Un Mar de Colores · San Diego, CA
Competitive Coaching for San Diego Title I Surfers
Annual contest gear package ensures San Diego scholars compete with equipment parity — not borrowed leftovers.
Un Mar de Colores's Surf Athletic Scholarship program supports competitive BIPOC youth and teens from San Diego and the greater San Diego region. Scholarship athletes receive high-performance gear, competition entry fees, coaching, and travel support across the California contest circuit. Local training happens at La Jolla Shores and Tourmaline (closest breaks to San Diego). Referrals and nominations come through San Diego Unified School District athletics programs and our partner community organizations.
Schedule — San Diego Program Days
Ongoing · Completely free
You Might Be Feeling This
- —Judging and heat strategy require coaching your teen can't access without paying premium rates in San Diego.
- —Mental performance and visualization training sound elite-only — nobody offered your teen those tools for free.
- —Your teen deserves contest parity — gear, travel, coaching — but the pipeline assumes San Diego families have disposable income.
What Changes When Youth Get in the Water
- Mental performance and visualization training — contest psychology as funded curriculum, not elite luxury.
- Scholarship recipients often emerge from free surf lessons and camp — clear pipeline from beginner to competitor.
- One-on-one coaching from certified trainers with contest prep expertise — heat strategy, tactics, mental game.
Why We Run This Program in San Diego
San Diego is the second-largest city in California with a 30% Hispanic/Latino population and the 2nd-largest school district in the state. Our San Diego programming spans La Jolla Shores, Tourmaline Surfing Park, Mission Beach, and OB Pier, serving San Diego Unified's 98,000 students — with particular focus on Title I middle and high schools in PB, Mission Bay, and Point Loma.
- Population
- 1,386,932
- BIPOC residents
- 55%
- Spanish-speaking households
- 30%
- Distance to beach
- Coastal
Surf Athletic Scholarship in San Diego — What You Should Know
College surf scholarship counseling for San Diego teens navigates NCAA pathways, alternative scholarships, and honest pro-surfing industry reality — not fantasy branding workshops.
Professional BIPOC surfer mentorship connects San Diego scholars to adults who navigated the same barriers — not white coaches who never faced lineup exclusion.
Why San Diego Matters to Our Mission
Whether San Diego is on the coast or on the coast inland, we treat transportation as part of the program — not an extra parents must figure out. That's how you build real access, not marketing copy.
San Diego families deserve instructors who look like their kids and speak their language. With 55% BIPOC residents, bilingual coaching isn't a nice-to-have — it's how we earn trust on day one.
Local San Diego Partners & Referral Sources
In partnership with San Diego Unified School District and local community organizations, we recruit youth from 5+ Title I schools.
School district & Title I partners
- San Diego Unified School District
- •Kate Sessions Elementary
- •Mission Beach Elementary
- •Pacific Beach Middle
- •Mission Bay High
- •Point Loma High
Community partners
- ◆San Diego Unified School District
- ◆San Diego Junior Lifeguards
- ◆Scripps Institution of Oceanography
- ◆San Diego Public Library
- ◆Mission Bay Aquatic Center
Program Curriculum
The Surf Athletic Scholarship program supports BIPOC youth and teens pursuing competitive surfing at the scholarship or professional level. The program provides high-performance wetsuits and boards, pays all competition entry fees, covers contest travel costs across the California circuit, and provides one-on-one coaching from certified trainers. Scholarship recipients are mentored by alumni and partner professional BIPOC surfers, and the program specifically addresses the financial barriers that have historically excluded Latino, Indigenous, and Black youth from the competitive surf pipeline.
- →Competitive coaching and contest prep
- →Physical conditioning and nutrition
- →Mental performance and visualization
- →Sponsorship navigation and athlete branding
- →Mentorship from professional BIPOC surfers
- →College and pro-surfing pathway counseling
What's Included — Free for Every San Diego Youth
- ✓High-performance wetsuits and boards
- ✓Competition entry fees paid
- ✓Travel costs for California contest circuit
- ✓One-on-one coaching from certified trainers
- ✓Physical therapy and injury prevention
- ✓Annual contest gear package
Why Un Mar de Colores
Board and staff leadership is BIPOC-majority. Decisions about San Diego programming are made with community partners, not corporate sponsors.
What our community says
“"He used to approach new activities with extreme anxiety — to the point where sometimes we couldn't even get out of the car. Now he goes much deeper into the water."”
Frequently Asked Questions — Surf Athletic Scholarship in San Diego
Are contest entry fees paid for San Diego scholars?+
Yes — NSSA, WSA, and regional qualifier entry fees across the California contest circuit are paid for scholarship athletes. San Diego families aren't choosing between groceries and contest registration.
Is there college counseling for San Diego scholarship surfers?+
Yes — college and pro-surfing pathway counseling covers NCAA surf scholarships, alternative pathways, and honest industry navigation. San Diego teens get support beyond contest heats.
Who mentors scholarship athletes from San Diego?+
Professional BIPOC surfers and Un Mar alumni who navigated contest barriers — representation matters for San Diego athletes who rarely see mentors who share their background in competitive lineups.
Are surf athletic scholarship in San Diego really free?+
Yes. All Un Mar de Colores programs in San Diego are 100% free — including 3/2mm wetsuits, soft-top surfboards, transportation from partner schools like Kate Sessions Elementary, Mission Beach Elementary, Pacific Beach Middle, and certified bilingual instruction. Funding comes from the San Diego Foundation, community grants, and individual donors. No San Diego family has ever paid for our programming.
Where exactly do surf athletic scholarship happen in San Diego?+
Primary water sessions run at La Jolla Shores. Classroom components happen at San Diego Unified School District and other partner sites. All water activities happen within lifeguard-flag zones.
What ages can enroll in San Diego?+
We serve youth ages Youth & teens. In San Diego specifically, our recruitment runs through San Diego Unified School District — with priority enrollment for students from Kate Sessions Elementary, Mission Beach Elementary, Pacific Beach Middle and 2 other Title I schools. Cohorts are age-appropriate (One Ocean for 6–12, Ocean Stewards for 13–17).
Does my child need to know how to swim before starting?+
No. We begin every cohort with ocean-safety fundamentals in chest-deep whitewater at La Jolla Shores, supervised by instructors certified by the San Diego Fire-Rescue Lifeguard Division. Water comfort is built progressively. In San Diego, we also run pre-cohort pool-familiarization sessions at local community pools for students who request extra comfort-building.
Are lessons taught in Spanish in San Diego?+
Yes. All Un Mar de Colores programs are bilingual — and in San Diego, where 30% of households are Spanish-speaking, we intentionally pair at least one bilingual coach to every session. Cultural programming is delivered in both languages, and parent communications are always sent in Spanish and English.
How is Un Mar de Colores different from other surf athletic scholarship in San Diego?+
Three ways: (1) everything is free, while most San Diego surf programs charge $50–$150 per lesson; (2) we are BIPOC-led and our coaches reflect the 55%-BIPOC San Diego community we serve; (3) our curriculum includes environmental justice, Kumeyaay coastal history, and cultural arts — not just surf skills. We exist because the ocean should belong to everyone in San Diego, not just those who can afford access.
How do I sign my San Diego child up?+
Visit our sign-up page or contact us directly. Priority enrollment goes to students of Kate Sessions Elementary, Mission Beach Elementary, Pacific Beach Middle and referrals from San Diego Unified School District and San Diego Junior Lifeguards. Summer cohorts fill 3–4 weeks before start, so early contact is recommended.
Ready to Get in the Water?
Ready to get your child in the water? Contact Un Mar de Colores — priority enrollment for San Diego Title I school students.
All Un Mar de Colores programs are free for San Diego youth. Reach out to enroll, volunteer, or support the movement.
Un Mar de Colores is a BIPOC-led 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Oceanside, California. We provide free surf, ocean, and environmental programming for youth across San Diego and Tijuana — bridging cultures, coasts, and communities since 2018.
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