River Valley names Olson new athletic director

Eric Olson was named the new athletic director of River Valley High on Tuesday after his hiring was approved by the Yuba City Unified School board.

"I'm a big sports enthusiast and I have a lot of pride in our school," he said. "I want to make sure the program is run correctly and I will put the pressure on my shoulders."

A math teacher for the last 10 years, Olson has been at River Valley since it opened in 2005. He was the head coach of the Yuba City High JV boys basketball team for a year and an assistant for two years.

Of the five people who went through the interview process, Olson was the standout candidate, principal Tom Reusser said. Olson went through a series of interviews before Reusser recommended him to the board.

"(Olson) seems to be the best fit for the position," said Reusser, who replaced former principal Larry Bonds after the school year ended. "He's well-rounded, been a coach and works well with people."

The position was vacant after the resignation of Tom Zaragoza, who stepped down in early May following a paperwork snafu that kept the Falcons' baseball team from reaching the playoffs for the first time in school history. The proper documentation for a transfer player was not submitted, which the California Interscholastic Federation stated was a "serious error" by the school.

As a result, the entire River Valley High athletics program was put on probation for a year, fined $1,000 and is required to attend all section eligibility workshops for the next three years. The probation is essentially a way for the CIF "to keep closer tabs on (the school)," Bonds said.

And Olson, who has administrative experience outside the realm of education is prepared, he said. As a former plant manager at Sunset Moulding in Live Oak, Olson dealt with labor unions and state officials from the Division of Occupational Safety and Health.

"If you can make it through Cal/OSHA inspections, you can make it through anything," he said.

Though he stepped down, Zaragoza reapplied, went through the interview process and told the Appeal-Democrat on July 1 that he was one of the finalists for the position.

Reusser, who made the recommendation of Olson to the school board, wouldn't confirm that Zaragoza was one of the candidates and declined to discuss the matter.

The principal, along with the athletic director both said they don't want to dwell on the past and are looking toward addressing other issues.

"We have been under a microscope for the last half-year and hopefully (Olson) will alleviate any problems."