Wildebeests graze peacefully in the open fields of the Savannah, but at the sound of the bell, the Wildebeests cram themselves down the canyon fleeing for their lives. This is no Discovery Channel documentary – it’s the nature of Herriman High when the bells ring. You often feel like Simba, lost in the chaos as students swarm in from portables, clog up stairwells and face gridlock in intersections.  Herriman High school had 1,400 students when it opened its doors but has already exceeded its capacity at 2,800 just six years later.

The incoming Sophomore stampede has caused a slew of things to take place at Herriman High: Six new portables, three assembly bell schedule, high demand for parking passes, traffic jams, loaded classes. This puts an incredible strain on students and teachers alike. MAP classes have a cap of students they allow in, which can make it harder for those of us struggling to get the help we need. We all have our share of rant worthy parking lot stories; it’s like a wild Savannah out there with every wildebeest for himself. Teenagers are already stereotyped to be the worst drivers, so when well over half of the parking passes have been sold, we’re gonna have close calls like Mufasa. A line spanning decades clogs up the roads leading up to the school in the final minutes before the bell rings. Fitting students into assemblies is like fitting into those jeans after Halloween. For the Homecoming assembly SBOs had to wing it. Manuel Fragoso described it, “It was really full, so we had kids sit on the floor, about 100-200 kids since we don’t have enough bleachers.” At the start of school, the buses were jampacked, and just as they began to pull away, students were booking it to the bus seemingly out of nowhere. Additional buses had to be added to accommodate for this unexpected surplus of warm bodies. Herriman High is doing its best to adapt to this situation. Hiring new teachers, building more classrooms, acquiring more buses, and splitting assemblies are all ways to accommodate this over-saturation of students. Here’s to hoping Herriman students will soon be able to sing out, “Hakuna Matata!”