Chandler High School (Arizona)

Chandler High School
Address
350 North Arizona Avenue Chandler , Maricopa County , Arizona United States
Coordinates	33°18′32″N111°50′35″W / 33.308906°N 111.843143°W / 33.308906; -111.843143
Information
Type	Public
Established	1912;113 years ago (1912)
Status	Currently operational
Locale	Suburb: Large (21)
School district	Chandler Unified School District
NCES District ID	0401870 [1]
CEEB code	030045
NCES School ID	040187000123 [2]
Principal	Greg Milbrandt
Teaching staff	175.46 (FTE) [2]
Grades	9-12
Enrollment	3,487 (2023-2024) [2]
Student to teacher ratio	19.87 [2]
Color(s)	Royal blue and white
Athletics conference	6A
Mascot	Wolves
Newspaper	Wolf Howl
Yearbook	El Lobo
Website	www.cusd80.com/CHS
The "Old Main" buildings at the Chandler HS Campus
Chandler High School
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Location in Arizona Show map of Arizona Location in United States Show map of the United States
Location	350 N. Arizona Ave. Chandler, Arizona
Built	1921
Built by	Broman & Chapman
Architect	Allison & Allison (main building) Orville A. Bell (1939 gymnasium) [3]
Architectural style	Classical Revival, Mission/Spanish Revival
NRHP reference No.	07000836 [4]
Added to NRHP	November 20, 2007

Chandler High School is a high school and historical landmark located in Chandler, Arizona, United States. It is one of Arizona's largest high schools with an enrollment of 3,000 to 4,000 students annually.

History

According to published records, the earliest known educational facility in the city dates back to 1907. It featured rooms constructed in a canvas-style design. The second facility was known as the Chandler Grammar School, later changed to the Cleveland School, was opened June 21, 1912, at the cost of $9,000. Both prior schools accepted 6-8 grade students. In September 1914, a more permanent solution was purposed requiring a 1919 bond of $121,800 and 1921 bond of $170,000 to begin planning and construction of a high school. ^[5]

The initial architectural sketch of Chandler High School submitted by Allison & Allison in 1921.

Breaking ground in 1921 and dedicated the subsequent year, the facility currently referred to as Old Main, was constructed along with a small gymnasium. Both structures were placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2007, ^[6] 1 of 17 high schools in Phoenix. ^[7] Several expansions and upgrades have been made to the campus which resides on the Northwest corner of Arizona Avenue/SR 87 and Chandler Blvd.

The school and subsequent city's namesake comes from founder Dr. Alexander John "A.J." Chandler a local veterinary surgeon. ^{[5] [8]}

Academics

2019 SAT Performance

2019 ACT Performance

Chandler abides by the standards set by the Arizona Department of Education and implements the state's Education and Career Action Plan (ECAP) required for all students 9-12 grade students to graduate from a public Arizona high school. CUSD high schools also implements an open enrollment policy, meaning students from outside the intended school boundaries may attend without tuition or other penalties.

Arizona requires that all high school students take 6 credit bearing courses during their freshmen through junior years, and have the option of reducing credits to 4 credit bearing courses if they are track for graduation. However, CUSD requires all students must complete 22 credits whereas the public university system controlled by the Arizona Board of Regents requires only 16 credits in the following areas:

• English - 4 credits
• Mathematics - 4 credits
• Science - 3 credits
• Social Studies. - 3 credits
• Career and Technical Educator/Fine Arts - 1 credit
• Physical Education - 1 credit
• Comprehensive Health - ½ credits
• Elective Courses - 5 ½ credits

Cross-credit courses

At Chandler and all CUSD high school students may swap three semesters (1⁄2 credits per semester) of Spiritline, Beginning through Advance Dance, Drill Team, Color Guard, Marching Band, Winter guard, or AFJROTC essentially waiving the required one Physical Education credit required for graduation.

Students which choose applied sciences in areas such as Applied Biology or Applied Agricultural Sciences gain equivalent Science credits. Likewise, Economics credits can be awarded like Agricultural Business Management, Business, Business Applications, Marketing, Economics Applications, Family and Consumer Sciences, and vocational courses.

Community college credits can be awarded through a partnership with Chandler-Gilbert Community College (CGCC) and cooperative credits for vocational courses are provided by East Valley Institute of Technology (EVIT). Students must be dually enrolled for the Arizona community college or the Arizona public university system to accept the credits towards a degree. CUSD Transportation Department provides routes between Chandler, EVIT, and CGCC with after school hours transportation intended for students participating in activities.

Advanced Placement (AP) courses are available on school grounds in Mathematics, English, Social Studies, and Science which garner university credits nationwide and is 1 of 8 Arizona high schools offering the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme.

Chandler High School's Demographics

Accolades

Chandler was awarded the Blue Ribbon School during 1982-83 and 1986-87 school years. ^[9] It has also received 7 A+ School of Excellence from the Arizona Education Foundation, the most in the state. ^[10]

Statistics

Chandler has 1,218 students enrolled in the Free Lunch Program, 197 for the Reduced-price Lunch Program, and 610 that are Directly Certified under the National School Lunch Program. ^[2]

Extracurricular activities

Athletics

Chandler HS is an Arizona Interscholastic Association (AIA) member school offering boys and girls sports complying with Title IX. Student athletes can participate in varsity, junior varsity, and freshmen-only teams as well as individual sports. Chandler Athletics consist of these sports:

• Badminton (girls)
• Baseball
• Basketball (boys)
• Basketball (girls)
• Cheer
• Cross country
• Flag Football (girls)
• Football
• Golf (boys)
• Golf (girls)
• Lacrosse (girls)
• Pomline
• Soccer (boys)
• Soccer (girls)
• Softball
• Swim and dive
• Tennis (boys)
• Tennis (girls)
• Track and field
• Volleyball (boys)
• Volleyball (girls)
• Volleyball (beach, girls)
• Wrestling

Football

Coach	Seasons	W	L	T	Pct.	State Title	Runners-up	Region Title	Notes
Jim Ewan	2004-2010	54	27	0	.666	0		0
Shaun Aguano	2011-2018	88	19	0	.822	4	1	5	[11]
Rick Garretson	2019-	23	0	0	.000	2	1	2	Record sixth straight big school championships [12] Score of game Chandler 23 Hamilton 21. Took place at Desert Vista High School.
Total	22	165	46	0	.782	6	2	7

In 2014, Chandler football won its first championship after defeating their rival Hamilton High School Division I State Championship game. Starting in 2016 Chandler won three consecutive championship in the AIA's largest division, the last being in the open bracket comprising the eight best teams in Arizona according to the MaxPreps rating system. ^[13] The team has been ranked as high as 12th nationally according to the 2015 MaxPreps' Xcelent 25 Rankings and finished on the list 3 times. ^[11] Aguano resigned as head football coach in 2018 for Arizona State University's running backs coach vacating the position for offensive coordinator Rick Garretson which had a 13-0 first season and a state championship. ^{[13] [14]}

Chandler has successfully competed against the top teams in the nation. They start with a 2013 loss to #1 St. John Bosco High School at home 52–13. ^[15] The 2014 team was able to get their first out of state victory against Valor Christian High School with a final score of 22–7. ^[16] Traveling into Las Vegas, Nevada during the 2015 season ranked 20th nationally played in a high-profile game against #3 Bishop Gorman High School losing 35-14 which was broadcast on ESPNU. ^[17] Chandler also hosted #2 IMG Academy going into the game ranked 7th ultimately losing 27–14 in 2017. ^[18] The team went on the road the next two years playing Las Vegas' Faith Lutheran High School and Capital Christian High School winning 35-21 and 56-0 respectively. ^[19] Overall Chandler has a 3–3 record against out of state opponents.

Fine arts

Chandler High School is also notable for its active and competitive music programs. Chandler High School Chorale was the first American high school to be invited to perform at the 2005 Jilin College of the Arts Summer Music Festival in Changchun, People's Republic of China, ^[20] and not only once, but twice to perform at Carnegie Hall for a festival, while Chandler High School's Wolf Pack Pride Marching Band competed in the 2005-2006 Fiesta Bowl National Band Championship, placing fifth. The marching band competed again in the 2008-2009 Championship. The Symphonic Band also competed April 2006 in Boston at the Boston Symphony Hall in the Heritage Festival of Gold. The band took fourth. Archived March 13, 2007, at the Wayback Machine The Symphonic Band competed again in April 2008 at the Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco, taking first. In 2009, the Symphonic Band returned (for its third time) to the Festival of Gold in Los Angeles where it again took first place over groups from across the nation. In 2010, Chandler's Chorale visited the Festival of Gold, taking first as well. Chandler High's Varsity Jazz Ensemble has recently excelled on a local level.

In addition, Chandler's theater department has performed several well-known plays, including from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Outsiders, Miser, Rebel Without a Cause, Footloose, Still Life With Iris, and many more. The Chandler theatre has been to the Central Arizona Acting Festival and many students received Superior. A.P.A.C. (Advanced Pantomime And Characterization), the highest level acting class at Chandler, has performed numerous books for elementary students through Bookends, a program designed to promote literacy, for many years.

Rivalry

A rivalry developed between Chandler and Hamilton High School which are separated by 4 miles (6.4 km) along Arizona Avenue/SR 87. Local media has since daubed this high-profile competition as the "Battle of Arizona Avenue". ^[21] The annual varsity football matchup gains the most attention where the highly rated players are often recruited by college football coaches from across the nation. Fan turnout can exceeded 10,000 ^[22] with NFL players like Anquan Boldin, Larry Fitzgerald, and Matt Leinart also in attendance. ^[23] As a consistent Top 25 rivalry, the GEICO High School Bowl Series ^[24] has been instrumental in broadcast the game nationally by ESPN, ESPNU, ^{[25] [24]} and the NFHS Network. Every year the game would alternate form Chandler's Austin Field to Hamilton's Jerry Looper Stadium. Hamilton began matchup with a 17-game win streak of until the 2013 regular season matchup gave Chandler their first win 26–16. ^{[26] [22]} Chandler would later fall in a 2013 5A Division I State Semifinal matchup to Hamilton 21–17 at the approved Arizona Interscholastic Association neutral field at Highland High School. ^[22] Since 2014 Chandler has won six consecutive games. As of 2020, Hamilton leads the series 18–8 with a potential rematch during the 2020 Open Bracket, which contains 8 of the highest ranked teams. Together, the two school account for 12 Big School State Championships in football. ^[26]

As the rivalry developed beyond football, both school's athletic teams and other activities have become very competitive. Chandler city officials and other organizations have help facilitate and advance the rivalry. The most notable addition was the Chandler Rotary Club providing the trophy where brass plate are inscribed with the victors name and date with a custom street sign labeled "Arizona Ave Champions" affixed on top. ^{[27] [28]} They also host a luncheon with school staff, administrators, and inductees to the Chandler Sports Hall of Fame. ^{[29] [22]}

Since the rivalry garners so much attention, administrations of both schools and the district have worked closely with school resource officers with all Chandler Unified School District privately contracted security guards ensuring the stadiums and surrounding areas remain secure. The Chandler Police Department has also provided social media monitoring leading up to the game. ^[22]

In popular culture

On February 18, 2009, TV Land's High School Reunion began its second season featuring a cast from Chandler High School's 1988 class. ^[30] Terry Williams, the principal during 1988, aided producers in finding former students saying, "We are looking for a variety of people." ^[31] The show was not well received as producers allegedly filled the remaining cast members with actors for the means of developing drama. The cast felt they were made into caricatures and situations felt awkward. ^[32]

Notable alumni

• Adam Archuleta - football player ^{[33] [34]}
• Eddie Basha Jr. - Businessman - Bashas' Inc. ^[35]
• Sanjay Beach - football player ^[34]
• N'Keal Harry - football player ^{[34] [36]}
• Alexa Havins - Actress - film and television ^[37]
• Brett Hundley - football player ^[34]
• Cameron Jordan - football player ^{[34] [38]}
• Dion Jordan - football player ^[34]
• Casey Likes - actor ^[39]
• Gunner Maldonado - college football player ^[40]
• Bryce Perkins - football player ^[34]
• Paul Perkins - football player ^[41]
• Cody Ransom - baseball player ^[42]
• Derrick Richardson - football player ^[34]
• Gordon Rule - football player ^[34]
• Brent R. Taylor - Politician/US Military - mayor of North Ogden, Utah, Army National Guard officer ^[43]
• Lindsay Taylor - basketball player ^[44]
• Dave Van Gorder - baseball player ^[42]
• Lawrence Westbrook - basketball player
• Markus Wheaton - football player ^[45]
• Eddie Wilson - football player ^[34]
• Dustin Woodard - football player ^[46]

References

1. "Search for Public School Districts – District Detail for Chandler Unified District #80 (4242)". National Center for Education Statistics . Institute of Education Sciences.
2. "Search for Public Schools - Chandler High School (040187000123)". National Center for Education Statistics . Institute of Education Sciences . Retrieved December 22, 2024.
3. "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Chandler High School". National Park Service . Retrieved March 22, 2020. With accompanying pictures
4. "National Register Information System – (#07000836)". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
5. "About Our School / History of Chandler High School". www.cusd80.com. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
6. Department of the Interior. National Park Service. (3/2/1934 - ) (2013–2017). Arizona SP Chandler High School. File Unit: National Register of Historic Places and National Historic Landmarks Program Records: Arizona, January 1, 1964 - December 31, 2013.
7. Creno, Cathryn. "17 historic schools in metro Phoenix". azcentral. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
8. "About Our School / Chandler High School Namesake Video". www.cusd80.com. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
9. "Archived: Blue Ribbon Schools Program" (PDF). US Department of Education. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 14, 2024.
10. "About Our School / About Our School". www.cusd80.com. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
11. "Shaun Aguano - Football Coach". Arizona State University Athletics. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
12. Zach Alvira, ed. (December 12, 2020). "Chandler holds off Hamilton for second straight Open Division championship". East Valley Tribune. Retrieved December 13, 2020.
13. "Chandler wins first ever Open Division state title game over Saguaro". 12news.com. December 8, 2019. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
14. Zach Alvira, ed. (January 29, 2019). "Chandler High hires assistant Rick Garretson as head football coach". East Valley Tribune. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
15. "Long Beach Press-Telegram 2013 Football Dream Team". Press Telegram. January 7, 2014. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
16. "Valor Christian no match for top-ranked Arizona team Chandler". The Denver Post. September 12, 2014. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
17. "No. 3 Bishop Gorman beats No. 20 Chandler (Ariz.); are the Gaels the new No. 1?". USA TODAY High School Sports. August 30, 2015. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
18. "No. 2 IMG Academy (Fla.) runs win streak to 30 games by beating No. 7 Chandler (Ariz.)". USA TODAY High School Sports. August 27, 2017. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
19. "ArizonaVarsity - ArizonaVarsity Breakdown: Chandler 35, Faith Lutheran 21". arizonavarsity.rivals.com. September 12, 2018. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
20. Councilmember Lowell Huggins. "Chandler Chorale: America's Ambassadors to China". Archived from the original on September 27, 2007.
21. Ardaya, Fabian; Kurland, Brett; Jackson, Victoria; Hawken-Collins, Denise; Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication; Barrett, The Honors College (2016), "The Battle For Arizona Avenue: The History of the Chandler-Hamilton Rivalry", Barrett, The Honors College Thesis/Creative Project Collection, Academic Year 2016-2017, hdl:2286/R.I.40905
22. Olalde, Mark. "City revved for Chandler-Hamilton football rivalry". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
23. Heller, Mark (September 5, 2008). "'D'-lightful night for Hamilton". East Valley Tribune. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
24. "ESPNU to Air GEICO High School Bowl Series on November 20". ESPN Press Room U.S. November 10, 2020. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
25. Escobar, Connie. "Huskies Football Defeats Higley, Will Face Chandler For the Battle of AZ Ave". The Paw Print. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
26. "ArizonaVarsity - The Complete History of the Chandler vs Hamilton Rivalry". arizonavarsity.rivals.com. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
27. Obert, Richard. "Chandler, Hamilton ready to take home Arizona Avenue Trophy". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
28. "Preview of the 19th Battle for Arizona Ave". www.azpreps365.com. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
29. "Battle For Arizona Avenue Luncheon - 12:00pm MST, November 17th, 2020". Hamilton Huskies Football. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
30. Sitt, Pamela. "We Break Down The Cast Of High School Reunion!". MTV News. Retrieved December 2, 2020.^{[ dead link ‍]}
31. Clarke, Stephanie. "Chandler High makes final cut for reality TV". East Valley Tribune. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
32. Hinckley, David (February 17, 2009). "'High School Reunion' flunks the test on TV Land". nydailynews.com. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
33. Canfora, Jason La (June 18, 2006). "For Redskins' Archuleta, An Imposing Body of Work". Washington Post. ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved December 2, 2020.
34. Obert, Richard. "Chandler High's all-time greatest football players". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
35. Tribune. "Eddie Basha -- grocery king, education advocate, Chandler businessman-- dies at 75". East Valley Tribune. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
36. "N'Keal Harry carries the honor and expectations of his family, nation". Arizona Sports. September 21, 2016. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
37. Gossie, Michael (December 9, 2003). "E.V. claims as own one of 'All My Children'". East Valley Tribune. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
38. Obert, Richard. "Chandler pays back NFL player Cameron Jordan with helmet design". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
39. "Stars of tomorrow shine at ASU Gammage High School Musical Theatre Awards". ASU News. June 6, 2019.
40. Obert, Richard (July 13, 2019). "Chandler DB/WR Gunner Maldonado commits to Northwestern football". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
41. Foster, Chris (December 18, 2014). "Low-key persona serves UCLA's Paul Perkins well". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 18, 2014. Retrieved August 7, 2021.
42. Index, The Heat. "Arizona high schools that have produced multiple MLB players through the years". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
43. "Trainee kills Utah mayor, a former Chandler resident, in Afghanistan". The Arizona Republic. Associated Press. Retrieved August 7, 2021.
44. "Lindsay Taylor - Varsity Assistant". HomeTeamsONLINE. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
45. Pheifer, Todd. "Markus Wheaton: 5 Things You Need to Know About the Oregon State WR". Bleacher Report. Retrieved August 8, 2021.
46. Susel, Chierstin (May 1, 2020). "Former Chandler OL drafted by New England Patriots". 12news.com. Archived from the original on August 8, 2021. Retrieved August 8, 2021.

External links

• Official website
• School report card from the Arizona Department of Education