Utah nonprofit offering affordable ski classes to Iron County students this winter
by Arianne Brown ksl · KSL.comKEY TAKEAWAYS
- Youth Sports Alliance expands to Iron County for the 2026 ski season.
- The program offers affordable ski classes at Brian Head Ski Resort for students.
- Registration closes Nov. 15 with scholarship options for low-income families available.
PAROWAN — A youth program dedicated to making outdoor sports accessible to all has extended its efforts to Iron County just in time for the 2026 winter ski season.
Youth Sports Alliance, which was established after the 2002 Winter Olympics to increase the number of children participating in winter sports in the greater Park City area, is offering four ski classes to students in Iron County at Brian Head Ski Resort at a reduced cost.
"We're really excited about it because at the Youth Sports Alliance, we provide tiered registration costs," said southern Utah program manager Amanda Sorensen. "We have our standard price, and then we have our scholarship tickets for students that qualify for free and reduced lunch."
Sorensen explained that qualifying students typically pay one-third to one-fourth of the standard cost of $185 for the four-week program.
"It's $50 for the scholarship ticket, and that covers the cost of the lift tickets, transportation, and coaching," Sorensen said. "For scholarship students, it also covers their rentals. We also have a partial scholarship for families that earn less than $120,000 annually but don't qualify for free or reduced lunch. There are also opportunities for parents to volunteer."
Sorensen was introduced to the program as a parent volunteer while searching for ways for her own children to learn how to ski, when she and her family lived in northern Utah.
"My husband grew up close to Park City and he grew up skiing, and it was relatively inexpensive and pretty accessible at that time," Sorensen said. "But when we had kids, we found we just couldn't afford to ski anymore."
In Utah, a single-day lift pass can cost well over $100, with some resorts reaching the $200 range per day. This price does not factor in the cost of ski and gear rentals or transportation up the mountain, which many larger ski resorts in the state require.
"We want our programs to be inclusive," Sorensen said. "We don't run programs that are just for specific genders, ethnicities, abilities or socioeconomic groups. We feel like it's very important to get these kids all on the bus together, no matter what their background is. This program creates some shared memories that aren't limited to the social groups that they already participate in."
Sorensen also made note that Youth Sports Alliance takes special steps toward ensuring that all the gear is handed out prior to the event, so that "you can't tell what kids are paying full price, who's paying half, and who's paying for a scholarship ticket."
The program in Iron County operates in conjunction with Brian Head Ski Resort and is available to sixth- through eighth-grade students. It features one three-day session and two four-day sessions that begin in December and run through the end of January. Registration closes on Nov. 15.
"I've talked to families here in Parowan, and it was the same when I was in Wasatch — they've lived in these areas their whole lives and have never skied, despite having some of the most amazing ski facilities available just 20 minutes away," Sorensen said. "I think this program is so great because it gives kids the opportunity to try something new that they may not have tried before, and it also makes something like skiing and snowboarding accessible to so many more families."
Those interested in registering for any of the Youth Sports Alliance programs statewide can do so on the organization's website.
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