Jimmie "Jim" White (born May 14, 1941, in Sweetwater, Texas) is an American track and field coach, a former high school cross country coach at
McFarland High School. From 1987 to 2003, his team won nine state championships in Divisions III and IV, as well as numerous lesser titles.
Personal life
Jim White is married to Cheryl White and has three daughters: Julie, Jami, and Tami. He started teaching in the McFarland school district after graduating from
Pepperdine University
Pepperdine University () is a private research university affiliated with the Churches of Christ with its main campus in Los Angeles County, California. Pepperdine's main campus consists of 830 acres (340 ha) overlooking the Pacific Ocean and t ...
in 1964. White taught different subjects at numerous grade levels (fifth-grade science, seventh and eighth-grade wood shop and PE) before starting his coaching career in 1980. During his time as a cross country coach for McFarland, Jim White would follow his team on a bike as his team ran or occasionally ran with them. Although White retired from coaching in 2003, he still visits and participates in practices.
In popular culture
Movies
In 2015,
Walt Disney Pictures
Walt Disney Pictures is an American film production company and subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, which is owned by The Walt Disney Company. The studio is the flagship producer of live-action feature films within the Walt Disney Studios uni ...
released the film ''
McFarland, USA
''McFarland, USA'' (also known as ''McFarland'') is a 2015 American sports drama film directed by Niki Caro, produced by Mark Ciardi and Gordon Gray, written by Christopher Cleveland, Bettina Gilois and Grant Thompson with music composed by Antà ...
'' about White and his program, White being portrayed by
Kevin Costner
Kevin Michael Costner (born January 18, 1955) is an American actor, producer, film director and musician. He has received various accolades, including two Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and two Screen Actor ...
.
References
American track and field coaches
Living people
1941 births
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