Kicking it up a notch
On Friday nights in the fall, you’ll find determined opponents on the gridiron. You’ll see big plays, hard hits, boisterous fans and one of the most important elements of high school football – cheerleaders. Shadle Park cheerleaders are the conduit between the shouting fans and the players on the field.
Shadle Park has a long tradition of spirited student bodies. The cheerleaders not only help raise the decibel level at the games, but they work diligently promoting the game, plastering posters throughout the school’s halls, leading pep cons, and writing letters of encouragement (pride grams) to the players.
In several recent teen movies and “Saturday Night Live” skits, cheerleaders are the butt of jokes. They are portrayed as the mean girls, as snobs, as nothing more than shallow airheads in short skirts.
The 12 girls on Shadle’s squad say this is far from the truth.
Cheerleading is a demanding sport, without special equipment. As in other sports, there are grueling practices, sore muscles, cuts and bruises.
“Until you try out you have no idea how hard it is. This is definitely a sport,” said junior Katie Carl. “You need balance, body control, coordination. There’s a lot of technique needed for stunting.”
Senior Jessica Lee agrees, “I’ve done track. I thought that was bad, but nothing can compare to this. I’ve never been so sore in my life.”
Amber Jean Folden, a senior, said that even her face muscles hurt from smiling.
As for being a snobbish clique, the girls say they are a diverse group who really didn’t know each other before becoming cheerleaders.
“I want to get rid of that elitist attitude. I want them to be good people first, good kids, good role models. These girls are just great,” said Sarah Bunney, now in her fourth year as the cheerleader adviser, a position she job-shares with her mother, “Mama Sue” Borg.
Both Borg and Bunney are Shadle graduates.
“We want to stress community involvement. The girls have to come up with a plan for group service projects. They are peer mentors, involved with link crew. They need to really focus on being approachable. They are trying to branch out. This summer they called freshmen and welcomed them to Shadle,” said Bunney.
“This year we want to recognize kids not only in sports, but to send pride grams to kids in choir, in drama too,” said junior Bre McCoy.
Cheer team captain Tori Divis agrees, “Everyone represents the school, not just those in sport.”
Being a cheerleader is expensive, costing about $900. This pays for several uniforms, socks, shoes, jackets. The girls wear their uniforms to school about four days each week. The money also paid for a private cheer coach this summer.
“The girls come from all financial backgrounds. We don’t ever want finances to be a problem or a reason that someone doesn’t try out. There are creative ways to raise money. Many girls work over the summer to earn money. Many split the cost with their parents. They started raising money last May,” said Borg.
The Shadle Booster club also gives the group $200.
As for the tiny and thin stereotype, the group varies in size and body type. “We don’t care if they fit into last year’s skirts. I would never say a size 10 is the biggest they can be. If we need to let out a skirt we will,” said Borg.
These girls could hardly be considered air-heads. They have to have good grades to be considered for cheerleading. On a whole their grade point average is above 3.5 at Shadle. Many take advanced placement classes, and in past years several have been valedictorians.
“To be a cheerleader you need to be responsible, organized. It’s like a full-time job,” said Carl. “If you aren’t a good student, you’ll never be able to do this.”
So is it worth the sore muscles?
“Being in front of people gives them confidence. Some of the shyer ones are already coming out of their shells. They learn to take criticism and turn it around,” said Borg.