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57 °F Forecast | Road Cams Tuesday, April 6, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find a Rental Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Email Story to a Friend March 19, 2004 Ashland names Forest Grove teacher as new athletic director By KRIS HENRY Mail Tribune While making it clear that you cannot replace an icon like Jim Nagel, Ashland Superintendent Juli Di Chiro was pleased to announce the hiring of Karl Kemper on Thursday to take over as Ashland’s new athletic director. "I’m very happy the way this all worked out," said Di Chiro. "We had a pretty intense search process, and Karl did really well through the whole process. I think he’s going to add a lot of excitement and enthusiasm to the Ashland program." Kemper, 38, a teacher in the Forest Grove School District, and will officially take over for Nagel in July. Nagel, who in football coached the Grizzlies to three state titles during a remarkable 20-year run at Ashland, announced his retirement as AD earlier this year after 13 years in that position. "I realize I’m replacing a legend, and it’s big shoes to fill," said Kemper. "I’m very excited to have this opportunity; this is a dream come true. It’s just a great fit between the Ashland High philosophy and my philosophy in working with kids." Di Chiro said Kemper’s strong background in competitive and recreational athletics and master’s degree in sports management separated him from the other 21 candidates. Advertisement A committee of 17 people reviewed the applications, with four candidates selected for interviews. After the interviews, the field was pared to two by a subcommittee. Kemper and a number of his associates in Forest Grove were interviewed on Monday, and Di Chiro said the committee was extremely impressed by the final get-together. "We wanted to make sure in our own mind that Karl was ready to handle this job, and everyone we talked to couldn’t have spoken more highly of him," Di Chiro said. "Any concerns we had were alleviated by Karl’s input and the input from all the people who have known him for a number of years." The committee’s biggest concern revolved around the fact that Kemper has not held an administrative position throughout a teaching career that has spanned the Banks and Forest Grove school districts. "It’s always been where I’ve been headed," said Kemper, who put aside coaching duties at Forest Grove last year to earn his administrative license. Kemper has worked as a special education teacher, with a strong background in adaptive PE for special needs students in grades K-8 at Forest Grove. He oversees 40 children in the adaptive program and has spent the past five summers working with a local community-based activity program that provides outdoors opportunities for children with disabilities. Kemper was also the head varsity girls basketball coach for six years at Banks High, a top assistant for 10 years in the Banks and Forest Grove baseball programs and an assistant in the boys basketball program for four years at Forest Grove. He also coached junior high football in Banks for four years and has run the Portland Marathon three times. "I’ve coached football, basketball and baseball pretty extensively," said Kemper, "but I’ve also been on rafting trips, canoe trips, water skiing trips and snow skiing trips with kids. I really believe in the healthy mind, healthy body connection." Kemper said he’s especially excited about working in a city like Ashland that has an obvious level of community support with its Youth Activities Levy. "Our mission as educators is to develop the whole child in all areas of their lives, and the Ashland voters have said loud and clear that they believe in the power of participation and involvement," said Kemper. "The possibilities are really unlimited with their philosophy. It’s really a model program they have in Ashland." While Nagel was not an official part of the search, he said he met with all four of the top candidates and Kemper left a good impression on him as well. "He seems sharp, and I think he has a great passion for sports," said Nagel. "I think he’s a real people person. He’s one of those people who’s going to be really trying to develop our physical education program as well as all our athletic programs and really trying to have a complete K-12 concept. I think that’s very important." Nagel also thinks it’s important for Kemper to put his stamp on Ashland. "I’m going to really encourage him not to stay with the status quo and for him to use his degrees and what he’s learned to be innovative and look to new things," said Nagel. Kemper and his wife, Laurie, have an 18-month-old son (Jordan) and are expecting another son next month. Reach reporter Kris Henry at 776-4488, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback 3 WEEKS FREE! ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S RESOURCES Oregon Road Conditions & Cams SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Food for Thought Wellness Connection Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? 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