Reeves honored by OUSD
by Chris Wilson

In Ken Reeves 16-year cross country coaching career at Nordhoff High School, he's hauled a lot of trophies back to Ojai. Since he's been training runners, NHS has had the winningest high school cross country team in state history.
So Tuesday night the Ojai Unified School District Board honored him with a long goodbye and an official thank you resolution "for his outstanding efforts."
NHS Principal Dan Musick said he was more than a good coach, he was a good teacher who originally came to Nordhoff to teach a civics class.
"Anybody that knew his intensity on the track, knew he brought that to the classroom too," Musick said.
Superintendent Van Riley said when he found out he had been aPPointed to come to Ojai, his coworkers in Carpinteria said, 'Oh that's where Ken Reeves is.'"
"He's got integrity, honesty, treats people with respect, and gets the most out of the people he works with," Riley said.
Reeves introduced about a half dozen of his top runners from present and past. Javier Ramirez was the fastest runner the school ever had, Reeves said. Now he's teaching math at the high school. He said goodbye and then excused himself so he could go see his son play basketball.
At Matilija Junior High School seventh grade students in the ACES program presented an update along with their coordinator Denise Thomas.
Articulating Conflict Education/School (ACES) brings students a connection to understanding diversity tolerance, conflict resolution and community service, by providing them with the opportunity to volunteer for a teacher or community member. Student Jan Lashly, for example, helped secure $500 to purchase a Sept. 11 memorializing flag for his former preschool Four Winds.
There's good news for skateboarders. Plans are percolating between the City of Ojai and the OUSD to start looking at making the skatepark a permanent structure. The temporary skate park has now been in place for two-years in the Park and Ride lot and has twice been deemed a success and the original agreement between Ojai and the district would be to create an all-concrete park, professionally designed park that would last at-least 10 years. City Manager Dan Singer said the city council had budgeted for conceptual plans but lease and location details need to still be worked out. The park was largely considered a success because of good supervision staff and respectful patrons.

© 2002 The Ojai Valley News

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