Search results for

Students Gear Up for Second Year of Aspen Challenge: San Diego The Aspen Challenge returns to San Diego in February, empowering 15 student-led teams from public high schools to drive change in their communities and beyond. The Aspen Challenge, a program of the Aspen Institute and founded with the Bezos Family Foundation, is thrilled to announce the return of Aspen Challenge: San Diego for its second year. Partnering with San Diego Unified School District, the program empowers students from high schools across the city to address critical community issues through youth-led initiatives. On Tuesday, February 4 at Building 177, 15 student-led teams and educators will hear from “Expert Challengers,” leaders and innovators presenting challenges on key topics such as providing resources for the unhoused community of San Diego, combatting discrimination against LGBTQ+ population, ocean pollution, the way overuse of technology can negatively affect mental health and substance abuse. "We are thrilled to announce our partnership with the Aspen Challenge, an incredible opportunity to elevate student voice, foster leadership, and inspire civic mindedness among our young people,” said Dr. Fabi Bagula, Interim Superintendent for the San Diego Unified School District. “This initiative empowers our students to tackle real-world challenges with creativity and innovation, reminding us all that the future lies in their capable hands. Together, we are building a generation of leaders ready to shape a better world. May the youth lead the way!" After the February forum, teams will have nine weeks to create and implement innovative solutions within their communities. They will reconvene on April 15 to present their projects at the Aspen Challenge Solution Showcase. A panel of judges will then select the Grand Prize winning team, who will travel to Aspen, Colorado in June to present their work at the Aspen Ideas Festival. “It’s wonderful to be back to San Diego for the Aspen Challenge,” said Katie Fitzgerald, Managing Director of the Aspen Challenge. "I hope the country watches as the youth of San Diego once again solve some real issues we see in all communities across the country. There will be 15 mini revolutions led by teams of high school students in San Diego that will transform their community and we can't wait to witness it." Expert Challengers and speakers include Jerry Troyer, Urban Street Angels; Aaron Ngan, The San Diego LGBT Community Center; Alex Ferron, Surfrider Foundation; Eisha Buch, Common Sense Media; Courtney Esparza, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Participating Schools: Canyon Hills High School Clairemont High School Crawford High School Patrick Henry High School Logan Memorial Educational Campus Mira Mesa High School Mission Bay High School Mt. Everest Academy Point Loma High School San Diego High School San Diego Metropolitan Regional and Technical High School San Diego SOAR Academy- Youth Transition Campus Scripps Ranch High School University City High School The inaugural Aspen Challenge launched in collaboration with Los Angeles Unified School District in 2013. Since its inception, the Challenge has expanded to include partnerships with school districts in Denver, Washington D.C., Chicago, Philadelphia, Dallas, Louisville, Miami, New Orleans, Brooklyn, and Boston. For more information on Aspen Challenge: San Diego or to attend as a covering member of the media, please contact: ben.berliner@aspeninstitute.org. The Aspen Challenge provides inspiration, tools, and a platform for young people to design solutions to some of the most critical problems humanity faces. For more information on Aspen Challenge, please visit www.aspenchallenge.org. The Aspen Institute is a global nonprofit organization whose purpose is to ignite human potential to build understanding and create new possibilities for a better world. Founded in 1949, the Institute drives change through dialogue, leadership, and action to help solve society’s greatest challenges. It is headquartered in Washington, DC and has a campus in Aspen, Colorado, as well as an international network of partners. For more information, visit www.aspeninstitute.org. San Diego Unified School District is the second largest school district in California, with 175 schools, 95,011 students UTK-12, and over 17,000 employees. While the school district is largely influenced by its close proximity to the US-Mexico border, over 75 languages are spoken in schools situated in diverse suburban and urban communities. The district has a core focus on equity and belonging so all students and staff in San Diego Unified may thrive in school and beyond. The Bezos Family Foundation envisions a world in which all young people reach their full potential and meaningfully contribute to society. The Foundation pursues that vision by making grants and by operating their own programs, with the aim of fueling the science of learning and enabling its application in a variety of settings. The Foundation’s mission is to invest in the science of learning and the experiences that youth need from birth to high school to pursue their own path for success. For more information, visit www.bezosfamilyfoundation.org.

Thursday–Friday, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. December 5–6 [Students can leave materials overnight Dec. 5 and work in the studio from 1–4 PM (without instruction)] (2 Days, 6 total hours of instruction) La Jolla Studio $100/120 + $20 materials fee paid to instructor This fun and focused class emphasizes the basics of creating a painting. Emphasis in this class will be on an impressionist technique of painting using an “alla prima” (wet into wet) style of painting, keeping loose brushwork, thick paint, and eliminating detail. We will emphasize composition, color, form, and lighting. There will be a still life setup. I do a painting demonstration in each class. Materials: Paints: Your preference of paints: oil, acrylic, watercolor, gouache … you name it!  Please include Titanium White, Cadmium Yellow Light (cool yellow), Cadmium Yellow (warm yellow), Cadmium Red Light, Alizarin Crimson, Ultramarine Blue, Cerulean Blue, Viridian Green or Phthalo Green. Plus any colors of paint that you would like to use. Brushes: Bring a variety of brushes for your choice of paints that include #2, #4, #6, #8. Good quality brushes make a difference. Other materials: 12” x16” paper palette pad; odorless Turpenoid and linseed oil for oils; soft vine charcoal; 1.5- or 2-inch palette knife; paper towels; two small jars with lids; spray bottle for acrylic painters; sketchbook; color pencils; four canvas or canvas boards, 11” x 14” or your preference. Good quality watercolor paper for watercolor painters. Suggested items:  Masterson Sta-Wet Palette Seal to keep paints moist; glass palette to go inside the box making paint easier to mix; Silicoil jar with spring in the bottom to clean brushes; two tall containers to hold clean and used brushes at your station in the studio. Please email me at sharoncaroldemery@gmail.com if you have any questions. I am always available to help. Max students: 13 Sharon Carol Demery moved from the Bay Area to Los Angeles, where she studied and began her career. There she developed her modern art with an affinity for vibrant color, purity, and simplicity depicting images of abstraction that retain their cohesiveness. She was associated with the 1970s Abstract Illusionism movement. Primarily considered to be an abstract painter, her artistic facility and mixed-genre style depict an artist capable of eluding classification working in both abstraction and representational painting. Sharon has shown in galleries and museums around the country, and her work is in many private and public collections. An award-winning artist, her work has been reviewed and written about in numerous publications like Art Magazine, the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and Images and Issues. Sharon taught painting at Arizona Western College in Yuma, as artist in residence, from 1979 to 1981, after which she moved to San Diego, where she attended UCSD and received the Professional Certificate in Art and the Creative Process. She attended Platt College and received a diploma in graphic design. She also studied human development at San Diego City College. Sharon has been teaching at the Athenaeum’s School of the Arts for 10 years. She has been influenced by her many travels on three continents and the great works of masters like Van Gogh, Cezanne, Matisse, Bonnard, Kandinsky, Grace Hartigan, Lee Krasner, Joan Mitchell, Thiebaud, and Diebenkorn. She says, “Painting for me is about discovery, growth, and human emotion. My goal is to continue studying the masters old and new to continue my journey in painting.” Athenaeum Music & Arts Library on Facebook / Instagram

Investigators have identified Guy Edward Bartkus, 25, as the primary suspect in the explosion that injured four others.

Weinstein's sex crimes conviction in New York was overturned last year. In a new trial, three accusers have testified that Weinstein assaulted them. Closing arguments are underway.

On May 30, a team of researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health got the word: Funding for their vaccine development program will end next year.

Manuel Oliver, father of Parkland shooting victim Joaquin "Guac" Oliver, will bring his one-man play to San Diego this weekend. "I feel like I'm parenting," Oliver said of the performances.

As attendees departed an event held by a Jewish advocacy organization in D.C. on Wednesday night, a shooter opened fire, killing two. Later, he chanted "free Palestine," D.C. police officials said.

Labor unions are trying once again to regulate self-checkout lanes at California stores. This year’s bill waters down a version that died last session, but businesses still warn it will increase costs and lead to consumer frustration.

MiraCosta College Symphony Orchestra (MCCSO) and the Music Teachers’ Association of California (MTAC) Young Artists Showcase II The MiraCosta College Symphony Orchestra would like to invite you to join us for an eventful evening of music making featuring the incredibly talented young artist winners of the MTAC of San Diego’s concerto competition. We will have multiple soloists joining the orchestra for an amazing display of poise and virtuosity. To complete the celebration, the MCCSO will perform P. I. Tchaikovsky's Overture to "Romeo and Juliette." We look forward to sharing a wonderful weekend of music with you! Directed by Branden Muresan Visit: https://miracostatheatre.universitytickets.com/w/event.aspx?SeriesID=43 MiraCosta College on Facebook / Instagram

A new report tries to capture the true cost of incarceration to families of people behind bars. It found it costs them around $350 billion every year — almost four times the government's estimate for the cost of incarceration.