Dozens of San Diego County schools honored for supporting students from military families

California is honoring scores of schools around the state for how well they support military students and families, and more than half of them are in San Diego County.

The California Department of Education bestowed its Purple Star designation on 75 schools Friday, recognizing schools that provide critical transition support for such families.

More than 40 are in San Diego County — including 16 in San Diego Unified, five in Poway Unified, four in Coronado Unified and four in Chula Vista Unified.

Since California began issuing the honor in 2024, it has recognized just over 200 schools, of which more than half are in San Diego County.

To get the nod, a school must offer easily-accessible resources for those students and families who are military-connected. Such schools also provide student-led transition programs to welcome students and acclimate them with their peers.

San Diego County’s newly named Purple Star schools are:

Angier Elementary, San Diego UnifiedBlack Mountain Middle, Poway UnifiedCabrillo Elementary, San Diego UnifiedChaparral Elementary, Poway UnifiedChesterton Elementary, San Diego UnifiedCoronado High, Coronado UnifiedCoronado Middle, Coronado UnifiedCoronado Village Elementary, Coronado UnifiedDailard Elementary, San Diego UnifiedDimensions Collaborative, San Diego County Office of EducationEastlake High, Sweetwater Union HighElevate, San Diego UnifiedE...