On April 27, P.E. teacher and P.E. department chair Linda Nichols was honored with the Retiring Athletic Director Award by the Central Coast Section (CCS) Athletic Directors Association for her years of service as athletic director and coach for Lynbrook High School.

The award, which is specifically directed toward athletic directors who have served 10 years or more, is typically given to members of the Athletic Directors Association who are retiring. The recipient is honored at a breakfast with all members of the association.

“Ms. Nichols did an outstanding job serving as Lynbrook’s Athletic Director,” said Jeff Lamb, president of the CCS Athletic Directors Association. “We waited until she was retiring from teaching to honor her. We missed her a lot when she had to resign from the CCS-ADA Board.  We’ll miss her even more now that she is retiring. However, she has earned her retirement!”

Nichols plans to retire this year after 42 years of teaching and coaching at Lynbrook. Over the course of her career she has coached field hockey, basketball, golf and softball, frequently coaching more than one sport in a year. In addition to coaching, Nichols served as the Lynbrook athletic director for 13 years and was named CCS Co-Athletic Director of the Year in 2011.

“It was a great job,” said Nichols. “I just loved being part of the CCS association and talking to all the other athletic directors in central California. It was very fulfilling and I really enjoyed doing it. It helped improve students and their opportunity to play sports.”

In addition to coaching, Nichols also teaches freshman P.E. classes and is currently the P.E. department chair. Her time spent as both a coach and teacher has impacted students in several different ways.

“She’s worked really hard at what she does and it definitely shows,” says junior Angie Cheng, who had Nichols her freshman year and is a member of the girl’s golf team. “She has a certain passion that not every teacher has and you see how much she enjoys being around the students and helping them through all their events and whatever they’re going through.”

The Retiring Athletic Director Award emphasized all that Nichols has contributed to not only Lynbrook athletics but the CCS organization as a whole.

“I was very honored,” said Nichols. “I was able to see some of the athletic directors I worked with previously [at the breakfast], and when it comes from your peers, it means a great deal.”