One school. Three generations. The same values since 1978.
Since our humble beginnings, we’ve been part of the social growth, personal development, and educational journey of generations of children in San Diego County. We believe the elementary years are the most formative of a child’s life, a time that can spark a lifelong curiosity to learn.
Judi Panton (right) and Wini Rassmussen break ground on the current site of Del Mar Pines School, ahead of its Fall 1990 opening.
Teach the child, not the class average.
In 1978, Judi Panton and Wini Rassmussen set out to create a school where children would be taught at their own ability level. Judi, trained as a speech and language pathologist and reading specialist, believed every child needed a strong phonics foundation paired with a whole-language approach to reading. That belief has guided how Del Mar Pines teaches reading ever since.
The same evidence-based philosophy shaped how DMP teaches math, building a strong conceptual understanding of how numbers work, especially within our base-10 system, so students move confidently from concrete ideas to abstract ones as they progress through the grades.
In Judi’s own words
Written by founder Judi Panton, preserved here as it was originally written.
When I founded Del Mar Pines School over a quarter century ago, it was a labor of love. Love for education. Love for teaching and learning. And most of all, love for children.
Our beginnings were remarkable. A ramshackle ranch surrounded by open fields and stables, with not a home in sight. A few typewriters, an overworked mimeograph machine, and a beautiful stone fireplace. Four incredible teachers. And forty-three eager students, along with their very supportive parents.
Today, Del Mar Pines is huddled in a tree-lined residential neighborhood a few hundred yards from its original location. Computers and copiers have replaced their antiquated colleagues, and the fireplace is nowhere to be found. There are now 154 students and 22 professional educators.
While much has changed, much more remains the same. Every student is still given an array of time-tested scholastic tools, and taught how to use them. The School continues to reach each child at his or her present ability level, and work with them to achieve their full academic potential. And all students still experience success every single day.
I’ve been extremely fortunate. I’ve served as a speech, language and reading specialist, as a member of California Governor Wilson’s Commission on Academic Standards, and as an educator and administrator. And I’ve had the opportunity to work with an array of outstanding teachers, staff members and parents who’ve left a lasting imprint on Del Mar Pines, its programs and its students.
Now, as a mother and grandmother, I continue to see children whose lives are being transformed by the School’s stimulating curriculum and supportive environment. I see students who are both independent and responsible, inquisitive and conscientious, focused and compassionate. And I see the same Del Mar Pines I created nearly three decades ago — one that challenges the mind and engages the heart.
Three generations, one school: John, Judi, and Marci.
From a teacher in 1990 to owner in 2014.
Marci McCord, Judi’s daughter, joined Del Mar Pines as a teacher in 1990. Over the years she taught second, third, and sixth grade, then became the school’s business manager while continuing to teach accelerated math to 6th graders. In 2014, Marci took ownership of the school, continuing the work her mother started 36 years earlier.
Both of Marci’s children attended Del Mar Pines from kindergarten through 6th grade, and her son John now works at the school himself. Judi Panton is enjoying retirement in San Diego, watching her legacy continue under her daughter’s leadership.
“With an experienced, dedicated, and exceptional group of teachers and staff, as well as wonderful families who support our school in numerous ways, students at Del Mar Pines continue to receive one of the best private school educations in San Diego County.”
Explore our history.
Judi Panton and Wini Rassmussen founded Del Mar Pines School in an old ranch house surrounded by open land.
Judi Panton and Wini Rassmussen break ground on the current site, ahead of the school’s Fall 1990 opening.
Marci McCord joins Del Mar Pines as a teacher, the start of the second generation at the School.
Del Mar Pines earns WASC accreditation, formally recognizing its academic program.
Marci McCord becomes Director and owner, continuing her mother’s legacy.
150 students, K–6, ranked in the top 2.5% of schools nationally by Niche.
Del Mar Pines will celebrate half a century of knowing every child.
There’s more to discover.
We invite you to learn more about Del Mar Pines and how we teach.
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