Prospective Barnard Families

ATTENTION SAN DIEGO PARENTS: The San Diego Unified Choice Application for 2025-2026 opens September 23, 2024.

Take a Virtual Tour!

Tour Barnard from the comfort of your own desk! Visit the Tour Our School page on our website to find videos of our classrooms, student ambassadors, and Barnard parents.

Come Tour Our School!

Contact the office at (858) 800-5700 to reserve your spot for an in-person school tour and meet our Principal and some of our students! Walk-ins will not be permitted due to size restrictions. School tours are available on the following dates:

Fast Facts about Barnard Mandarin Magnet Elementary School

• Tuition-free enrollment. Barnard is a TK-5 public magnet school in the San Diego Unified School District, located in Pacific Beach. Interested families should apply in the fall via the District’s “Choice” program.

• Multilingual academic excellence. 80% Mandarin immersion in kindergarten; 50% immersion in grades 1 – 5. California Standard Common Core English and Math instruction.

• Language and culture. Ancient Chinese arts, such as abacus, tai chi, calligraphy, music, and dance, are integrated throughout the curriculum.

• Well-rounded programs. Before and after-school care is available*, in addition to a variety of enrichment programs.

• Supportive community. Our PTA brings additional social, artistic, athletic, and academic opportunities to every student.

Take a Closer Look!

• Take a tour.  Weekly tours for prospective Choice applicants are offered in the fall before the Choice application deadline. Additional tours are scheduled from January through April. Contact the Barnard front office for more information and reserve your spot: 858-800-5700.

• Meet our students. Meet Barnard’s student ambassadors! 

• Meet our parents. We asked some Barnard parents at a recent coffee event why they chose our school for their kids and what they love about Barnard. Watch this video to find out what they had to say.

• Visit some of our classrooms. See our classrooms! Watch these videos for a glimpse of our wonderful teachers and their classrooms. 

• Meet our PTA.  Our PTA board is eager to support our teachers, students, and families in every way possible. Get in touch anytime if you have ideas, concerns, or just want to chat.

How to Enroll

Choice into Barnard. To enroll your student at Barnard you must submit a Choice Application to San Diego Unified School District (SDUSD). The Priority Choice Application Window for the 2025-2026 school year opens on Monday, September 23, 2024, and closes on Monday, November 4, 2024. The Choice Application is not on a first-come, first-serve basis. A lottery will be conducted in January 2025 with email notifications soon after.

If you wish to speak with a parent of an existing student(s), please contact the PTA Board here.

Transfers. Students from outside the San Diego Unified School District may apply to transfer into our school mid-year. Contact our front office at 858-800-5700 for more information.

Helpful Web Sites 

• Barnard Mandarin Magnet Elementary School
• San Diego Unified School District (SDUSD)
• SDUSD Multilingual Education Department

Need more information? 

• Contact the PTA board if you’d like more information. 

We hope to meet you soon!