Challenger News
2026-2027, #3
Fabian Escobedo, LCSW
Drop-off/Pick-up Safety Issues
Fire Lane: The fire lane is the driveway that runs past the visitor's parking lot, the bike rack, and down to the PE fields. It must remain clear. It is illegal to park in any fire lane. Please do not park or idle and wait for your student in this red zone.
Parking Lots: Please do not use the staff or visitor parking lots to drop-off or pick-up students. Mixing pedestrians with vehicles is a safety hazard. The visitor lot may be used when parents are escorting their student to and from the PrimeTime classroom.
Supervision: Morning supervision starts at 7:55 AM. We ask that students not arrive to campus prior to that time.
Afternoon supervision is limited to 5 minutes after the bell rings. At that time, students are asked to be off campus and be on their way home. Any students who remain on campus after school must be under staff supervision in a club meeting, tutoring, library, sports, or PrimeTime. Please work out an after-school plan with your student to leave campus in a timely fashion and have a backup plan so your student knows what to do if their ride is delayed.
Traffic: There's no winner if a car hits a pedestrian. Please follow these tips when driving in front of our campus.
- Pull over to the curb to drop off or pick up a student. It's illegal and unsafe to do it in the middle of the road. It blocks traffic, frustrates drivers, and may cause them to go around and put the child in an unsafe position in the middle of the street.
- Due to visibility issues, please keep street corners clear for students who are crossing the street. Do not park or drop off/pick up students at corners. Daylighting laws apply.
- Slow down in school zones. It's worth a few extra seconds to save someone from injury.
- U-turns are illegal in front of the school. A U-turn causes more congestion and problems with the flow of traffic.
- Our priority is to move students safely to and from campus. In the morning, the crosswalk will be used more as the school start time of 8:15 AM approaches. Allow extra time for congestion and traffic stoppage.
- Please keep your vehicle 30 feet from the crosswalks when pedestrians are crossing. This provides additional safety buffer zone for our students and allows cars to also turn to help with the flow of traffic.
We greatly appreciate your help with keeping all of our students safe. Finally, please help us be a good neighbor to the homes that surround us. Do not honk your horn or park in front of their driveways.
Tinikling Dance with Filipino Club
ASB students serving pizza dinner.
Use a parent account to make changes.
Under new federal standards, people with origins in the Middle East or North Africa have been separated from the white racial category. PowerSchool has been updated to reflect this change.
If you would like to update your student's racial category, please login to the Portal with a parent account to make any changes or additions. Parents/guardians may select multiple racial categories for their children.
The new Middle Eastern or North African (MENA) categories include Afghan, Chaldean/Assryrian/Syriac, Iranian, Iraqi, Israeli, Kurdish, Lebanese, Palestinian, Somali, Syrian, and Other MENA.
Personalize, Order, and They Will be Mailed Home
Pictures from picture day have been posted Josten's website. You are able to preview school pictures, select a background, and even personalize with text when you order school pictures. Order as many pictures as you want and the pictures will be mailed directly to your home!
When registering for an account with Josten's Pix, please use primary email as listed with the school. This is for security reasons. If you are unsure which is the primary email, please login to PowerSchool and look at the first parent/guardian listed. Questions? 1-877-515-1447
Event Code for Challenger's Picture Day: FE34626
- Preview your student's school pictures online. Pictures will be posted a few days after Picture Day.
- Personalize - You can select the background and add your student's name.
- Pay - Purchase only the pictures you want. They will be mailed to your address.
Order a Yearbook Now for Cheapest Price
Challenger yearbook staff once again hits a high note with a first place award at the San Diego County Fair. Congratulations to our amazing students and their teacher, Ms. Martin!
Don't miss out on getting your yearbook for the best price of the year. It's only $45.00! You can start a payment plan and lock in the price. If you start now, you could pay only $5 a month and be all set for when the yearbook is released in May.
Online ordering is the easiest way. It's only $45 to save all those memories in one place.
Yearbook Order Form with QR Code
If you choose to order in person from the Finance Office, please bring the completed order form with cash. Exact change is appreciated. We can not make change for large bills.
Hello, sports fans!!!
We are almost ready to start the fall season! We have rosters for boys’ track and field, girls’ track and field, and girls’ basketball. The boys’ basketball head coach has not made final cuts just yet. If you see any of the following students, please congratulate them on making the team and representing Challenger with pride:
Girls’ Basketball: Isla Manosca, Aleeya Vanhuang, Mireille Santos, Kelsey Corpus, Alana Rocco, Jemma Albury, Izabella Pantovic, Starlynn Homsombath, Anastasia Randorff, Maddie Isiaho, Idalia Moreno, Marieana Manzon, Naomi Tagliareni, Naya Hassan, Jade Goss.
Girls’ Track and Field: Abiria Ekikhalo, Chloe Baaten, Keeva Bartlett, Jade Brame, Dakota Idhe, Sydney Kessler, Nikki LaMar, Hannah LaPage, Kylah Menta, Aria Lani Oclima, Aleia Organo, Sophia Powell, Amara Taja, Kennedy Williams, Penelope Rose Yi
Boys’ Track and Field: Bayani Brand, Luis Del Angel, Jordan Dominguez, Caleb Fleming, Bradley Hall, Zion Kirkpatrick, Kaedan Lam, Jeffrey Liu, August McKean, Iane Ordonez, Oliver Oshiro, Cairo Otani, Russel Roslin, Nicholas Sanchez, Gabriel Taja.
The season starts on September 12th. Check the website for game times and locations (they are not currently posted.)
- Coach Jon Colby, CMS Middle School Athletics Liasion
Ms. Fatima Haghi
Counselor, Student's Last Name A-G
Speaks Somali
Ms. An Vo
Counselor, Student's Last Name H-N
Speaks Vietnamese
Ms. Stephanie Hosking
Counselor, Student's Last Name O-Z
We are still missing forms and will be sending paper forms home soon.
Use a Parent Account to Sign In to the Portal to complete the forms,
- Health Form - The school nurse needs your student's health information to provide the best support. Missing 351 forms.
- LCFF - Help the school get more money to support students. Look for the icon at the bottom of the screen. Missing 111 forms.
- Universal Signature - Read the Family Resource Guide and sign the annual notification form. Missing 425 forms.
PTO Panda Express Fundraiser - September 8
You can support Challenger's PTO and have yummy food all at the same time. Panda Express will donate 20% of the event sales. Be sure show the flyer or use order code 3864891 when ordering online or through the app. We appreciate your support!
Panda Express - Mira Mesa mall
Tuesday, September 8 - All Day
Order Code: 3864891 Fundraiser Flyer
Do Good With Chipotle! - September 16
A Chipotle fundraiser for the Challenger Instrumental Music Association (CIMA) takes place on Wednesday, September 16 from 4:00-8:00 PM. Twenty-five percent of event sales will be donated to the cause.
Order online for easy pickup by using code 2PTFTMG
Help Challenger While You Shop at Ralph's
The Ralph's Community Contribution Program helps to fundraise for organizations based on the shopping activities of people who have linked their Shopper's Cards to their choice of charity.
It's easy and quick to link your Shopper's Card. Please follow the directions on this page to help Challenger earn rewards!
Thank you for supporting the Book Fair! PTO raised $4000 for the library!
Suicide Prevention Month
Learn the warning signs of suicide for the people in your life, and for yourself. Changes in mood, sleep, or behavior; withdrawing from others; talking about having no reason to live at SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration).
National Preparedness Month
Weather emergencies, fires, earthquakes, and other emergency situations can and will happen. Mira Mesa has had multiple fires that threatened homes in recent months. The predicted El Nino will bring stormy weather with lots of rain.
Make sure your family is prepared by reviewing your family plan annually.
- Discuss with your children how to handle each emergency and be sure to talk about what happens of a parent or another adult isn't around to help.
- Have your children memorized important phone numbers and addresses? Do they know the names contact information for other adults on which they can rely?
- Check to see that your emergency food and water supplies are current.
- Do you have a bug out bag ready to go in case of evacuation?
- Remember to prepare for your furry, feathered, and scaled friends. Pet will need emergency supplies as well.
Check out Ready.gov for more details on how to plan for emergencies for your family.
Do Your Homework at the Mira Mesa Public Library
There's a free Homework Lab at the Mira Mesa Public Library. They can assist students in grades K-8 between 3-6 PM, Mondays-Thursdays.
The free DYH@L Homework Help through the San Diego Public Libraries is available to students in grades K-8. This includes homework coaches, learning materials, computers, online research tools, and other digital resources.
Do Your Homework @ the Public Library Flyer: English Somali Spanish Tagalog Vietnamese
Military Child of the Year Nominations are Open
Submissions are OPEN for the esteemed Operation Homefront 2026 Military Child of the Year® Awards, the nation’s premier recognition of the outstanding achievements of our military children. Submissions will close on December 1, 2026. Awardees will receive $10,000, a laptop computer, and a trip to Washington, D.C.
Please click here for more details about the awards and the eligibility requirements.
