By JOSEPH NAGY
Staff Writer
As of the 2017-2018 school year, cheerleading will officially be made a CIF regulated sport. According to CIF news, Governor Jerry Brown, signed Assembly Bill (AB) 949 this past summer . With this new bill set ready for implementation the following year, competitions that are already set for cheerleading will now have an effect on whether or not a team could make it to CIF regionals and possibly State.
California schools including University cheer will be affected by this new addition. The CIF board is currently working out the remaining preliminaries to what will be the final decisions to the rules that will be made for competitions and playoffs.
One of the major adjustments is what season Cheerleading will occur during. As of now competitions will be in the winter and tryouts for the following year are during the spring. Tryouts and competitions will stay the same where both are based off of judging done by USA Cheer. The chance for cheer teams to represent their schools in CIF is a promising decision that will potentially expand the sport’s viewer base.
Though impacted by this decision, the UHS cheer team appears hopeful for the following year, ready to take on the new rules. Varsity Cheerleader Melody Bastani (Jr.) said “it’s a great chance to finally showcase our talents.”
Another adjustment that will follow is that Varsity Cheer teams will be accepting all grades of cheerleaders instead of only upperclassman. This is because all levels of cheer will be competing instead of just varsity, prioritizing talent over age.
“I’m enthusiastic for this next season,” said Head Cheer Coach, Tom Shrake (Science Department). “I would not be surprised if it does not happen till the 2018-2019 season.”
With this new addition, cheerleading at University has an optimistic perspective towards this new opportunity.
Cheerleading to join CIF
November 30, 2016
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