Last Updated on December 30, 2017 by CCAR Staff
A physics teacher at Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Eastvale and her husband died in a crash with a semi-tractor on an Oregon highway, state police reported.
The teacher, Rachael Black, 59, and her husband, Vernon Black, 59, were pronounced dead at the scene of the 1:15 p.m. Thursday accident, on westbound Highway 140 at the intersection of Kershaw Road in Jackson County, about three miles northeast of Medford.
The couple lived in Rancho Cucamonga.
Senior Delanie McKeon, 17, said her former teacher was “the most passionate” teacher she had ever met, staying after school to help students work through problems or understand concepts.
In her classroom, Black worked to break physics concepts down to a level students could relate to, McKeon said.
When students missed a test question, Black would probe to help them find out why it was missed, a practice that leads to better test-taking, said McKeon.
“The Corona-Norco Unified School District and Eleanor Roosevelt High School community is deeply saddened by the news of the passing of Mrs. Black, a beloved physics teacher at Roosevelt High School in Eastvale,” the district said in a statement Saturday.
“We understand this sad news weighs heavily on our students and staff; for this reason, counselors and psychologists will be made available when school returns back in session after the winter break,” the statement continued.
The school’s web site says classes resume on Jan. 15, but that is the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. The school calendar indicates classes resume on Jan. 16.
“We ask our community to join the staff and students of Eleanor Roosevelt High School as well as the entire Corona-Norco Unified School District family in keeping the family in their thoughts during this difficult time,” the statement concluded.
The early investigation said a 2013 Toyota Camry, driven by Vernon Black, failed to halt at a stop sign while heading northbound on Kershaw Road and pulled in front of a Freightliner rig heading westbound on Highway 140.
The operator of the semi rig, identified as Kelly Kime, 49, from Grants Pass, was uninjured and was cooperating with police in their investigation. No criminal charges were being considered, the state police news release said.
Jeannette Mendels Clarke, who lives about five miles from the crash scene, said in a Facebook post that that stretch of highway is always busy.
“Our whole community is saddened by this accident and our prayers go out to their family,” she said.
Reporter Jim Steinberg contributed to this report.
