Assailant in assault on Aussie man gets 2 years One of two men who attacked an Australian tourist in Ocean Beach was sentenced Monday to two years in state prison, but was given credit for spending nearly a year in jail already. Francisco Montoya, 47, will serve about a year more before he is paroled. San Diego Superior Court Judge David Danielsen denied probation and followed the plea agreement with Montoya and the District Attorney’s office. Charges of aggravated mayhem and torture were dismissed against Montoya. Montoya pleaded guilty Feb. 13 to assault with a deadly weapon — specifically a skateboard that he used to repeatedly hit Adelaide resident Robert Schneider in the head. Schneider, a 26-year-old surfer, was beaten Feb. 27, 2008 at a fire pit at the foot of Abbott Street around 5:30 a.m. He suffered a skull fracture and serious burns after he was tossed into the fire pit. The other attacker, Damian Maple, 22, will be sentenced April 15 for a more severe role in the assault and faces 14 years in prison. Maple also pleaded guilty Feb. 6 to the attempted murder and assault of Justin Hayes, a second victim in an unrelated incident that occurred on Feb. 8, 2008, at Dog Beach. Schneider required skin grafts for his burn injuries and was unconscious in a hospital for two weeks, according to court records. He later returned home to Australia after his parents visited him in the hospital. Montoya and Maple fled the area after the attack on Schneider but both were arrested on the same day in different states last year and returned to San Diego. Maple remains in custody without bail. OB Gateway Project gets boost from grant The Ocean Beach Community Development Corporation (OBCDC) has received an infusion of $100,000 in funding for the emerging Ocean Beach Gateway Project, according to District 2 Councilmember Kevin Faulconer. Faulconer doled out the money with a symbolic oversize check during a press conference in Ocean Beach on Wednesday. OBCDC Secretary Ann Kelsey has been working hard on the gateway project for several years. “We’re thrilled with this money … that Councilman Faulconer has recognized our hard work and our shared dedication in that location in particular,” Kelsey said. “It’s a blighted area.” The money comes from a pool of about $307,000 in federal Community Development Block Grant funds to be used for projects around the Peninsula, according to Faulconer. The OBCDC’s beautification proj-ect is designed to enhance the entryway to Ocean Beach along Sunset Cliffs Boulevard and Voltaire Street, a main entryway into Ocean Beach and the Peninsula. The project began in 1997. Since then the OBCDC has been raising funds through community donations and other fundraising efforts. The two-phase project is estimated to cost $635,000. For more information visit www.obcdc.org/. Foundation to host girls leadership conference An estimated 300 high school girls from throughout San Diego County will be honored and celebrated during the Jenna Druck Foundation’s annual “Spirit of Leadership” conference at Marina Village on Saturday, March 21. Each girl attending the conference was nominated by members of the community for her demonstrated and emerging leadership qualities — whether in academics, sports, the arts or other extracurricular activities. Designed for young women of high school age, the conference will honor and support the attendees in discovering their unique gifts, dreams and talents, all while reinforcing their individual growth and role as future leaders in the community. This year’s conference features keynote speaker Maria Reyes, one of the original members of the Freedom Writers. The event takes place at the Marina Village Conference Center, 1936 Quivira Way. For more information, call (619) 294-8000, or e-mail [email protected]. PLNU study abroad program ranked high For the third year in a row, Point Loma Nazarene University’s study abroad program claimed one of the top spots nationally among the master’s degree-granting institutions, ranking 15th for percentage of undergraduate participation in study abroad, according to the 2008 Open Doors report published by the Institute of International Education (IIE). The IIE compares the number of students abroad in a given year to the number graduated in the same year to come up with a participation rate for each school. According to university officials, PLNU sent 237 students abroad during the 2006-07 academic year and issued 520 undergraduate degrees, resulting in the 45.6 percent participation rate. The IIE annually reports on the progress of study abroad programs nationwide and compiles comprehensive statistical data on international students in the U.S. and on U.S. students who study abroad for academic credit. As part of PLNU’s commitment to helping students process their study abroad experiences, Point Loma hosted the 2009 Lessons from Abroad conference for returning students. The all-day event was held Feb. 21 and brought together students and professionals from universities throughout Southern California. Groups grade city, county on environmental voting Four leading environmental groups have released report cards on the environmental voting records of the city and county of San Diego, with county supervisors receiving an average mark for their efforts and their city counterparts scoring somewhat higher. The League of Conservation Voters San Diego, San Diego Coastkeeper and the local chapters of the Surfrider Foundation and the Sierra Club gave the City Council and Mayor Jerry Sanders an overall grade of B-plus regarding issues impacting local waters and coastal habitat over the last full year. “The 2008 San Diego Water Quality Report Card” includes information on the city’s votes on water and wastewater rate increases, urban run-off issues, the beach alcohol ban and coastal protection funding. Five current and former councilmembers scored in the A range. “The 2008 San Diego County Environmental Report Card” assesses the county board of supervisors on their actions during 2008 related to water and air quality, land use and renewable energy. The average grade was a C, with supervisors Pam Slater-Price and Greg Cox receiving the highest marks, at B-minus. The report cards, released Feb. 26, were prepared by Strategic Community Consulting, a student-managed firm based at the University of California, San Diego. This is the first year the groups have issued an assessment of the county’s actions; the city’s report card is the seventh such document. The reports mark the first time all four groups have jointly released their findings. Cabrillo Monument joins San Diego Science Festival Cabrillo National Monument, San Diego’s national park, is participating in the inaugural San Diego Science Festival that will include the First Annual Park Science Day on Saturday, March 28. The event runs from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Park Science Day and the Science Expo activities are open to the public. Park Science Day will offer a unique opportunity to meet scientists who conduct ongoing research on the flora, fauna and geology of the park’s threatened Mediterranean and fragile rocky intertidal habitat. Hourly presentations will include time to meet and chat with the scientists. Cabrillo National Monument staff will also offer Yellow Submarine Live Interactive Virtual Exploration (LIVE) programs from the park’s tidepools to select San Diego-area middle schools on Monday, March 23 and Wednesday, March 25 from 2 to 3 p.m. Cabrillo National Monument, located on Point Loma at the south end of Catalina Boulevard, is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, call (619) 557-5450 or visit www.nps.gov/-cabr/.