Coronado Unified will be asking staff, parents and community members for feedback on the budget at an upcoming Oct. 9 workshop. Community members will also have the opportunity to share ideas before then. The district is working to revise its San Diego County Office of Education approved 2024-25 budget moving forward. “We’re all here,” said […]
Julieta Soto
Julieta is a reporter for The Coronado News, covering education, small business and investigating the Tijuana/Coronado sewage issue. She graduated from UC Berkeley where she studied English, Spanish, and Journalism. Apart from reporting, Julieta enjoys reading, traveling, and spending quality time with family and friends.
Posted inNews
Struggling to meet budget requirements, CUSD faces more potential cutbacks
County education officials have warned Coronado Unified that they will need to make $2.4 million in budget reductions by fiscal year 2026-27. The San Diego County Office of Education (SDCOE) has reviewed and approved the Coronado Unified School District’s 2024-25 adopted budget. But in a letter, SDCOE has requested that the district review subsequent year […]
Posted inNews
Researchers, county reach different conclusions on threat of air quality in Tijuana River Valley
Amid a week-long heat wave, air quality conditions for communities dealing with the ongoing Tijuana sewage crisis worsened as a group studying air pollution in the Tijuana River Valley found high levels of toxic gases in south San Diego communities. After a research team led by professors from San Diego State University and UC San […]
Posted inNews
WWII veteran Walter Travis survived consecutive years of service
Walter Travis, a Coronado resident, was part of the generation of young adult men who fought for the United States military in World War II. The National WWII museum says less than 1% of the 16.4 million Americans who served during that war remain alive as of 2023. Travis, 100, remembers that the war was […]
Posted inNews
Coronado School Board candidate to serve for students and teachers
Shawnee Barton Merriman, a mom of four Coronado Unified students and part-time art faculty member and Wellness Ambassador at California State University, Long Beach, said she has experience navigating difficult situations and helping kids get the emotional support they need in announcing her plans to run for the Coronado school board this month. Merriman is […]
Posted inNews
Coronado School Board candidate envisions parent engagement
Fitzhugh “Fitz” Lee, a Coronado Unified parent and retired naval aviator, has announced his plans to run for the Coronado school board this month to encourage the board to listen to parents and encourage participation. Lee is one of four candidates seeking election to the board, which has two four-year seats open in the 2024 election. […]
Posted inNews
Coronado’s student representative to lead in a memorable year
Dylan Matter vividly recalls the announcement that he was the new president of the Associated Student Body of Coronado High School (ASB) days after tireless campaigning in May. “The whole classroom just like erupted. I walked out into the quad and some people were hugging me and congratulating me and shaking my hand and it […]
Posted inNews
Former council member seeks school board seat in November elections
Bill Sandke, a former Coronado City councilmember, announced his plans to run for the Coronado school board, which has two four-year term seats open in the 2024 election cycle. This week Sandke became the second candidate, after incumbent trustee Renee Cavanaugh, to issue and file documents for the Coronado Unified School District governing board, according […]
Posted inNews
Celebrate Coronado Community Awards will honor local heroes
This fall, the Coronado Chamber of Commerce will be presenting its 43rd annual Celebrate Coronado Community Awards ceremony. The 2024 event will honor outstanding community members and city employees of the year during a four-course, sit-down dinner at Feast and Fareway, 2000 Visalia Row, located in the Coronado Municipal Golf Course. Tickets to attend are […]
Posted inNews
More funding for the Tijuana sewage crisis is in the works
The House of Representatives and Senate recently approved their respective versions of the Water Resources Development Act of 2024 (WRDA), which totals approximately $210 million in funding for San Diego County and the Tijuana River Valley watershed. Earlier this year, $156 million in additional funding was secured for the United States Section of the International […]
Posted inNews
The shift to new water testing continues two years later
The City of Coronado has utilized two different methods for testing the water quality off its coastline ever since San Diego County implemented a new form of testing, droplet digital polymerase chain reaction (ddPCR), two years ago. According to Mayor Richard Bailey, in addition to ddPCR, which tests for fecal indicator bacteria DNA, the City […]
Posted inNews
Report names dirtiest beaches, Coronado considered safe
Seven of the Pacific Coast’s filthiest beaches are along the San Diego and Baja California shoreline that is contaminated by Tijuana sewage, according to a report by Heal the Bay, and Coronado did not make the top 10 list. Heal the Bay is a Santa Monica based non-profit founded in 1985 that is dedicated to […]
Posted inNews
Pat Starke is this year’s president for the Rotary Club of Coronado
Pat Starke begins his second month as this year’s Rotary Club of Coronado president, a role that comes after embodying the magic of the club for the past four decades. Starke, 69, the club’s 99th president, said having fun, doing good things and finding new people to connect with are the three stated goals he […]
Posted inSchools
Filing period for Coronado school board opened through Aug. 9
Two four-year term seats on the school board of the Coronado Unified School District are open in the 2024 election cycle. The candidate filing period began on July 15 and will continue through August 9, according to San Diego County’s candidate schedule. The open seats in Coronado Unified are currently held by Whitney Antrim and […]
Posted inNews
Coronado Unified undergoes district led administrative shuffle
Public education in Coronado will undergo significant leadership changes in 2024-25, with new administrators assigned to the high school, middle school and one elementary school. In a July 9 news release, Coronado Unified School District said the goal is to reorganize resources in the face of a $2.3 million deficit, and in the aftermath of […]
Posted inNews
Embracing family and cultural connectivity across the world
Hana Araujo, who graduated from Coronado High School this spring, knows what it’s like to grow up with more than one way of life. The 18-year-old spent the early part of her life in Mexico City. She has grown up in Coronado since age 5 and makes regular visits to both her mom and dad’s […]