La Jolla Students Will Participate In National School Walkout

SAN DIEGO COUNTY, CA – Thousands of students are expected to participate in a national walkout Wednesday, one month after the tragic shooting at a Florida school. The walkout is part of a nationwide effort to protest gun violence, push lawmakers to strengthen gun control laws and remember the victims.

Organizers of the Women's March called on students, teachers, administrators and parents to participate in the ENOUGH National School Walkout for 17 minutes Wednesday in honor of the 17 lives lost on Valentine's Day at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida. The national school walkout will be held at 10 a.m. at K-12 schools and colleges across the country.

"Students and staff have the right to teach and learn in an environment free from the worry of being gunned down in their classrooms or on their way home from school," organizers said. "Parents have the right to send their kids to school in the mornings and see them home alive at the end of the day."

From Cardiff to Chula Vista, dozens of schools across San Diego County are participating in the national protest, according to the Women's March website.

Some schools in the county have planned other events in support of the cause.

In the San Diego Unified School District alone, there are at least 43 schools that plan to hold some kind of student-organized demonstration, district officials said. Although the district has not released a list of participating schools, Patrick Henry High School has been confirmed as one of the sites.

"The San Diego Unified School District is proud that so many students have taken initiative and organized thoughtful demonstrations to honor the 17 victims of the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School through expressions of poetry, art, music and civic empowerment," said district spokeswoman Maureen Magee. "San Diego Unified supports students' rights to peaceful assembly and free expression. Our top priority is to support the safety, security and social emotional needs of all students and staff."

Here's a list of local schools participating in the ENOUGH National School Walkout, according to the Women's March website:

Alpine

• Creekside Early Learning Center/Shadow Hills Elementary School

Cardiff

• Ada Harris Elementary School

Chula Vista

• Bayfront Charter High School
• Bonita Vista High School
• Bonita Vista Middle School
• Eastlake High School
• Hilltop High School
• Otay Ranch High School

Coronado

• Coronado Middle School

El Cajon

• Grossmont College
• Grossmont High School

Escondido

• San Pasqual High School

Imperial Beach

• Mar Vista High School

La Jolla

• La Jolla High School

Oceanside

• Oceanside High School

Poway

• Poway High School

Rancho Santa Fe

• R. Rodger Rowe School

San Diego

• Albert Einstein Academy Middle School
• Cathedral Catholic High School
• Del Norte High School
• High Tech High Village
• IFTIN Charter School
• Montgomery High School
• Mt. Carmel High School
• Point Loma High School
• San Diego City College
• San Diego High School
• San Ysidro High School
• Southwest High School
• Standley Middle School
• Torrey Pines High School
• Westview High School

San Marcos

• Mission Hills High School
• San Marcos High School

Santee

• Santana High School

Solana Beach

• Earl Warren Middle School

Vista

• Rancho Buena Vista High School

Photo via Autumn Johnson/Patch