Oxnard High Swimmers Rally Behind Ousted Coach

The firing of popular high school swim coach Larry Raffaelli has numerous supporters clamoring for his reinstatement.

Raffaelli, who has coached swimming and water polo at Oxnard High School for the last 28 years, was given his termination notice last week.

Dozens of avid supporters packed the school board meeting Wednesday night to urge the five-member panel to reverse a decision made by school Principal Daisy Tatum. No action was taken by the board.

“I hope they definitely reinstate him,” water polo team member Nicholas Sanchez said Thursday. “No one would respect the replacement coach as much as they respect Mr. Raffaelli, even if they were the greatest coach. He’s been there forever and built the program.”

Members of the team said that on the last day of school Raffaelli told the swimmers that he was fired because Tatum had called his coaching style too abrasive.

Tatum declined to comment, calling it a personnel issue. Raffaelli said Thursday that the teachers union had advised him not to speak.

Many of his students, however, said Raffaelli had high expectations and was tough. But he always had the students’ best interests in mind, they said.

“He never got mad,” said 16-year-old Alison Withers, a member of the swim and water polo teams. “He just said work. He got us encouraged. If he just sat back, we wouldn’t know what to do.”

Raffaelli, who earned an annual base salary of $59,094 as swim coach, physical education instructor and ninth-grade science teacher, spearheaded efforts to build an Olympic-sized pool on campus.

The pool was supposed to be built when the new Oxnard High opened in 1995, but funds went to other projects.

Raffaelli and others began a campaign to raise money for the pool. Although their efforts fell short, the district received enough money in developer fees to continue the project and the pool is scheduled to open in the spring.

So far, none of the trustees have placed the matter of reconsidering Raffaelli’s reinstatement for discussion on a future agenda.