With nerves buzzing and mental dictionaries ready, Bonita Unified students took center stage for the District’s 20th Annual Spelling Bee on Feb. 2, transforming the Bonita Center for the Arts into a high-stakes arena of vocabulary and composure where 56 students battled one by one, ready to spell their way to victory. The competition unfolded over multiple rounds with the field narrowing word by word. In the end, Ally Abad, a fifth-grader from Gladstone Elementary School, claimed first place, followed by fellow Gladstone fifth-grader Maddox Macias in second, and Shull Elementary fourth-grader Sophia Salvador in third place. The win marked the fourth consecutive time a Gladstone student captured the Bonita Unified School District Spelling Bee title.
Wearing golden crowns and gathering among shelves of storybooks, Shull Elementary School families were transported to lands far, far away in January for the first Family Reading Night of the 2026, an event designed to strengthen literacy skills while reinforcing the school’s culture of family partnership and academic excellence. Shull’s Family Reading Nights are intended to bring families into the learning process, reinforcing reading as a shared responsibility extending beyond the classroom. By creating opportunities for families to engage with books, educators and one another, the event encourages building literacy habits at home that complement daily instruction at school.
When San Dimas High School junior and athletic standout Tiffany Villegas was just four years old, she joined her brother’s Little League T-Ball team, getting her first taste of competition on a baseball diamond. Switching to softball as a kindergartner, Villegas quickly developed into a five-tool prospect, moving to travel softball at 10 years old. Now, Villegas is set to fulfill her dream of playing softball for an elite university, as well as attend an Ivy League school, after committing to the application process at Harvard University for the 2027-28 school year. Villegas, who has a 4.5 GPA, plans to major in biology on her way to medical school and is interested in a career as an anesthesiologist.
Lone Hill Middle School’s Where Everybody Belongs (WEB) program is strengthening campus culture by helping sixth graders transition into middle school and providing eighth-grade students with meaningful leadership opportunities. Now in her third year overseeing the program, adviser Katryna Estrada has developed WEB as a key driver of inclusivity and student connection on campus.
San Dimas High School junior Jacqueline Chen first displayed her athletic prowess at nine years old, when she took a 15-foot dive off a cliff in Cancun, Mexico. Since then, her athleticism has taken her across the globe to international competitions, where she has won numerous medals. Soon she will make another big jump, to the Ivy League, after verbally committing to Harvard University. It has been a whirlwind year for Chen, who recently qualified, along with her sister, San Dimas freshman Barbara Chen, for the 2026 Asian Games, where they will represent Chinese Taipei. The Chen sisters earned a bronze medal in the Women’s Synchronized 3M Final competition at the Asian Aquatics Championships, held in India in September.
Sleigh bells will be ringing on Christmas Eve for the Bonita High School Chamber Singers as they deck the halls for the 66th Annual L.A. County Holiday Celebration, to be held at The Music Center’s Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, a festive night that showcases the artistry, talent, and cultural traditions of nearly two dozen Southern California-based artists at the storied concert venue. Bonita’s 32-member Chamber Singers will share the stage with a diverse cross-section of L.A. County’s finest performance acts, including singers, dancers, puppeteers, and brass bands. Each act will perform for five minutes during a live in-person show that will be broadcast live on PBS SoCal on Wednesday, Dec. 24 from 3 to 6 p.m. The Chamber Singers will perform during between 5 to 6 p.m.
Eight Bonita Unified educators will bring hands-on, play-based classroom projects to life after receiving more than $3,300 in mini-grants from the Rotary Club of La Verne, which continued its tradition of supporting innovation across the District during the Dec. 3 Board of Education meeting. The service organization awarded individual grants ranging from $150 to $500, providing teachers with resources that strengthen academic engagement, build developmental skills, and enrich the learning environment for students across grade levels.
Rich harmonies and melodious joy echoed through the University of Redland’s Memorial Chapel in November, heralding the Southern California Vocal Association’s (SCVA) annual Southern California Regional Honor Choirs performances, which featured 31 Bonita Unified vocalists among the 250-member choirs – 29 from Bonita High School and two from San Dimas High School. This is the second consecutive year that Bonita Unified singers have dominated the SCVA Honor Choirs, highlighting the success of the District’s Visual and Performing Arts (VAPA) program, which encourages students to begin studying music in fourth grade, then provides them with top-level instruction throughout elementary, middle, and high school.
Thirty-three Bonita Unified School District educators received more than $13,000 in teacher mini-grants from the La Verne/San Dimas Educational Foundation (LVSDEF) during the Nov. 5 Board of Education meeting, aimed at bolstering hands-on and engaging educational experiences. The grants will fund projects that strengthen instruction in literacy, science, arts, technology, and collaborative learning. Educators will use the funds to purchase classroom tools, and provide resources that support growth in key academic areas.
