By Jamar Younger
Kaylah Rose Yazzie has no problem adapting to change.
As the daughter of a former active duty U.S. Air Force officer, Kaylah spent the early years of her childhood moving across the globe, living as far away as Alaska and Japan.
So, when she arrived at BASIS Chandler two years ago as a burgeoning young swimmer who was looking for more of an academic challenge at a rigorous school, it was only a matter of time before she found success.
The eighth-grader has excelled as a student and an athlete, breaking three state swimming records while helping the school’s swim team win a state title last year. The 15-year-old won the gold in the 200-yard freestyle, 100-yard backstroke and 50-yard butterfly during the Canyon Athletic Association’s state meet last October.
She was named 2017 CAA High School Girls Swimmer of the Year while also receiving the team’s most valuable player award. Kaylah is a natural motivator and leader on her swim team, and is known to give pep talks to senior teammates despite her youth, said her coach Kirstin Lewis.
“I’m just excited to see what Kaylah continues to do. I can’t wait to see where she’s at in her senior year,” Lewis said, who nominated her for Swimmer of the Year.
In addition, Kaylah has grown into an honor roll student at BASIS, which is annually ranked as one of the top schools in the country.
“Other schools weren’t demanding or challenging. I would always be bored in class,” she said. “When I came to BASIS, I was like ‘whoa, I really need to study.’ It just helped me with time management. I just kept working at it and, eventually, I got everything down.”
Kaylah keeps a regimented schedule where she’s often awake on weekdays before 5 a.m., spends at least two hours a day at swim practice and dedicates another three hours each night to homework. On the weekends, she participates in swim meets for her club team and spends more time on her assignments.
So, what’s her secret to balancing academic and athletic responsibilities?
“When I’m at school, I tend to focus on school and not anything else. At swimming, I don’t think about school. I think about my stroke, my technique,” she said.
BASIS has provided Kaylah the resources to help her become independent, including a communications journal given to students to help them stay organized and consistent communication from teachers regardless of whether she is struggling or succeeding.
She is also driven by her Native American beliefs, which emphasize balance, harmony with her surroundings and the idea that she belongs in any environment.
“We believe in a healthy lifestyle, healthy balance and to walk on the path that our creator has provided us; humility, being humble and balanced, so from an athletic, academic, spiritual sense,” said Kaylah’s father, Lamoni Yazzie, who is Comanche, Navajo and Sac and Fox. Her mother, McResha Yazzie, is Navajo.
“Our ideals align with what the school has provided Kaylah,” he said.
For Kaylah, her future goals include breaking more records, making the Olympics, swimming in college, and working in a STEM career after college.
“Next year I hope to break them some more, so when I graduate, my records still stand and it’ll help the younger generation push itself to beat those,” she said.
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