Meg's Cheerleader Blog

Cheerleading Flyers can now practice all of these positions on the ground and for a more realistic feeling and a challenge, use the Cheerleading Stunt Stand to simulate being held in an all-girl group stunt or a single base, partner stunt!

Organizations challenging federal judge’s ruling that cheerleading is not an official sport.

Go! Go! Go-oo Judge! Court to Decide If Cheerleading’s a Sport

The case could set a precedent.

By DIANA PEREZ and LEANNE GENDREAU

Updated 1:30 PM EDT, Mon, Jun 21, 2010

AP

Cheerleaders train regularly, usually perform on a ball field and get a heck of a workout, but there is a debate over whether cheerleading is a sport, and that decision will be made in federal court.

What the court decides could have a major impact on college sports. 

A judge will decide whether chants, pyramids, dances and pep constitute a sport because several members of Quinnipiac University‘s women’s volleyball filed a lawsuit after their school eliminated their team in favor of a competitive cheer squad.

The volleyball players say the school has been exaggerating the number of its female athletes and improperly counts competitive cheerleading as a sport.

On Monday, testimony will be heard in U.S. District Court in Bridgeport to determine if cheerleading can be counted toward the school’s Title IX requirement — a federal law that mandates equal opportunities for women in sports.

Last month, a district court granted class action status to the lawsuit. The Title IX blog reports that class action status would allow the volleyball team to represent:

a class of all present, prospective, and future female students who are harmed by and want to end [Quinnipiac University's] sex discrimination in: (1) the allocation of athletic participation opportunities; (2) the allocation of athletic financial assistance; and (3) the allocation of benefits provided to varsity athletes. They also file this action on behalf of females who are deterred from enrolling at [Quinnipiac] because of the sex discrimination in its athletic program, including its failure to offer the varsity sports in which they want to participate (despite [Quinnipiac's] failure to provide equal athletic participation opportunities to females).

The case could set a precedent and critics argue including cheerleading is “a cheap way to inflate Title IX numbers that Quinnipiac must report to the federal government,” Salon.com reports.

 

Bring Your Cheerleading Skills to the Next Level

By: Marlon Gamble

If you are interested in cheerleading, you may wonder how to improve your skills on your own. If you’re not on a squad, drilling and practicing at home can help you prepare to wow your judges at cheerleading tryouts someday in the future. If you’re already a member of a cheerleading team, improving a few key aspects of your technique on your own can help you excel at meets and during routines. Gaining mastery of cheerleading techniques can help you build confidence and skills that will translate into success in other arenas of life as well, and if you have the time and inclination, practicing some cheerleading techniques solo can help you take your cheering to the next level. There are three things that you can improve on your own that will strengthen your cheerleading. These are your muscles, your voice, and your mind.

Practicing some gentle stretches or a regular course of yoga, pilates, or strength training can help you to gain flexibility and resilience that will allow you to tackle increasingly advanced athletic feats on the field. From effortless splits to attention getting aerial moves, the better shape you are in the more successful you will be in achieving your goals. You can increase your athletic prowess by spending just twenty or thirty minutes a day stretching in the privacy of your own home. Using the skills you’ve built later, during a game, can help your squad get the crowd excited and the sports teams you are supporting are certain to appreciate your extra effort.

Although cheerleading is highly visual and depends greatly on athletic feats, the heart of any cheerleading squad is the cheering. Upping your vocal power can help you to reach the sports fans way in the back of the stadium. Learning how to breathe deeply and how to improve your annunciation and vocal control can help you get your message out there without shouting yourself hoarse. For a comprehensive guide to vocal technique, check out any book by Cicely Berry, a theatrical vocal coach renowned for her ability to get the most power and resonance out of any actor’s throat.

Last but not least, you can train your mind to make you a better cheerleader. Many cheerleaders enjoy the excitement of cheering for huge crowds, but along with that excitement nerves and tension usually show up before a big game or a competitive cheerleading meet. Psychological tension often translates into physical tension, which can spell problems for a cheerleader who needs to stay relaxed and keep muscles loose in order to execute the sport’s demanding moves. The job that cheerleaders do is just as stressful as the job that any athlete does, so it is important to take care of your spirit the same way that an Olympian does. Practicing relaxation techniques like meditation and deep breathing can help you to make sure that when you step onto the field, you are at your peak no matter how many people are watching.

About the Author

To read about dwarf cherry tree and cherry blossom branches, visit the Types Of Cherry Trees site.

(ArticlesBase SC #2612449)

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Fundraising Ideas – Try These 5 Hot Cheerleading Fundraisers!

By: Jessi McCafferty

If your cheerleading team is in need of new uniforms, or needs funds to travel, give cheerleading fundraisers a try. You can do a myriad of interesting activities to make your fundraising programs a tremendous hit with the young crowd and the others of your community as well. The more innovative you can make your fundraisers, the more profitable they will turn out to be. But the biggest key to fundraising is shockingly simple – have fun! If you are enjoying yourself those around you will too and you will find your fundraiser to be much more successful.

Play the Chef

Cooking is an all-time hit among the cheerleading fundraising ideas. It offers a great scope to be creative by improvising the traditional recipes. But before you carry out the experiments, first collect as many simple recipes you can and write them down in your team’s cookbook. Use various sources for collecting the recipes. You may include the teachers, teammates, students, and their parents too. After you make successful alterations in these recipes, find a hot spot to sell them. With fun, smiling cheerleaders to sell the food, you can be assured of your profit.

Teach Cheerleading to Others

You can use your cheerleaders as a team brand. Use their popularity as the USP of your fundraising project. In fact, you can go ahead with holding cheerleading classes at a ‘cheerleading school’ where your cheerleaders will teach helpful tips and strategies. This can be one of the best fundraising programs if you know what to charge for each lesson. Make sure that all those cheerleading fans out there know about the details of this class to ensure maximum attendance. Your school’s gym is a good location for holding such classes.

Cheerleader vs. Cheerleader

You can make such classes far more interesting by holding a practical game between your cheerleaders and that of other teams. This will draw a huge gathering of sports enthusiasts. At the same time, it will send helpful lessons to those who aspire to be cheerleaders themselves. One of the many positive points of this fundraising idea is that it will cost you almost nothing in terms of investment. Comparing to that, the profit you will earn from the massive sell of tickets will be something to reckon with!

A Rummage Sale

It always helps your cause if you put effort into reselling surplus articles. This fundraiser is profitable and practical because it requires no prior capital to invest in it. Put up stalls asking your community members to deposit anything they do not need. You can also hold a door-to-door drive to pick up all those extra articles that can fetch you good funds. You may even find takers among your own community – what someone disposes can serve someone else’s purpose.

A Raffle

If you want an alternate selling idea for your cheerleader fundraising, go for a raffle. This will leave you ‘rich’ with a good profit margin. The trick is to sell the prize and the tickets at 50% of the actual collection. You can seek the help of PTA fundraising for executing such cheerleading fundraising ideas.

Tips For Success

~ It is important to promote your fundraising programs.

~ Equally important is you choice of venue. The local business showrooms and eateries are good spots for fundraisers. You need to pay them a certain share of your profit to avail this facility.

~ While you are conducting the fundraising activities, make sure you wear your team uniform for the benefit of the donors.

~ Keep a neat account of what you have collected and how much you need to collect to reach your target.

~ Always be official with your expression of gratitude to the donors.
Mention their names in on-spot signs or on your fundraising programs’ or your team’s website.

About the Author

Jessi McCafferty writes about school fundraising and recommends the friendly folks over at http://www.easy-fundraising-ideas.com/ as a great resource for accurate information and profitable cheerleading fundraising ideas. Easy Fundraising Ideas is the fastest growing internet based fundraising company in the country. With their legendary service and help they make you the hero! Easy Fundraising ideas!

(ArticlesBase SC #748938)

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/ – Fundraising Ideas – Try These 5 Hot Cheerleading Fundraisers!