2025 Aspen Challenge: San Diego

Welcome to the 2025 Aspen Challenge: San Diego Challenge Forum! We are thrilled to be returning to San Diego, and working with the brilliant and talented students and educators of San Diego Unified School District. We are excited to be in community together, discussing societal challenges you may be facing in San Diego and that young people experience across the country. Today, we will hear from leading thinkers who tackle some of our world’s toughest problems. These experts will pose their challenge statements to you, tasking you to design creative and innovative solutions that will benefit your community, your city, and beyond. We believe that you have what it takes to make demonstrable change in San Diego and we can’t wait to see the unique solutions you design over the next ten weeks!

The Challenge Forum will take place on February 4, 2025, 8:45 am – 3:45 pm PT at Building 177 at Liberty Station.

The Solution Showcase will take place on April 15, 2025, 8:45 am – 6:30 pm PT at Liberty Station Conference Center.

San Diego Unified School District Participating Schools

San Diego Unified School District has a core focus on equity and belonging so all students and staff in San Diego Unified may thrive in school and beyond. 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. Under the leadership of Interim Superintendent Dr. Fabi Bagula, 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 following 15 schools will participate in the Aspen Challenge: San Diego 2025:

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

*This school is a part of San Diego County Department of Education. Two teams will be participating from San Diego SOAR Academy.

Founding Partners

The Aspen Challenge was launched by the Aspen Institute and the Bezos Family Foundation.

The Aspen Institute is a global nonprofit organization committed to realizing a free, just, and equitable society. Founded in 1949, the Institute drives change through dialogue, leadership, and action to help solve the most important challenges facing the United States and the world. Headquartered in Washington, DC, the Institute has a campus in Aspen, Colorado, and an international network of partners. The Aspen Challenge is a part of the Leadership Division at the Aspen Institute, whose programs are committed to the development of values-based leaders that proactively confront societal challenges – both individually and collectively – in order to create a more just, fair, and equitable society

The Bezos Family Foundation supports rigorous, inspired learning environments for young people, from birth through high school, to put their education into action. Through investments in research, public awareness, and programs, the foundation works to elevate the field of education and improve life outcomes for all children.