Fernandez, Jose

Jose Fernandez was born in Zacatecas, Mexico in 1956, and came to Arizona with his family in 1968. He grew to love track and field sports during junior high, and then joined the cross-country team at Chandler High. Jose ran the mile in 4:19, the second fastest time in the school’s history. After Jose graduated from Chandler High in 1975, Coach Nido encouraged him to attend the University of Arizona. Jose lettered all four years in track and cross-country at the U of A, finishing in the top ten of the NCAA for cross-country. He graduated with a degree in Sociology and went on to become a teacher at Frye Elementary School in Chandler.

To read the transcript of an oral history interview with Jose Fernandez recorded on October 3, 2009, for his induction into the Chandler Sports Hall of Fame, click the icon below:

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