Isn’t that long drive in the morning to Chandler High School annoying for us students?  Lots of students at Chandler High School think the same. Chandler High is an open enrollment school, meaning that students from all over the valley can attend. Many students do not fall into the city of  Chandler boundaries, forcing them to find their own transportation to school. We interviewed several Chandler High School students asking, “How long do you travel to school each morning?” Based on a survey, the average drive for a student at Chandler is around 9 to 10 minutes. Students’ drive times vary widely, though. Senior Rodolfo Lizarraga takes only one minute to get to school, while Senior Sebastian Washkevich stated he drives about 30 minutes each way. Sebastian said, “I’ve been late because of traffic, red lights, and even my car breaking down… I would prefer to live closer.” He said he is able to prevent being late by “leaving on time or earlier, making it more convenient of a drive.” 

     Although a longer drive may sound unappealing, we also heard about the downsides of living about a minute away from school after talking with Rodolfo Lizarraga. He stated while there are benefits to living close by, such as being able to “wake up later than others and arriving to school on time,” he sometimes doesn’t enjoy living close. “Everyone knows where I live and sometimes people beep at me and it’s noisy, especially in the mornings and football game nights,” Lizarraga explained. 

     While there are both positives and drawbacks to living near or far, many students from outside the City of Chandler come to our school. Chandler High School unites young people across Phoenix through sports and education. Driving is just a small sacrifice each day to end up being a part of the Wolf Pack.