West Valley School has a new set of student leaders.

The school has replaced its student council with the West Valley Peers as Leaders, or PALS.

West Valley isn’t the first school to discontinue the student council format. Evergreen Junior High did so in 2013 with the Evergreen Junior High Leadership Club.

After working at the middle school-level for about 17 years, West Valley Dean of Students

and PALS adviser John Chisholm was frustrated with the traditions of student council.

“It basically becomes a popularity contest and not necessarily the candidates that should be representing the kids,” Chisholm said. “We wanted the kids to have to put a little effort into it [and] apply for it instead of going up and doing a speech and putting up a couple of posters.”

PALS member eighth-grader Delaney Wirtala agreed. Wirtala said she was on student council last year and likes the changes made with the creation of PALS.

“This is definitely a better method because last time it was just a popularity contest,” Wirtala said.

Students who want to become members of PALS had to apply and get teacher recommendations. One question on the application asks students to describe his or her qualities and skills that would benefit PALS.

“[This process brings] more of their intellect, their good ideas to the table, and it gives them an opportunity to voice opinions that maybe wouldn’t have been heard before,” Chisholm said.

Chisholm said the new process resulted in 18 members with a variety of talents to represent the student body. 

“PALS members represent what a West Valley student looks like — leading by example, helping fellow classmates, being respectful, maintaining good grades and doing whatever it takes to make our school a better place,” Chisholm said.

Up to four students per grade level in grades fourth through eighth can become members. PALS began meeting in October. Currently students meet once a week to come up with ways to improve their school and have been working through a list of goals they would like to accomplish.

“We’ve gone through a lot of these already,” Chisholm said. 

And everyone gets to vote. 

Chisholm said he felt this is a better method for the middle school level rather than have roles such as a president.

“Usually the president is an older kid, a seventh- or eighth-grader and a lot of their decisions are based on what’s in the interest of the eighth-grade level. They don’t really think about the younger kids, so this way they all have a voice,” Chisholm said.

The group still retains some of the qualities of student council such as organizing fun events, dances, fundraisers and improving the school. One of the goals PALS accomplished was creating suggestion boxes and placing them around the school. Fifth-graders Zephy Hanson and Lucy Lowry read some of the suggestions Dec. 5, which included painting the bathroom, having a word of the day, adding swings on the playground and having a talent show.

One of the popular changes PALS made was simply changing the flavor of a weekly fluoride rinse.

“There was grape and bubblegum [flavor] and we decided we needed mint,” Hanson said.

Lowry added: “It tastes a lot better.”

They have also done some beautification work by cleaning up the playground and sidewalks, Wirtala said.

Lowry agreed with Hanson’s reason for joining PALS.

“I just wanted to make our school better,” Hanson said. “There’s a lot of things that need to be fixed so I wanted to help fix all of them.”

Reporter Hilary Matheson may be reached at 758-4431 or by email at hmatheson@dailyinterlake.com.