A 7-year-old Rancho Peñasquitos private school student has been diagnosed with whooping cough and may have exposed others to the disease, county health officials announced Thursday. The news release: A student at a Rancho Peñasquitos private school was diagnosed with pertussis, also known as whooping cough, County Health and Human Services Agency officials said [Thursday]. A 7-year-old who was up-to-date on immunizations and attends The Cambridge School potentially exposed others to the contagious disease. The new case brings the San Diego region’s pertussis case total to 19.  “Regular …

Poway Unified School District officials are working with the county to offer free tuberculosis testing at Mount Carmel High School in Rancho Peñasquitos on Tuesday amid concerns that students and staff may have been exposed to the airborne disease by an infected person on campus. Of the approximately 1,900 students at Mount Carmel, about 200-230 may have been exposed and were notified by school officials about the testing, said Dr. Kathleen Moser, the director of the Tuberculosis Control Program for the County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency. County health officials sent out a …

The County Health and Human Services Agency on Monday reported that students and staff at Mount Carmel High School in Rancho Peñasquitos may have been exposed to tuberculosis.  The news release: An individual at Mt. Carmel High School was recently diagnosed with tuberculosis (TB) and may have exposed students and staff to the disease, the San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA) reported [Monday]. HHSA is working in close collaboration with the Poway Unified School District to notify those who were possibly exposed. The period of exposure is from Jan. 3, 2012, to March 6, 2012…

The award-winning Los Peñasquitos Academy is one of several local organizations banking on a giveBIG fundraising campaign by the San Diego Foundation to help expand and maintain its current crop of services. "Each year we struggle," said Anthony Bayro, a third grade teacher in the academy. "This year is the year that we've come the closest to shutting down." The academy is described as a "school within a school," a five class network that provides an extra hour of morning instruction, and eight days over the summer, for 168 students at Los Peñasquitos Elementary School in Rancho Peñasquitos. …

Los Peñasquitos Elementary School has been named a National Blue Ribbon School for the second time, one of 21 California campuses to receive the distinction for 2010-11, it was announced Thursday. "Congratulations to all 21 schools, and the students, teachers, school employees, administrators, and parents who worked hard to earn the title Blue Ribbon School,” State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson said in a statement. “Today’s awards are just one more sign of the dedication California’s educators have to improving opportunities for students, even in the face of painful …

So many moments got them excited. When Henry the spider, as the Rolling Hills Elementary School students called him, reappeared in a corner of the garden. When they talked about donating fruits and vegetables from their garden to local families in need. And when—in the most fist-pumping moment of all—the bouncy students described their favorite part of gardening: pulling weeds. "You have to get as close to the root (as you can)," 11-year-old Kyle Simmons said. Simmons is one of nearly two dozen students in Rolling Hills Elementary School's Extended Student Services Program spending the summer…

On Thursday, the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System and Coca Cola awarded 40 students with laptops and a certificate for their outstanding essays on the future of public transportation. Cynthia Bush of Mt. Carmel High School was among the honorees.  She was selected from almost 200 entries from students around San Diego County. The essays answered the question, “Where do you see public transportation in the next 30 years?” Find us on Facebook and Twitter @RBPatch.

A man was injured near Deer Canyon Elementary School in Rancho Peñasquitos on Tuesday when the school bus he was driving went over an embankment and hit a tree and two other vehicles before crashing into a home's garage, police said. No students were on the bus at the time and none were injured, San Diego police Lt. Andra Brown said. The bus was pulling into the school around 1:30 p.m. when it struck an unoccupied parked vehicle, went over an embankment and hit a tree. The bus then continued back into the street, where it hit an occupied vehicle in the roadway and continued into the garage of…

Mt. Carmel High School students recently took some time to record messages of hope for teens in Japan affected by the devastating tsunami and earthquake. The final cut of the video is now ready and available on YouTube. It has also been attached to this story. Check it out! Tyler Kidd, the Mt. Carmel sophomore who had the idea for the hope message, left a comment on a previous story about the video, saying: "I hope that this will let people in Japan know that someone cares about them. I hope this video will cheer someone up even if it is just a day, minute, or just a second in their life. I …

Mt. Carmel High School students turned the campus red in honor of Japan on Friday, and recorded a video message of hope for students in the earthquake damaged country. It was the idea of 15-year-old sophomore Tyler Kidd, who said he has relatives in Japan. But this wasn't about his family. Kidd said he wanted to show people in Japan that students of different races, cultures and backgrounds also cared about the plight of Japanese people. Dr. Michael Inoue, the honorary consul general for Japan in San Diego, spoke before a packed gym at lunchtime Friday as they recorded their message. "Ganbare…

Mesa Verde Middle School’s Select Ensemble made history at the Heritage Festivals' 2011 Festival of Gold in Chicago. The group received the highest score at the music festival, becoming the first middle school to do so in the more than 30-year history. “Just going there was neat for us to be recognized on a national level,” Mesa Verde Principal Cliff Mitchell said. “For us to come away with the top score, and having our kids being asked back to play an encore performance, having them receive a standing ovation from everyone in the Chicago Symphony Hall, really brings it home for our kids.” …

Dozens of local seventh and eighth graders will soon take the stage at Chicago Symphony Hall Mesa Verde Middle School’s Select Ensemble is one of three middle school groups invited to the Heritage Festival's 2011 Festival of Gold March 18-22. The other 10 ensembles are comprised of high school students. “This is truly a once in a lifetime opportunity for these kids,” said Jay Posteraro, director of bands. “I am honored our group has this opportunity to travel to such a wonderful city.” Mesa Verde Middle School is also the only middle school represented in the Honor Band. Eleven students were …

A 16-year-old Mt. Carmel High School student was one of four new cases of whooping cough where public exposure might have occurred announced Wednesday by county health officials. The 16-year-old was due for a booster shot, according to a county news release. This and the other three cases in Oceanside, San Marcos and San Diego Unified school districts bring the total number of pertussis cases this year to 116, officials said. "Pertussis is still very active in our community, said Eric McDonald, county deputy public health officer. "We encourage people to get vaccinated. It's the best defense …

Some might say it's not really a science fair unless there's an oozing volcano somewhere. The quota was met—and then some—at Sunset Hills Elementary School in Rancho Peñasquitos on Thursday night. Judged by real-life scientists, the science fair gave kindergarten through fifth-graders the chance to show off their science skills. There was a splashy hydroelectric dam; popping balloons; and a disco-esque laser light exhibit. Participation in the fair was optional, though some teachers are awarding extra credit for the effort. In each grade, students were picked by the judges for honorable …