School Falls Short in Funds for New Track

It was supposed to be the big fund-raiser. For two days, the Harlem Clowns, made up of former members of the famous Harlem Globetrotters, were to put on a grand show at Oxnard High School to raise money for a school track.

But not enough spectators showed up for the mid-December shows, leaving the athletic department with just enough ticket sales to pay for the performance.

So the department, which had hoped to raise as much as $10,000, is still about $10,000 short of its dream: an all-weather track, the foamy, slightly bouncy kind.

Athletic Director Debbie Manuel said she thinks that the school district will pay half the cost of the track, expected to range from $70,000 to $100,000, adding that Oxnard High School has already raised about $30,000 from sporting functions and other fund-raisers.