Tuesday, January 21, 2003 Community Mourns Laguna principal By Robert Digitale

Colleagues are mourning the apparent suicide of the principal of Laguna Continuation High School in Sebastopol. Administrators recall Scott Lane as a well-liked teacher and a principal who cared deeply for the 100-plus students at the Laguna campus, which sits next door to Analy High. Lane, 50, on Saturday afternoon was found dead at his Cotati home of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, police said. No suicide note was found. Special counselors will be available today for Laguna students and staff members. Others will be on hand at Analy, where Lane previously worked for nearly two decades as a teacher, student activities director and vice principal. "One of the things that most struck me about Scott was his involvement with kids who were having a tough time in school and his empathy for them," said David Wheeler, superintendent of the West Sonoma County High School District, which includes Laguna and Analy. Lane started as a teacher at Laguna in the late 1970s. He later became the first teacher of the rigorous advanced placement courses for U.S. history and government at Analy, said Analy Principal Martin Webb. Lane had been the principal of Laguna for three years. He worked hard for the students there, Webb said. "He really did everything he could to help them succeed," he said. Lane had been an usher in Webb's wedding. Webb last talked to his longtime friend on Thursday. Lane had sounded upbeat and indicated he would see Webb Tuesday when classes resumed at both schools. Webb predicted the news of Lane's death would be "rough on the kids," as well as the teachers at Laguna. "They're a very close-knit organization so this is really going to hit them very hard," Webb said.