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University of Oregon Collegian with some College Coaching experience heads in the direction of home

A 1998 grad of Newbury Park HS in the Southern Section, Jenny Kenyon went on to a fine career at the University of Oregon, where she was a four-year scorer in the Pac-10 Heptathlon, and also scored along the way in the 100m Hurdles. She was a Verizon All-American in 2002. She explains her evolution from athlete to coach in the below questions, with our recollections of her as an athlete as an intelligent, hard-worker, who made the best of her abilities. She describes the pleasurable experience of the University of Oregon as a Track and Field athlete, and sure seems to have the fire to make a difference in the UCSB program, with the female end of the T&F program its first Big West Championship last spring.

1) Trace your local Southern Cal background in Track and Field?

Wow, this requires a long answer but I'll try to sum it up. I began
with the Newbury Park Track Club when I was 8 years old, after having a bad
softball expereince at age 7 (not enough action for me). After the first
year, I was hooked. I loved running, and running fast. My goal was to get
4 blue ribbons every meet. I began to compete with a local team called
"Rapid Motion" during the summers. I had the awesome opportunity at that
piont to travel all over So. Cal. for competions. It was the best thing
for me as an athlete, b/c it was a challenge to make it to finals. I ran
against athletes like Angela Williams on a weekly basis. I went to the
Junior Olympics when I was 10. I then joined a club team in L.A. called
"California Fliers" It was a bit of a drive for my parents for practice,
but again, I'm thankful for the opportunity to see a different level of
competition. I continued to run throughout Jr. High. In high school, I
rekindled my fire for track and began LJing and running the 400m. I
qualified for CIF Prelims every year, but only made it to the CIF Finals my
Junior and Senior year. With Angela in my heats I was lucky to get 2nd. My
experience at NPHS was awesome and from there I was able to begin dreaming
about attending a PAC 10 school.

2) How did you enjoy the sport at University of Oregon?

Track and Field at Oregon is awesome. To be admired as a runner in the
community is amazing. There is an additional sense of commitment to the
sport since you have fans that are watching you. There is a ton of support
to help you accomplish your athletic goals in Eugene. Getting used to the
rain was a bit of a challenge, but is was worth it.

3) What have you done since graduation there?

I graduated in 2002. The following year I began my graduate work at Oregon
in Educational Leadership. I also had a Grad Assistant position at Oregon
as the coordinator for the "Athletes Living As Role Models" program. That
same year I volunteer coached at Willamette University for the sprints,
hurdles and jumps. In addition, I was competing in local meets with Team
OX, a post-gradate oregon alumni team. The following year, 2003, I
accepted a position at DePaul University in Chicago as the Assistant Track
Coach overseeing sprints, jumps. hurdles and multievent athletes. Following
my first year at DePaul, I completed my M.S. at Oregon over the summer. I
began my second year at DePaul in 2004.

4) What was behind your decision to continue coaching full-time?

Coaching at Willamette really gave me my first taste of coaching at the
collegiate level. Since 2nd grade, track and field had been a huge part
of my life. Competing at the collegiate level, gave me the opportunity to
be challenged and pushed beyond what I thought was possible. I couldn't
see myself ever stepping out of the track arena. I love the sport and I
love sharing my passion and knowledge. I've been able to make a career of
being on the track all day. Of course, there's office work too. But it is
worth it just to be able to share my love for the sport with incoming
athletes. Rereading this, it sounds a bit clique, but I sincerely enjoy
what I do.

5) How did you end up at UCSB, and what will you be coaching?

After spending 2 years across the country from my family, who still live in
N.P., I decided it was time to come back west. I saw the posting for UCSB
on the NCAA website and decided to apply and see where that would lead me.
Well, it lead me to a job interview and an offer for a job. Leaving DePaul
and the relationships I established there was extremely hard, but the west
coast is my home and I'm glad to be back. There is no better place for
track and field then So. Cal. Here, at UCSB, I will in
coaching male and female sprinters, hurdlers, long jumpers, triple jumpers,
pole vaulters, and multievent athletes. The number of events may seem like
a challenge, but I'm more then ready to take that on.

6) What do you think that UCSB can offer the student/athlete?

The Santa Barbara community in itself is beautiful. Coming from a busy
city, it is refreshing to be in the relaxed environment. UCSB is a huge
part of that community. Student-athletes here receive, what I like to
call, the "total college expereince". Their is a great mix of academics,
athletics and social life that is rare for some universities. The school
itself focuses on the two major components of a prospective
student-athlete's development; that is, both high academic standards and
high athletic expectations. Academically, UCSB boasts a strong reputation
in the scinence fields. Athletically, student-athletes are given the tools
to be challenged at the highest level of competition. There is a
commitment from the staff to provide California residence with the
opportunity to run at the highest level possible. The So. Cal.
location provides our track team with access to some of the best
competition in the nation. From my early experience as a runner, tough
competition is vital to an athlete's success. If they are not in an
environment where they are challenged and pressured to perform, they my not
have the chance to reach thier potential. Overall, student-athletes as
UCSB are given the tools to accomplish thier athletic and academic goals in
a beautiful city.

Sept. 9, 2005

"After seven years away, I'm home now", an enthusiastic Jenny Kenyon commented. A Newbury Park native, just a short drive down 101 from Santa Barbara, Jenny was hired as a new Men's & Women's Track & Field Assistant Coach for the Gauchos. Coming onto the Gaucho team after a truly historic year in which the Gaucho Women won their first Big West Championship; Kenyon's duties will primarily consist of coaching the sprinters and jumpers to be perennial leaders in the Big West.

Kenyon, comes to UC Santa Barbara from DePaul University in Chicago, IL where she not only coached the sprinters, hurdlers and multi-event athletes, but also developed strength and conditioning programs for the throwers. In her two years as an assistant coach under Head Coach Gordon Thomson, Kenyon oversaw seven Conference USA Champions, five NCAA Regional qualifiers and an NCAA Championship participant. In 2004, the Blue Demon ladies also scored their most team points ever at the C-USA Indoor Championships. Along with these accolades, numerous school records were broken by her athletes in their events.

Commenting on her time in Chicago, Kenyon stated, "it was good to see other programs and athletes other than those on the west coast. It gave me a broader perspective."

After graduating high school in Southern California she decided to attend college and compete just up Highway 5 at the University of Oregon. Competing for the Ducks' storied Track & Field program, she epitomized the Student-Athlete role by getting it done on and off the track. She was a PAC-10 scorer in the heptathlon in her four years of eligibility (1999-2002) as well as the 100m Hurdles in 2002. She ended her career with the sixth highest heptathlon score in Oregon Ducks history. In 2002, she was also named a Verizon Academic All-American.

Graduating with a B.S. in Educational Studies and a minor in Business Administration, Kenyon felt that she would get into teaching initially. She decided to pursue her masters at U of O in Educational Leadership and Higher Education immediately following her undergraduate studies.

"I thought I wanted to teach. I did a little bit of private coaching and then while I was getting my masters I also began to coach at Willamette University as a volunteer."

While getting her masters and training professionally in the heptathlon with Team XO in Eugene, Kenyon made time to privately coach and also travel two to three days a week (an hour each way) to volunteer coach at Willamette University. As a private coach she assisted a 2003 American and 2004 World Masters Record Holder as well as a Junior Oregon State Champion and an Oregon State High School Champion. She also maintained a Graduate Assistant position for Student Services in the U of O Athletic Department as a liaison to community agencies and local schools.

It was in this first year of her masters that she decided to pursue her love of coaching. "I took the DePaul University interview after my first year for experience, and it was then that I could see myself working in what I love to do," Kenyon stated.

Finishing her masters in the summers, Kenyon took the job at DePaul and coached the Blue Demons for two years before landing at UCSB. Her experiences at DePaul and the Pac-10 Conference University of Oregon Ducks will bring yet another level to the Gaucho program after an exciting and historic 2005 campaign.