‘Carrying Their Torch’: Celebrating The Preuss School Class of 2026

From the moment they first step on The Preuss School UC San Diego campus, scholars are told they’re going to college.

For Preuss scholars, all of whom are from income-stressed families and strive to be the first in their families to graduate from college, that can feel daunting.

But on June 17, jubilation filled the air as that promise became a reality for more than 100 graduates at Epstein Family Amphitheatre, a milestone that transforms their families' futures and uplifts communities across San Diego.

113

Numbers of 2026 Graduates

98%

Percentage of Preuss scholars accepted into four-year colleges and universities, including Duke, Notre Dame, Vanderbilt, UCLA, UC Berkeley, North Carolina Tech, Boston College and Northeastern

96%

Percentage of Preuss graduates who will remain in California for their higher education

29

Number of Preuss scholars offered admission to UC San Diego

Being first generation makes this moment feel more meaningful, because it’s built on everything [my parents] went through before I was born here...The older I get, the more I realize what I admire most isn’t what they gave me, but how they kept going through everything they faced.

- Daniela Ledesma Ramirez, Class of 2026 Salutatorian