The Parent Teacher Student Association, or PTSA, for Herriman High School is an often unsung—but vital—component of the community and the events that are hosted throughout the year. The club is unique in that it works with the school as a whole and positively affects every student, club member or not. As the name suggests, parents and teachers can join just as students can, offering an inviting environment where everybody has input into what goes on at the school. As the school year has just begun, information about the club’s current goals is handy for students who are interested in getting involved. Luckily, Walker Chalk, the current secretary of the PTSA, kindly gave some insight into the club as a whole and their plans for this year.

Many clubs at Herriman High stick to very specific niches, which is great for students who want a vessel to go out and do what they enjoy. However, the PTSA expands themselves to a schoolwide scope and involves students outside of the group. “We do caps and gowns, and parent teacher conferences, and ribbon week, so it’s just a lot of small activities throughout the year that pretty much everybody gets to be a part of,” stated Chalk, explaining that the PTSA focuses on setting things up for the high school as a whole. Spirit weeks and other activities are due in large part to the people in the PTSA, who are looking to make the everyday student’s experience at school something to look forward to. However, the PTSA doesn’t limit themselves to the Herriman High building; they do broaden their range with a few of the events they put on. “The biggest event that we put on is Battle of the Bands,” Chalk noted. The Battle of the Bands is an event where bands from high schools across Utah compete, and the school PTA/PTSAs are the organizations that sponsor the event. The event is not only an exciting way for students at Herriman High to get out there and make some noise, but it lets students from the entire state band together for a friendly competition. All in all, the PTSA’s primary goal is to make the high school experience much more exciting, and they put in a lot of work setting up events for students to take part in.
The PTSA is not a huge time commitment, and participation in the events is entirely optional. “Almost anybody can join and it’s just a lot of small things and volunteering around the school,” Chalk stated when asked about advising students to participate. For students taking a government class, PTSA activities are an incredibly useful way to check off mandatory service hours in an energetic environment with exciting people to boot.

For any student interested in joining the PTSA, there are QR codes all around the school. Additionally, faculty members are a great source of further information, as the club involves them as well. “It’s $10 to join, and that pays for everything the entire year, including a field trip to the capitol with Debate, if Debate decides to do that again,” Chalk mentioned. To reiterate, the PTSA is not a huge time commitment and participating in events is optional. However, these events are a great way to meet new people, experience new things, and give a positive boost to the school experience, so it’s certainly worth it to consider taking part in what it has to offer.