July 25, 2026 – San Diego, CA – Today, San Diego Foundation (SDF) celebrated a record $5,670,832 in scholarships awarded to 1,057 students during its annual Scholarship Celebration at the San Diego Zoo. The event brought together scholarship recipients, their families and donors recognize student achievement and the collective investment expanding access to higher education across San Diego County. The scholarships will help students pursue college, trade school, graduate and professional education through San Diego Foundation’s (SDF) Community Scholarship Program.

Among this year’s scholarship recipients:

  • Three out of four identify as first-generation college students
  • 94% reported low- to middle-income status as part of the scholarship application process
  • More than half participated in a college-access and readiness program, such as AVID, Reality Changers and TRIO/Upward Bound

The event recognized the collective investment of donors and volunteer scholarship evaluators in students pursuing their educational goals and featured keynote remarks from Dr. Ashanti Hands, president of San Diego Mesa College, along with scholarship recipient and incoming UC Irvine student Obidullah Mahmoodi, as well as San Diego Foundation leadership.

See photos and b-roll here (permission granted for media use).

“Higher education is one of the great engines of possibility,” said Mark Stuart, President and CEO of San Diego Foundation. “Every scholarship reflects a donor’s belief in a student’s potential. By opening that path to more local students, we are not only changing individual lives, but we are also investing in the promise of our region.”

Obidullah Mahmoodi, a first-generation college student, SDF scholarship recipient and student speaker at this year’s celebration, will attend UC Irvine this fall to study computer science.

“My teachers and mentors encouraged me to trust my voice, take on new challenges and step into leadership,” Mahmoodi said. “Their belief in me, and the support of this scholarship, continues to give me the confidence to keep learning and use technology to create solutions that strengthen the communities I care about.”

Scholarship recipients include graduating high school seniors, community college students, graduate students and adults returning to school to pursue college, trade school, graduate and professional education in fields ranging from STEM and health sciences to business and the arts.

The Community Scholarship Program is made possible through the generosity of charitable funds at San Diego Foundation, the largest non-university scholarship provider in San Diego County.

To establish a scholarship fund through San Diego Foundation, contact Cecilia Morales, Director of College Success, at CMorales@SDFoundation.org.

About San Diego Foundation

San Diego Foundation believes in just, equitable, and resilient communities where every San Diegan can prosper, thrive and feel like they belong. We partner with donors, nonprofits and regional leaders to advance solutions that respond to community needs and strengthen San Diego. Since 1975, SDF has granted more than $2 billion to nonprofits to improve quality of life in San Diego County and beyond. Learn more at SDFoundation.org.

Media Contact

Emily Alvarenga
951-694-2742
emily@intesacom.com