June 2, 2026

Who’s in That Lane!?! – Mike Matthews, the guy who usually writes the Who’s In That Lane posts, that’s who! 

As told by Keith Robinson, guest contributor. This is a special third-party edition about this byline’s creator, Mike Matthews, and not by him. 

Just a reminder that these Who’s In That Lane! pieces celebrate our club and our teammates, and help us to get to better know our lanemates and the people in those lanes way over there! I know we all enjoy being a part of CVMM, and it’s even better when more of us really know each other!  

First things first.  When you see Mike in your lane, it is time to bring your A game – mind, body, and spirit. That’s Mike Matthews, Ed.D. He is going to churn it out. Keep up. Good for drafting. 

I met Mike at a regional meet – he signed up, attended team dinner, and cranked out an All-American Relay – at his first masters swimming meet – bad knee (later replaced) – and he had a blast. Very humble. You may have met some swimmers whose entire wardrobe seems to be swag left over from college. Not Mike. As he puts it, “I was a decent swimmer coming out of high school, then I finished 20^th in the intramural swim meet in college. Why wouldn’t I be humble about my swimming ability?”

Aside from being a very fast swimmer, Mike plays golf – mostly on SoCal public courses, but sometimes with friends on the islands. Mike plays guitar and sings in a band. Mike is chef and shares recipes on one of his websites www.principalchef.com – Recipes from Arkansas to Malibu. Mike writes – not just articles Who’s in That Lane – but also insightful musings www.drmdmatthews.com. It is amazing he has time to swim! Mike has been married to Jill, also a public school educator, for 25 years, and he has two sons, Ryan (35) and Dawson (23).

Mike has been the Big Kahuna of sizeable organizations as in Superintendent of Schools, and as in high school principal, and after 37 years in public education, has been retired since 2023. He still supports school districts around the state as a consultant. Mike has two degrees from Stanford, a doctorate in education from Pepperdine, and a certification from Berkeley. Now that he has a few more workouts under this belt and a new knee, he has traded up a few lanes. But he is still nice to those of us who knew him when. 

Your intrepid reporter, Keith Robinson

To see previous Who’s In That Lane pieces, please click here.