20 Apache Junction High School drama students heading to NYC in March

By Richard Dyer
Mail | X: @RHDyer

Twenty Apache Junction High School drama students are to travel to New York City for spring break to attend Broadway theater performances and workshops.

The Apache Junction Unified School District governing board voted 4-0 Dec. 9 on a consent agenda with other items to approve the March 13-19 travel. Board member Judy Williamson was absent.

The cost is $1,500 per student, which includes registration, transportation, lodging and meals, according to a written request to travel form from Paul Lanphear, drama teacher.

The students are “to attend theatrical performances and workshops with working theatrical performers. Students will attend professional performances to see how they could use the skills they have developed for the future,” he wrote on the form.

The students will also tour theaters and the main attractions of New York during the trip on spring break, Lanphear wrote in a separate letter to the governing board.

“We have decided to organize the trip ourselves so that we can save on the costs. If we were to go through a field trip company the cost would be $2,800 to $4,000 a student,” he said.

The itinerary includes:

• 9 a.m. Manhattan bus tour, and 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. plays on March 14;
• 9:30 a.m. Broadway tour and workshop, and 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. plays on March 15;
• 10 a.m. One World Trade Center building and 9/11 Memorial, noon Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island ferry from Battery Park, and 7 p.m. play on March 16.
• 8 a.m. St. Patrick’s Day parade, 11 a.m. Museum of Modern Art, 7 p.m. play on March 17;
• 11 a.m. Radio City Music Hall, 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. plays March 18;
• 9 a,m, tour or workshop, flight home March 19.

AJUSD has three elementary schools; a K-5 school designed to provide students with a traditional, liberal arts education; a junior high school; and a high school. The district boundaries run from Meridian Road on the west to the town of Queen Valley on the east and from the Goldfield Mountains to the north, south into the San Tan Corridor. Communities served include Apache Junction, Gold Canyon, Peralta Trail, Queen Valley and unincorporated Pinal County land in-between.

Richard H. Dyer can be reached at rdyer@iniusa.org, or on X @rhdyer. Please submit comments at yourvalley.net/letters or email them to AzOpinions@iniusa.org. We are committed to publishing a wide variety of reader opinions, as long as they meet our Civility Guidelines, https://www.yourvalley.net/civility-checklist/.

Richard Dyer
Managing Editor | East Valley

rdyer@iniusa.org

Meet Richard
Richard Dyer has worked at Independent Newsmedia Inc. USA since 1987, starting his career in Apache Junction as a copy editor and being promoted over the years to work as the editor of the Mesa Independent, news services editor for the East Valley office in Apache Junction, managing editor for the East Valley office, news services editor for the East Valley office and eventually also for the newspapers at INI’s then-Chandler office, managing editor again and as a news editor covering Apache Junction/Gold Canyon and Queen Creek. He helped start the Florence Independent while the news editor covering Apache Junction and Mesa news. In January 2023, he became associate managing editor for the East Valley newspapers and in August 2023 became managing editor for the East Valley newspapers of Chandler/Tempe, Gilbert, Queen Creek, Florence, Mesa and Apache Junction/Gold Canyon, while also reporting on Mesa and Apache Junction/Gold Canyon.  

Community: Since 2009, he has worked as a volunteer to design The Blue Guitar Magazine, Blue Guitar Jr. magazine and Unstrung magazine, which are projects of The Arizona Consortium for the Arts; and since 2014, has been overseeing the art submissions. 

Education: University of Arizona with a master of arts in journalism and a bachelor of science in agricultural communication. Also continuing education at Mesa Community College in welding in a metal art sculpture class.

Random fact: Saw his first tornado on May 31, 2010, which was classified as an EF-2, as part of a stormchasing tour group.

Hobbies: He is an artist of welded-steel sculptures, selling his artwork at juried and non-juried art shows.