montecito YMCA Preschool with 14 grads, Cold Spring School […]

Santa Barbara City College Foundation hosted its Spring Forward! gala on the Great Meadow of the West Campus with nearly 300 guests raising more than $450,000, with $325,000 collected even before the sun-soaked event began. The ubiquitous Geoff Green, foundation CEO, says the organization provides more than $5 million annually to support scholarships and emergency […]

In the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Santa Barbara native, realtor, and local volunteer Adam McKaig dedicated himself to building a team and creating solutions for the lack of support for the community of people experiencing homelessness. What started as a spontaneous movement of people wanting to make a positive impact during the pandemic has […]

Santa Barbara resident Nadya Brown won Best of Show at the opening reception of the annual Tri-County juried exhibition, Uncanny, at the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum. Brown, who was born and raised in England, won the $1,000 prize for her vibrant, dream-like painting Kafka and the Snowglobe. Westmont alumnus and hyperrealist painter Robin Eley (’01) handpicked […]

You know, when I spend time with our students, I never give it a second thought that the world’s going to be a better place,” says Kindred Murillo, the interim President and Superintendent of Santa Barbara City College, in an inspired tone during our conversation. “When you talk with our students, they’re concerned about sustainability; […]