Sorry but I have to rant a little bit

+1 on TPM's post.....it is serious cut throat at the high school I was assigned to last year....cheer and dance!  Dance team even over through a coach and got her booted

Is there scholarships available for cheerleading?

Yes

Yes there are. Quite a bit of them too! Both male and female.

This continues to go back to the long-held thought that concussions only occurred in football. Obviously that isn't true and if anybody still believes that, then they need to wake up. Concussions are a serious matter in all sports. Cheerleading is also pretty high on the list for concussions in female sports. This is likely due to the increased nature of tumbling and stunting that leads to falls. Cheerleading today is unlike the cheerleading of old. It is now much more like gymnastics with team spirit mixed in. The injury rates overall remain relatively low in cheerleading compared to other sports, however the sport is the leader in high school female sports for catastrophic injury accounting for an estimated 65% of all catastrophic injuries in that population. I think the likely main reason that the overall injury rate is rather low in cheer is because it remains on the "outside" with regards to athletics and the injury reporting systems remain poor.

The parents and kid are obviously making a poor decision. The coach is also making a poor decision from both a personal standpoint (think about the kid's safety!) but also from a liability standpoint. If she has not been cleared by a doctor and the coaches allows her to participate, then she is likely violating a doctor's order. If something really unfortunate were to happen, the coach's name would be the first listed on the lawsuit.

I believe something like 47 of the 50 states have some sort of "athlete concussion law" however each state's law has flaws in them. As Coach mentioned, most often things like "showcase cheerleading" do not have to abide by the law. They only apply to certain high school sports most often. Senator Durbin from Illinois has introduced a bill that would create a federal law mandating states meet certain requirements with their laws. We'll see how that goes.

I don't send all concussed athletes to the doctor, but I have gotten to where I send a large majority of them. Most often, they are cleared by the doctor to "begin return to play protocol under supervision of the athletic trainer" and then are allowed to be cleared when I am ready. I utilize ImPACT testing and kids must complete a progressive return to play process before full competition.

When I think of cheerleading I think of the following:

Tonight at our JV football game I was able to get with our cheer coach and asked if her mom knows what's going on - she said yes and she talked to her about the potential problems that could occur.  I just don't get it.  What makes it worse is part of the Gfeller / Waller Act is I have to hold a mandatory meeting at the start of each season for every single athlete and parent / guardian.  We go over all of this stuff and what happens once a kid is just suspected of having a concussion.  Then I hand out a paper with information on it and another paper where the parent and kid both sign saying they attended the meeting to get the information.  

As for doing other things while in season I totally understand what Buckeye and PG are talking about and agree with them.  I just think there are two different things going on here.  I feel what they are talking about is a kid being a kid.  If they get hurt being a kid then so be it because that's part of life.  But the part I'm talking about is the structured / having someone put pressure on you to do something while something else is going on.  That just takes away from both things you're trying to do.  

I do believe there can be exceptions to this but it has to be a special reason.  One year I had a second baseman who loved basketball and wanted to attend a showcase during our season.  I allowed him to miss a game to attend this because he had a chance to be seen by a college.  I'm not going to take a chance like this away from a kid.  

I don't know - it just ticked me off when this girl was telling me this stuff today.  

Great Post Coach2709, I really enjoyed reading it. It did make me late for a meeting this morning though .

Your post and PGs post really hit home for me.  My son is a Freshman who's HS coach is outstanding, but also very demanding of his time. We are still playing fall ball!

For Freshman year we agreed to commit completely to HS summer/fall program.   The HS coach basically said he needed to see where the incoming baby/freshman fit in with his team.  That made sense to us so we agreed and he has not missed a HS game or practice. Next summer he will play the travel team schedule with the big PG events etc....  I think we made a good choice.  He has solidified a starting 9 spot for Varsity (could change in spring I know, but looking solid)

As for the concussion aspect.  I place much of the blame on the parents and some on the coaches.  Last summer or two summers ago we played a team in the USSSA states and one of our players sliding properly at home plate kneed the catcher in the head. (Catcher had his face real low to the ground).  The other team flipped out, parents came on to the field screaming at our player.  Coach started screaming and yelling.  The boy needed to be carted off to the hospital. 

Why were they flipping out you ask?  When asked that question here was the response:

"He just recently had a concussion and we are concerned about the impact of a second one so soon"

I can not make this stuff up, are you kidding me????  You mean the fact that the kid could have been permanantly brain damaged was less important than winning states!!! 

Unfortunately this is the competitive environment we live in.  I am glad we have Coach2709 spreading the word about how stupid this really is.

It may not be the competitive environment we live in. It could be the old school "shake it off so no one thinks you're a pussy."

Thats how many grew up, but there is no room for that with concussions:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wb6Bm5skuBA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlQcKuzzLDw

http://www.cdc.gov/TraumaticBrainInjury/severe.html

I don't need to learn about concussions. My son has had three. While catching he got nailed in the head by the backswing of an off balance hitter. His coach didn't take him out of the game. I found out later he wasn't removed even after throwing up in the dugout. He was kicked in the head making a head first save in soccer. He was thrown off a wall playing basketball as he was about to lay in a buzzer beater winning shot.

Not suggesting you needed a lesson.  Just supporting my statement, my apologies if you were offended.

Maybe someone uninformed will find the info valuable.  I was uninformed about this before someone shared it with me.

SUAWTG,

Appreciate you posting those links.  I'm glad that concussions are getting so much publicity these days. People are getting more educated and can make wiser decisions.

I've had several concussions in my life.  Maybe even more than I actually know.  I'm one of the lucky ones that got by without any serious damage. Damage that I know about anyway! Others might say I didn't escape that brain damage.

We that are involved in activities, especially sports activities, need to understand the danger of concussions.  Football has taught us a lot lately.  We need to be educated.

I completely agree with your view of this, 2709. And I appreciate the frustration.

coach you have some great points on this web site - but I just read a thread about cheerleading on a baseball forum (ok kinda not about cheer but way to much of it). You sir are going to need to duck the large beer can falling out of the sky!!

All good points, but it is the parents' responsibility.   My son was a 3 sport athelete thru his freshman year in HS.   Soccer, basketball and baseball.. all at the travel / club / aau level.   I have always believed that a kid should experience all sports, not just concentrate on one (if (s)he chooses).  I also believe that this reduces the risk of overuse injuries and builds well rounded muscle coordination.  We were always up front with the coaches... he will commit to your team as priority in season.   Out of season, he has other teams and commitments.  Family first, then school, then sports.  If this doesn't work for you, then we can find a new team. There are coaches and teams that have the same morals and beliefs.  Sure they may not be state champs, or travel the country playing tournaments, but that is a life lesson.. winning isn't everything.

I have a couple of male employees that were college cheereleaders and were scholarship.

At some point, parents need to take ownership and be exactly that, a parent.  Rules/laws can help but parents have to take ownership and do what's right for their child.   

It's actually evolved into a badass sport at that.  Best thing that ever happened to cheerleading.  Prior to, the whole concept was flawed.

Not to mention that most schools have classified it as a varsity sport.

Classifying cheerleading as a sport helps address Title IX issues.

No it doesn't. Not at the college level at least.

http://www.adn.com/2013/04/26/...t-that-prompted.html

And actually only 29 state associations categorize cheerleading as a sport. The NCAA does not.