S1: Hey there , San Diego , it's time for KPBS roundtable. I'm Andrew Bracken. Well , San Diego soccer fans , get ready. The playoffs are here. Major League Soccer's SFC hosts its first ever playoff game Sunday. Today , we'll hear all about San Diego FC's record breaking season and how they ended up the tops in their conference. Plus , why they're not the only hope for a championship this fall. Then how one San Diego preschool is helping young kids recover from family trauma. That's ahead on KPBS roundtable. Playoff soccer kicks off on Sunday at San Diego Snapdragon Stadium. TFC will play the first of its best of three series against the Portland Timbers , and today we take a look at how Major League Soccer's newest team found surprising success in its first ever season. The team ended the regular season in the top spot in the Western Conference , and set some records for expansion teams along the way. And early next month , the San Diego Wave FC will start its own championship push in the NWSL. Here to talk about what's happening in San Diego soccer , I'm joined by Hector Trujillo. He's a soccer writer with The Times of San Diego and El Latino. Hector , welcome to roundtable.
S2: Thank you for having me , Andrew. It's a pleasure.
S1: So , you know , let's get right to there's been some news hitting with San Diego FC. They have this big playoff game Sunday. But there have been some uncertainty with one of its star players you know. Tell us about what the latest there are.
S2: Yes the great Chucky Lozano. Uh , he's , uh , an attention getter everywhere he goes. He's been a champion everywhere. He's played Liga Amex , obviously Europe in Holland and also Italy. And yeah , now we have confirmation in the last 24 hours that he will be available to play. Mickey Barra has confirmed that the head coach for San Diego FC , and this morning , I believe he sent an Instagram post saying to everybody , how about his passion and how his passion pretty much got the best of him after being taken out ? He didn't specifically mention the game , but it was a halftime of the Houston game and he wasn't happy with that. And maybe a little words that he's regretting at the moment. But now he's looking forward based on the Instagram post and he's going to be ready to go against Portland. He's they're definitely gonna need a guy like him on the pitch. Uh , with his experience playing internationally , Mexican national team , obviously , and somebody who who's a guy who's going to that's going to bring 100%.
S1: So , you know , not the best to have kind of some team drama on the eve of like , you know , your first playoff run here , but I want to dig more into the playoffs a little bit more. But I want to first take a look back at the season , kind of season in a review here. What led to San Diego FC. You know , their success in this first season because it's pretty remarkable for an expansion team , right ? Yes.
S2: And , um , to quote the words of many people that follow soccer or in Smith , who helped us bring San Diego Loyal several years ago here to San Diego. Um , San Diego is the epicenter of soccer in North America , and I believe it. That's one of my favorite quotes that he said. There's always been a fruitful place here for for the lovers of the beautiful sport on both sides of the border. Obviously , we're so close to Mexico and San Diego , Southern California area , and it was just ready for a major League Soccer team and caught everybody by surprise because not a lot of people were expecting it to happen. Like right after , I think San Diego Loyal mentioned that they weren't going to come back for their , uh , for their season. And I'll be on San Diego. Didn't come back for Nyssa at that time. That year that they went to the final or semifinals. So everybody was waiting for somebody to fill that void. And it came up to that announcement from Tom Penn and the leaders of of San Diego FC to , um , to bring a team here. That was the fans were ready for , for to show their passion. And they've shown it throughout the season and all the home games , that opener that I was there for in game one , I think it was Saint Louis , SC , if I'm not mistaken , or somebody else. But yeah , it's it was like a sight to see. And I think that's that was the roots for what we saw for the rest of the season , and that they were better on the road this year for whatever statistical anomaly you want to mention it. But at home they definitely brought the passion and so did the fans , the supporters groups. Everything was just so exciting to see.
S1: You mentioned some of the past soccer teams in San Diego that have come and gone at this point , like loyal , um , you know , it took a long time for Major League Soccer to come here. And I think , you know , longtime San Diego soccer fans were used to that sort of. When will it come ? It took , you know. It's been a long journey.
S2: Numerous.
S1: Numerous.
S2: Yeah. Before they went up to Del Mar and obviously after when they played in the , uh , Pechanga Arena. Now they're in Oceanside. So it's just a long I think the connection I can't undervalue this to , uh , to the border and the back and forth of all the fans , the family members , the friends who just have it. It's almost like every every game you go to is almost like a World Cup game where people talk about the World Cup later , but it's just that intensity that that sense of pride and where you're from , that sense of pride in your heritage , it can never be ignored. And and people show it. The fans show it on the stand. Sometimes they go overboard , but , uh , but the players definitely show it on the pitch , even though they might not always get the results. So I think it's just that , that sport that brings the. The integral part of who we are as a human that just isn't an individual , but connected to the community.
S1: I think you mentioned , you know , sometimes fans taking it overboard. There have been a couple examples of that here with San Diego FC. I think it's fair to say earlier in the season started with a homophobic chant that happened. I think that was the first home game. I'm not sure if that happened in the second. After that it seemed to be addressed , but that that caught a lot of attention. And then there was , you know , a pretty , I don't know , like a viral video. There was a big fight between opposing fans involving San Diego FC. Can you talk a little bit about those , you know , early incidents and , you know , how has the team how have you seen soccer culture kind of like recover from that or respond to those those early issues. Yeah.
S2: Yeah. And this is where I have to give props to Mikey Varas. I like to call him Miguelito because he reminds me of my cousin and that's his nickname , Miguelito. But there was a zero tolerance policy as soon as that happened like that , right after , during the post-game interviews , he was like , we're not going to accept that. Anybody that does that is not part of the community that we want to build here. And that's one of the critiques that I've always had with League. And sometimes the ownership groups or the coaches will turn a blind eye because they're selling tickets. Fans are having fun buying beers , whatever. But here with Mickey bottles and San Diego feels like this is not tolerated. And I think that the fans did a good job in responding and understanding that. That's no joke. We can be having that in any situation in society , especially with kids and families there , and also with the one that you mentioned against Lafc. That was an unfortunate incident as well. Um , still , there's controversy as to who started what. I'm sure there's a lot of pictures still online. People can videos can refer to. Or they came over here , we came over there. Whatever happened there ? Also , San Diego FC and Mikey Varas were really adamant about this is not who you represent. This is not who you want to be as a team , as a city. So in that sense , I'm glad that they had that zero tolerance policy. And their unambiguous attitude. This is not what we want to be as a city or as a team.
S1: Well , now let's move to , you know , what happens on the pitch and talk about , you know , some of the success they've seen this season. One name that jumps , you know , to the top of of on the stat sheet is Anders Dreyer. You know , tell us about him and what he's brought to the team this year.
S2: An absolute incredible signing. Um , national team for Denmark I think he scored recently two goals against Belarus and he's had a whale of a season. I mean , unfortunately or fortunately , depending on who you root for , Messi is going to be the MVP. Um , and , uh , Andres Dreyer's are there among the nominees. He's going to get some votes , I'm sure , but , uh , yeah , 19 goals , 18 assists and and or 19 and 19. I think it might have been actually. But he's set the record for , if I'm not mistaken , road games uh , complementing or being , uh , helping out with goals and assists if you combine them and specifically in road games for the Major League Soccer. And he's just one of those guys that you see him on the pitch , he's reminds me a little bit of a rookie , but he's almost like a very static. Once you see him on a yacht. If you saw the game against Portland recently , the four goals he scored , two of them , you know he's a one on one. He knows he's going to score. There's no goalkeeper in the world that can beat him one on one. And he's always looking at. He's not just a selfish player. He's always looking to to see who's open. If he's got a player in front of him or his a position where he can't take a shot. He's a he's almost like Michael Jordan. I know he's early with San Diego as he looks for options. He's not just him scoring , but he's so talented that he's always going to create chances for himself. So he was a rose in the desert , as I like to say. So he's a he's a great he's a great be a big guy for the for the for the playoff run. Wow.
S1: Wow. Michael Jordan comparison.
S2: That's right. And it's his first year. So I'm on the record for that already.
S1: Wow wow. Well I mean someone else you know getting accolades is coach Mikey Varas. You've talked a little bit about him already , but he is a candidate for coach of the year in the MLS. What is it about you know his coaching that has has just made a difference with their performance on the field , right ? As I understand it , he's like very offensive minded. Is that way to kind of characterize his approach.
S2: He's offensive minded but efficiently offensive mind that he's not just throw numbers to the front and see what happens , and hopefully we get a call or hopefully a ball bounces our way. He's very efficient in this style of play. Maybe it's it's a pedigree with the U.S. men's national team having coached with them as well alongside Greg Burkhalter. But yeah , he's one of those guys that every possession counts. He's fine working from all the way from the back. He understands the tempo. He's one of those old school guys that I grew up watching , 1980s. He understands the feel of each game is different. The opponent is different. It's almost like a chess game with him. He has to be thinking three steps ahead of the opponent to understand what they're going to be doing , or what they might be doing before they even do it. So he's one of those guys that doesn't waste an opportunity. And if he needs to make a correction to one of his tactics from either at halftime or during the second half , during the second half , he's not afraid to do so. So very flexible , but very , like I said , old school minder , which I like. There's not a lot of coaches. He's the only coach in the Western Conference who got nominated for coach of the year , and if he doesn't win it , I'll be on the record again. It'll be a robbery. I'm going to call FIFA and be like , what's going on here ? These this guy because the coach of Philadelphia , he's like , he already had a star , a great team in front of him. So he was they were favored to to win the East and the other coach as well. So I think it should be hands down whoever doesn't work for Mickey Varas , we'll be hearing from me.
S1: I want to bring in Alejandro Villasenor now. He joins us from the NFC's training grounds. He's with San Diego Football. Alejandro. Welcome back. I mean , did you get a chance to catch up ? We've just heard , um , Hector talking about , uh , San Diego State , San Diego FC's Mikey Varas and kind of the coaching job he's done. Did you get a chance to hear from him this morning ? Yeah.
S3: Thank you , Andrew , for giving me the opportunity to join in. And I apologize for running a little late. They ran practice a little later today. Uh , but , yeah , I got the opportunity to speak with head coach Maliki about us , and he gave us a good perspective on where the team is at. And I will say on the Chucky Lozano update , he stayed consistent , saying that they're handling everything internally. He did not confirm or deny any reports from other outlets , whether it was a disciplinary thing or anything like that. Uh , but he's fairly confident over the team is at currently great.
S1: I mean , well , that's good to get. We heard we heard a little bit of an update of how things were looking. So it's good to hear that. What else have you been hearing and seeing this morning. Yeah.
S3: Yeah. So Chucky Lozano did train this whole week with the team. Uh , Mikey did not confirm if he's going to be starting or suiting up or being available off the bench as well , which is the biggest news the UFC has this week ? Uh , they're ready to face Portland as they face them on decision day. Uh , last week and again they talked a little bit about the playoff format , but we spoke with Captain Jeff Fresco , who just got extended today till 2027 , with a club option to 2028. He's the captain and heart and soul of this team , so it's an important , uh , piece of the puzzle for San Diego City moving forward. And he , as a captain , expressed that he's excited for the playoffs. The team is ready. He's never felt the team was more confident than ever. Uh , as it should be. Right ? Being the first place in the Western Conference.
S1: Alejandro , we were talking with Hector just about taking a look back at what led to just the , you know , success they found so quickly here.
S3: Uh , all every MLS expert had them finishing that last in the season. And it all has to do with , uh , the right to drink style that they play. Right. We've talked about it throughout the season. Uh , is that style going to work in MLS ? Is it not going to work ? And I think San Diego has proven to stay consistent and prove everyone wrong. To be honest , I think , uh , for them to finish , uh , first in the West is probably the biggest accomplishment they could have done. And again , uh , this is a city of sports where , you know , San Diego sports has to prove everybody else wrong. And they're doing just that.
S1: And Alejandro , you talked a little bit about the playoff format. Could you break that down ? I mean , San Diego FC , they began their first best of three series on Sunday at Snapdragon. But break down what how the playoffs work in this league. Yeah.
S3: Yeah. For anyone that may not know , playoffs in MLS is very different than everywhere else in the world. The first round is a best of three match , so they play at home this Sunday against Portland. They'll play next weekend uh , in Portland. Uh , if it's a tied one one. So San Diego wins one game , Portland wins another game. They'll play a third game , uh , in Snapdragon Stadium. There are no ties in playoffs , so if the game ends in a tie , they go straight to penalties. Uh , whoever advances then is the Western Conference semifinals , which , if San Diego advances , that would also be in San Diego. That's a single elimination match , as well as the conference championship single elimination match. And then the MLS Cup will also be a single elimination match.
S1: So still a ways to go there. Before we get to that , Hector , but let's talk about this matchup with Portland.
S2: But the first , I think the first game between the two sides where they finished zero zero , I think it's more more aligned with what the two teams are. I do think San Diego FC is a more cohesive and efficient team. And I was actually picking , uh , hoping that Real Salt Lake would beat Portland because in soccer it's it's almost like there's nothing else to compare it to. The adrenaline and the emotion and the pride gets to you sometimes as a player , if you remember that your last game of the regular season in front of the home hands was losing four to nothing and forcing you to play a wild card game that's going to be in the back of your mind. So I think the first game here on Sunday is going to be huge. The UFC should come out with the win at their favorite , I think 2 to 1 favorites right now. And if I had to pick a score right now , I'd probably go 2 to 1 San Diego FC. But you do not want to go back to Portland needing a win there , considering how they finish the regular season and still on to the back of their minds.
S1:
S3: They face each other in preseason at the Coachella Invitational , where Portland got A31 win and they faced each other twice during the season. Uh , the first game was A00 draw and then uh , San Diego FC currently like recently won four nothing. Right. So I agree with Hector and USC should be winning this game at home. But historically this season San Diego hasn't been the best at home either. They had the best away record in MLS. Uh , so I can definitely see them winning it in Portland. I think it'll be a two game series. I don't see it going to three. Uh , it also depends on how Portland approaches the match. They could easily stay back and defend and play for the penalties and hope for the best there , which that could , uh , implicate those challenges for San Diego City. But I do see San Diego , uh , winning out the series with two games.
S2: And two , if I'm not mistaken. There's no extra time.
S3: And go straight to penalties. So there's no extra time , which that could only lead to Portland's advantage. Yeah.
S2: Yeah. Their goalkeeper is really good at stopping penalties. Let's finish it in the regulation time.
S1: Well we'll continue our conversation with locals , our local soccer experts here in just a moment. We'll also catch up on San Diego's other professional soccer teams , San Diego Wave FC , in their push for a championship this year. You're listening to KPBS roundtable. Welcome back to KPBS roundtable. I'm Andrew Bracken. Today we're talking all about San Diego soccer. As San Diego's MLS team SFC gets ready for its first ever playoff game. This Sunday , I'm joined by Alejandro Villasenor from San Diego Football , along with Times of San Diego's Hector Trujillo. I want to talk about San Diego's other playoff bound soccer club here in town , Hector. And that's San Diego Wave FC. They clinched their playoff berth with the win last weekend , and it's kind of a common occurrence for them to be playoffs. They were another expansion team that kind of found success early like CFC. What you know what how would you characterize their season this. Because there have been some ups and downs with the way of this season , I'd say yes.
S2: That's absolutely been the roller coaster of a season. Not that DFCs hasn't , but now they find themselves. They already clinch the playoff spot , as you said , and with a strong chance of potential of getting a home game for the first round. They're currently in fifth place 37 points. And they have a great goal differential , largely because they beat Chicago six one. That thing could have ended 9 to 1 if it wasn't for listening or making some incredible saves. They bounce back from that heartbreaker a couple of weeks ago to Washington , losing on a last minute , last second goal and turned it around to beat the Utah Royals. So now they control their own destiny to have a home playoff game here if they can beat Kansas City. Kansas City is the best team by far this season in the league NWSL , but they might might be resting a lot of their starters just for precautionary reasons to want to get any injuries. They want to get any red cards that might affect them in the playoffs. And um , yeah , the two teams right ahead of them , Seattle. And I believe it's no Gothams behind them. But yeah , the two teams ahead of a San Diego wave are going to be playing each other so that they're going to be taking points away from themselves. And a draw would really definitely help out San Diego wave. So this roller coaster of a season turned around just at the right time. Jonas Edible has done a great job getting the team refocused and getting the stars to play to their potential , especially Cascarino , who is my favorite on the team. She's just so talented and if they can finish off with a win here , you never know. Just like they say in the playoffs. Going strong. Going. Playing your best and going healthy. You never know what could happen.
S1: And Alejandro. San Diego AFC. There's been just a lot of new faces right. I was like new coach new players new ownership right. You know tell us about this new team and how different it is from the wave a season ago. Yeah.
S3: Yeah. Like you said. Right. It's new everything for San Diego wave from moving on from Casey Stoney. Uh , moving on from , uh , different ownership as well. Uh , the last season was , without a doubt , the biggest downfall , uh , that I personally see of the sports teams , considering the first two seasons that were playoff teams and then the way the season ended , not making playoffs and being some , uh , one of the bottom teams at the table. Uh , Jonas Idaho came into this team and really turned things around for San Diego wave. Uh , again , all these , uh , NWSL experts had San Diego finishing dead last as well. Uh , when they did their , uh , predictions early in the season , uh , and send you away in the first half of the season proved to be probably , if not the second best or top three team in the league. Uh , Kansas City , uh , in a league of their own this season. They're just phenomenal. And it's going to be hard to beat them. Uh , but San Diego was proving to be one of the best teams in the NWSL after the summer break. They kind of dipped in form a little bit. The confidence seemed a little shaken off. Uh , but like Hector said , they had two back to back wins already. They're going to face against Kansas City , who will probably rest some players their best player till Wingo is also injured in the last game as well. Uh , so San Diego has a a very unique chance of hosting a playoff game , uh , this season as well. And all due to the changes that they made during the season. They got a new GM and Cammy as well. And , uh , she's made some decisions as well. They've moved away from the assistant coach , uh , a couple of weeks ago as well. And since that move , San Diego has also been playing better. So a lot of moving components for San Diego Wave this year.
S1: You know , I think one thing we've talked about in the past on the show , with the SFC coming into the picture , was how it might impact San Diego Wave and just , you know , the connection with fans and how much they've connected to the community here , you know.
S2: Oh , sorry. Go ahead. Giba.
S3: Uh , sorry , Hector , I think , uh , I think it has worked out well for both clubs. I think they have a very important partnership together. They cheer on , uh , each other. Especially making playoffs. I think maybe it was a little overblown before the season started. I think something that impacted San Diego waves attendance more so than San Diego FC. Being in town is moving away from Naomi Girma , who was their best player in the season , to move overseas to Chelsea and England. And then Alex Morgan also retired last season. Right. So those were two key players that were drawing a large amount of people into the stadium. So I think that's one of the things that maybe impacted that attendance. Yeah.
S1: Yeah. Hector.
S2: Hector. No , I was just going to agree with Chiba. It's kind of like it's a little bit overblown , because it's almost like saying you can't be an TFC and a Tijuana fan or something like that. There's so much like I said , San Diego is a fruitful place for soccer of any division , of any league. And yeah , I mean , the better one team does , it almost pushes the other fan base to make their team play better when they're being represented or they're at the home games. So I think it's a yin yang kind of relationship. I never saw it as a competitive. Like , if you're my fan , you can only be my fan kind of thing , which is what she was saying. It's gonna they overlap really , really well.
S1: You mentioned the cellos there. You're right. We have more than just those teams. You mentioned the Sockers , and there's the cellos in Tijuana.
S2: They just had a friendly up against cobwebs from Nyssa and they did pretty well up there. They have four more. They're signed up to do four more exhibition games with the SFC. The last one they played here is Snapdragon. TFC came out on top 42. They're a team that brings a lot of fans from San Diego to go watch them at home. I know Craig Elston and I know Darren Smith are huge fans of them as well. So yeah , it's again , there's in this area , the epicenter. Again , I'll repeat that. We're the epicenter of soccer in North America. You can't go wrong. And I think the it's not competition. It's more pushing the other teams and the other leagues to to do better.
S1: Well then.
S3: And I think sorry. Sorry.
S1: Sorry.
S3: Sorry Andrew something to add about that it's important to take notice is that right now they have a 16 year old player called Gilberto Mora , who is a generational player. Uh , as they're calling him , they're getting ready to , uh , potentially end up signing him or sending him to Europe to a team in the near future once he turns 18. But this player is special , and it is exciting that he is playing just across the border here from San Diego. If anybody's listening , If you want the chance of witnessing a very excellent player at such a young age , uh , definitely go check out Jolas. Yeah.
S2: Yeah. He had he had a great showing in the recent U-20 World Cup , too. You know , he was awesome for Mexico.
S1: So I mean , you kind of said it this the San Diego Tijuana region really being this soccer epicenter , right. Hector. Um , part of that , you know , San Diego FC is trying to tap into that with its Right to Dream Academy. Um , you know , talk. I don't know , Alejandro. I don't know what you can say. You're out there now where that , you know , that facility is going to going to be. Right. How does that fit into tapping into this epicenter that Hector was just talking about ? Yeah.
S3: No. It's amazing. I actually got the opportunity to come out to , uh , the campus tour when they officially launched the Academy and got to see the classrooms , got to see the library , got to talk to some of the kids that are living here already. Uh , spoke to some of the teachers as well. And what they're learning here is very different than the , Uh , basic education that someone would have in a public school. Uh , there. It's honestly spectacular to see. They train every day , and then they have , uh , schooling every day as well. Sometimes they have two days with school where they'll have classes that are only two hours long and then four hours long. Uh , they get to see their families over the weekend. Uh , and I , we got to talk to players that are from Vegas , from Tijuana , from Guadalajara , uh , from really all over the nation and in some parts of Mexico as well. Uh , and it's truly phenomenal to see.
S1: So you mentioned Guadalajara there. I'll kind of move on to another soccer story that maybe , you know , not catching a lot of headlines right now , but will be in about six months or so. And that's the FIFA World Cup is is coming our , you know , to North America starting in June. Um , it's , you know , games are going to be played in the US , Mexico and Canada. I think the closest games to us will be in Los Angeles. Right. But Guadalajara is another site. Mexico City. Places. Other places in the US. I mean , Hector , I guess just can you talk a little bit about what that means and what people should be kind of preparing for of , you know , World Cup coming to near our shores ? Yeah.
S2: I think it all started with the Copa America recently. Um , obviously Mexico and the US didn't have their best showing , the most recent Copa America , but the the energy levels just started. You could sense it here in this area , cross border area of the US , Mexico and Canada as well. It's going to be something that's historic. I know South Korea and Japan had 1 in 2002 where they shared venues and stuff. So if they can use that blueprint , the house is successful. That one was I think it will be a knockout , historic kind of situation here , that it's going to be unforgettable for generations to come. Obviously , people are going to be bringing their patriotism from both sides of the board. I'm not going to not disregard Canada because they've got a hell of a team as well. But , you know , everybody's going to want to see , you know , Mexico do. well , the US do well and maybe meet each other in the knockout stage. I'm going to try to make it up to LA. I know Shiva and Tony are getting press credentials for that , so the guys can hook me up and be much appreciated , but I'm going to have that even for the ones that I can't. Depending on what time the games are , I'm going to have it on TiVo. I'm going to be recording everything. It's going to be something for you can tell your generation's kids grandkids that had happened here in my lifetime.
S1: Alejandro , talk to me about the World Cup. I mean , there will be potentially San Diego FC players playing in that tournament as well , right ? But , you know , put that into perspective for us , what the World Cup means coming to the States and Mexico.
S3: Yeah I know the yeah the World Cup is huge right ? I mean , it's probably the biggest sporting event in the world. Uh , it's sort of in the Super Bowl. Big , bigger than the NBA finals. Uh , you name it , it happens every four years. And the chance for the US to host it , another , uh , another tournament , including with Mexico and Canada is phenomenal. There's going to be ten games being played in Mexico , ten games being played in Canada , and the rest of the games will be played here in America. The final is going to be in New York , I believe , at MetLife Stadium , which is a really nice stadium to have. And in New York also being a very big soccer city as well. Uh , so yeah , it's it's exciting. It's fun. Uh , I think the biggest plus for anyone , uh , living in this region is that you're not going to have to wake up at 3 a.m. to watch soccer games. Uh , as you have to do in the last World Cup in Qatar , right ? You're not going to have to stay up late or anything like that. The games are going to be maybe while you're at work or while you're off work. Uh , three , five , 7 p.m.. So it's going to be really nice.
S2: Can you imagine late traffic for the Mexico games ? Uh , Shiva , I was going to take the public transportation , dude.
S3: It's going to be insane. How did you ever leave Mexico ? Yeah , Mexico is playing. I believe there are three group matches , uh , in Mexico. And then , I mean , playoff could be anything. Uh , with Mexico's history , they never make it past the round of 16. So we'll see if that's the difference here. Uh , but , yeah , like you said , uh , Andrew , San Diego has a chance to have Duke Lozano potentially be in this , uh , Mexican national team , uh , for the 2026 World Cup. And as well as Andrew Drake could be called up for Denmark. So it's definitely exciting to to see.
S1: Well , I mean , just so much to talk about and there's going to be a whole lot more coming up. I mean , we'll all be watching on Sunday following San Diego FC's road in the playoffs and then later this month with or later next month , rather with a wave. I've been speaking with Alejandro Villasenor from San Diego Football , along with Times of San Diego soccer writer Hector Trujillo. I want to thank you both for being here on roundtable.
S2: Thank you Andrew.
S3: Thank you. Andrew.
S2: Andrew. See you at the buffet table. Shiva.
S1: When we come back , we hear about a local preschool dedicated to helping kids who have faced trauma in their young lives. Roundtables back after the break. Welcome back to KPBS roundtable. I'm Andrew Bracken. 63% of U.S. adults reported an adverse childhood experience before age 18. This includes abuse , witnessing violence or family separation. That's according to the National Survey of Children's Health. One preschool in San Diego is dedicated to supporting students who have experienced family trauma , like domestic violence students like James Jabo. His mom Elizabeth , tried to shield him from that violence.
S4: There was a lot of ups and downs and , um , just a lot of like situations where it would be become dangerous. And yeah , it led to , you know , domestic violence , unfortunately. Um , and I kind of like , knew that that's not what I wanted for my child.
S1: Their story is front and center in a three part reporting series by Cal Matters. It details takeaways from local preschools commitment to survivors of family trauma. Cal matters assistant visuals editor Adriana Valdez joins me now to talk more about her reporting. Adriana , welcome to roundtable.
S5: Andrea , thank you so much for having me.
S1: It's great to have you here. We just heard Elizabeth Chabot there talk about her son James. Tell me about her and how she discovered this preschool. Called me Skeletor. Yeah.
S5: Yeah. Um , Elizabeth Jabo is a mom , a young mom , and she , unfortunately , was in a relationship that led to some domestic violence physical , emotional , financial. And she knew that she didn't want that future for her son. So she started , um , to look for research or resources that she could find to help her , to help James , because she had noticed a change in his behavior. Um , he was normally pretty quiet , a well-behaved kid , but she noticed that he was having anxiety whenever she wasn't around and was , you know , throwing a little bit more tantrums. So she wanted something that could help him. She reached out to his pediatrician , but they really couldn't provide the support and help that that she really needed. And she was doing some research online when she came across Mia , which is a therapeutic preschool for kids who have been affected by domestic violence or other family related traumas. And so she looked into it and decided to enroll. roll.
S1: James and Elizabeth really , you know , credits the school with helping her son quite a bit. Here's a little bit of what she told you.
S4: I felt that only my Skeletor kind of understood. Kids who have gone through traumatic experiences , but also like , had the experience and experts who are able to handle that. I don't feel like a typical school would have been able to help my child the way that Mia has.
S1: So , I mean , do you hear that ? They're just kind of how they do it.
S5: Right. Some may become more explosive. And they in their behavior , some may become more , more timid. Um , you may see some of them cry a little bit more or throw tantrums and having experts that know those signs that can , you know , that can speak in a child's language and really , um , sort of parse through some of the things that the surface level things and really get to deep down to some of the things that they may be experiencing , I think is important , especially for children who are so young , right , or preschool age. Right. They might not know how to express themselves or express their emotions. So having experts that understand their language and that can really , um , you know , extract that from them and sort of get down to like the root of the problem. I think it's super important , especially for a kid whose brain is developing at that age. Yeah.
S1: Yeah. And you also spoke to Lisa Klump , this preschool director. She talked to you about , you know , just kind of how trauma can have really lasting impacts , um , often leading to kind of repeated behaviors. I think she , she mentioned , you know , how is Mayor Scaletta trying ? Trying to change that. Yeah.
S5: Yeah. So ? Mental health is at the forefront of Mia Scaletta. All the kids who attend there have had to go through some type of trauma , and domestic violence is usually the one that a lot of the kids have been affected by. Amy Scaletta every kid receives one on one therapy sessions with a clinician. They also participate in group therapy sessions with other students , where they learn how about their emotions , how to identify them , and sort of how to regulate them. And their families also are able to receive services. They're able to receive therapy themselves. Um , if kids need , you know , sort of therapy related to like a sibling because sometimes siblings fight. Um , that is also something that is available. And they are there are programs for parents , um , for parent engagement so that they can learn , you know , the signs as well and how to support their child if they are going through trauma.
S1: And here's a little bit more of what what Lisa Klemm told you.
S6: Having the staff , the support in the moment to be able to stop and pause and then have a conversation and reteach that by modeling , you know , giving them strategies of taking a break , using their words , taking deep breaths. Um , it's really great when we get to hear from a family member that their little kiddo went home and said , mom , just just pause and take a deep breath , right ? So they hear it , they hear it , and they're learning it with us all day , every day.
S1: I think that just illustrates what you've been highlighting there. But also , you know how this impacts the whole family. Um , you also wrote an accompanying story that delved more into , you know , what you took away from your time at the school.
S5: The school has seen some results. Um , a recent study by San Diego , UC San Diego found that 82% of the students scored above average on the kindergarten. That's the kindergarten readiness test , which evaluates , you know , how prepared students are when they enter kindergarten. Um , and then another UC San Diego study , which followed the students over the course of several years , showed those students who attended Mesquita tended to score at the same level or sometimes higher in math , reading and writing compared to other students in the nearby school district. So it it's it's shown that there is a benefit to providing these mental health services at such a young age.
S1: And what other you know , what can other educators or even non-profits do you think take away from the school's approach , or even incorporate some of what you observed there ? Yeah.
S5: Um , the thing is that a lot of places do not. Um , you know , there's not a lot of therapeutic schools across California. This is not the only one , but , um , but it's not something that is common. And , you know , it can be a little bit difficult to implement all the things. Right. That means Goleta is doing , um. The one thing that we can learn from the school is , you know , how can we implement even though we can't replicate it ? Exactly. Can we grab certain things from there ? Um , from the mental health services that we can , you know , provide at other schools. Right. Is it whether it be one on one therapy , those group therapy sessions or , you know , um , providing curriculum that is that is centered around social emotional learning.
S1: Could you kind of give us the little , you know , backstory ? Why was this a story so important for you ? Yeah.
S5: So before I started working on Cal Matters , I used to work for the San Diego Union Tribune , and I was one of the photographers on staff , and I would be assigned to take photos of everyday life in San Diego. One of those assignments was to take photos of a preschool graduation , and this was Mia Scaletta. And the only thing I know about Mia Scaletta was that it was a school for kids who have been affected by trauma. And so when I went to the graduation , um , it was really beautiful. The kids sing a song and they , um , the song was about thinking their families about , you know , supporting them. And a lot of the family members were in the audience. And , you know , I saw them tear up a little bit. And so it was hard not to feel emotional at that moment , just knowing a little bit of the background of , of , of the school , and I definitely wanted to learn more about it. And I didn't get a chance while I worked there. But now working at Cal matters. Um , I thought about that school again. I was going through some of my old photos , and I saw the photos of the graduation , and and I said to myself , man , I would love to , like , really be inside that school to see how these kids are benefiting from all these services. And and thankfully , I was able to do that.
S1: And , you know , we have about two minutes left. I'm just wondering if you can briefly talk a little bit about how you approached the story visually , as you mentioned , your photographer. Um , yeah. Tell us about how you wanted to show this story , because that can be a difficult thing for folks to visualize , to talk about something serious. You know , as serious as domestic violence.
S5: Right , right , right. Um , my goal was always to make this a visual story first , to really show the people impacted by domestic violence. Um , it's obviously a really hard thing to to talk about. And a lot of times , you know , we want to protect our sources and the people who have experienced it , because we we want to make sure that they are safe. But when they do feel comfortable in sharing their stories and being open about it , I think visuals are really important because , um , visuals are just , you know , a that's saying , you know , a photo is worth a thousand words , right ? They're just impactful. They bring out emotions. They make you see the severity of an issue. So for me , that was important to show that domestic violence does affect the whole family and that affects kids who are so young as well.
S1: You also highlighted resources for families who have experienced trauma. We have about 30s or so left , but I'm wondering if you can share some of those resources with us. Yes.
S5: Yes. Well , first , if you are a parent and you are seeing that a child may be struggling with trauma , um , one thing is keep note of their behavior. Are there any changes ? Are they , um , sleeping more , eating less ? Are they acting out a little bit more ? Are the more timid ? Keep note of that. And if you do see changes , I would encourage you to visit the first five California website where they provide more tips and resources on the next steps following them.
S1: Well , I want to thank you for sharing more about your reporting. Adriana's three stories are out now. They can be found on the Cal Matters website or also on KPBS. We have a story about the San Diego preschool. Mesquita Adriana Valdez is an assistant visuals editor with Cal Matters. And Adriana. Thanks so much for being here.
S5: Thank you for having me.
S1: If you or a loved one are in need of support , you can go to first five dotcom or head to the National Domestic Hotline at (800) 799-7233. More resources are at our website , pbs.org. That'll do it for this edition of the KPBS roundtable. Thanks so much for listening. You can listen to the show anytime as a podcast. KPBS roundtable airs on KPBS FM at noon on Fridays again Sundays at 6 a.m.. If you have any thoughts on today's show or ideas for a future one , you can always email us at roundtable at KPBS. You can also leave us a message at (619) 452-0228. Roundtables. Technical producer this week was Brandon Truffaut. The show was produced by Ashley Rush. Brooke Rooth is roundtable senior producer. I'm your host , Andrew Bracken. Thanks again for listening and have a great weekend.
