Tag Archives: NFHS

USA Cheer and AACCA Launch CheerSafe Campaign

Website offers comprehensive library of cheerleading safety information and resources.

Cheer Sage LogoMemphis, Tenn., March 1, 2013 – USA Cheer, the governing body of cheer for the United States, has teamed up with the American Association of Cheerleading Coaches and Administrators (AACCA) to launch CheerSafe.org, the most comprehensive website to date for cheerleading regulation and safety information.

The launch of Cheer Safe.org coincides with National Cheer Safety Month (March), and will include 31 days of safety messaging on Twitter (@cheersafe).

CheerSafe.org is the one source for all cheerleading safety information, from the latest regulations and research to the rules that every team should follow. CheerSafe’s mission is to educate parents, coaches, cheerleaders and administrators on the facts of cheerleading safety at every level – school, college and all star—and to promote and improve cheerleading safety through the involvement of a wide spectrum of organizations in the cheerleading community.

The CheerSafe coalition includes the National Federation of State High School Associations, the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the International Cheer Union, the National Athletic Trainers’ Association and the University Risk Managers and Insurers Association. It is also supported by youth sports organizations, cheer publications and several state athletic associations. “CheerSafe.org will be the perfect online source for educating the entire cheerleading community,” says Bill Seely, the Executive Director of USA Cheer. “In many ways, cheerleading safety can be seen as the model for all athletic activities. The American Association of Cheerleading Coaches and Administrators has been leading the way in cheerleading safety since 1987, with risk management courses and safety guidelines, as well as building relationships with other youth sport organizations.”

Jim Lord, Executive Director of AACCA, has been a tireless safety ambassador for the cheerleading community, and is excited to be working with USA Cheer and other youth sports organizations to continue improving safety conditions for cheerleaders. “I know that CheerSafe will resonate throughout the cheerleading community,” says Lord. “CheerSafe members are united in a three-prong approach to safety: that every cheerleading team be trained under the direction of a knowledgeable coach; that the cheerleading team follows established safety rules; and that they have an emergency plan in place.”

The website provides information on where cheerleading coaches can receive training in person and online, safety guidelines for all states and sample emergency plans. It also invites cheerleaders and coaches to participate in the iCheerSafe pledge.

For more information, visit cheersafe.org, or contact Sheila Noone, media@usacheer.net.

USA CheerAbout USA Cheer

The USA Federation for Sport Cheering is a not-for profit organization and is the national governing body for all disciplines of cheerleading. USA Cheer exists to serve the entire cheer community, including club cheering (All Star), traditional school based cheer programs and the new sport of STUNT. USA Cheer has three primary objectives: help grow and develop interest and participation in Cheer throughout the United States; promote safety and safety education for cheer in the United States; and represent the United States of America in international cheer competitions.

AACCA LogoAbout AACCA

The American Association of Cheerleading Coaches and Administrators represents more than 20,000 cheerleading coaches and is the leading advocates of cheerleading safety in the U.S. AACCA is the most recognized source for cheerleading safety education. The AACCA manual, composed by a team of doctors, lawyers, cheerleading industry professionals and Gerald S. George, PhD, has been endorsed by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, the University Risk Management and Insurance Association, the Women’s Sports Foundation and the National Athletic Trainers’ Association, as well as the NCAA and NFHS.

Kathy Vruggink Westdorp Named 2013 NFHS Coach Educator of the Year

NFHS LogoThe National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) has selected Kathy Vruggink Westdorp of Michigan as the recipient of the 2013 NFHS Coach Educator of the Year Award.

Westdorp has served as assistant director of the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) since 2004. One of her primary responsibilities when she was hired was to revamp and revitalize the Michigan coaches education program. She has established, developed and authored the MHSAA Coaches Advancement Program (CAP) and is still active in training coaches throughout the state. The CAP Program is a six-level, face-to-face coaches education program that is research-based and interactive.

Delivery to Michigan’s current and prospective interscholastic coaches is done in two ways. First, presenters trained and evaluated by Westdorp travel “anytime, anywhere” to provide programs, which are coordinated by schools, school districts, leagues and coaches associations. She personally presents many of the CAP units.

Second, after faculty training and with Westdorp’s regular evaluation, colleges and universities in Michigan are licensed to present up to five levels of CAP through their undergraduate or graduate studies.

All aspects of CAP are administered from the MHSAA office under Westdorp’s direction. This includes the arrangements for continuing education credits through the State Department of Education, as well as liability insurance and an online newsletter for all coaches who complete CAP units.

Prior to her position at the MHSAA, Westdorp was principal of Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central High School, athletic director at Grand Rapids Creston High School and a teacher at Grand Rapids Central High School. She has coached basketball, field hockey, gymnastics, track and field, and volleyball.

Previous recipients of the NFHS Coach Educator Award include Nancy O’Neil, Massachusetts, 2012; Bruce Brown, Ohio, 2011; Bobby Guthrie, North Carolina, 2010; and Mike Maghan, Oregon; Lavonne Norman, Alaska; and Ken Yamase (posthumous), Hawaii, all for 2009.

The NFHS Coach Educator Award is presented annually to an individual who has exemplified passion and leadership for the promotion of coach education at the local, state and national levels. Nominations are considered by the NFHS Coach Education Committee, and the recipient is approved by the NFHS Board of Directors.

The NFHS Coach Education Program can be accessed at www.nfhslearn.com.

NFHS Responds to the American Academy of Pediatrics Statement on Cheerleading Injuries

NFHS LogoThe NFHS published a response to the AAP’s suggestions.

The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) agrees with many of the recommendations and, in fact, has worked for more than 20 years to minimize risk for high school cheerleaders. In 1988, the NFHS published its first guidelines for sideline cheerleading. Those guidelines became the basis for the NFHS Spirit Rules Book, which was first published in 1992.

NFHS Responds to the American Academy of Pediatrics Statement on Cheerleading Injuries

2012 High School Rules Changes

Dear AACCA Certified Coaches,

AACCA LogoI hope this email finds you well and ready to wrap up your cheer seasons as we wind down the school year. I want to update you on the new rules changes for high schools that are about to be released. As I told the Georgia Cheer Coaches Association this past week, some of you are going to have to forget most of what you know about the high school rules! Please let me know if you have any questions, or join our new discussion forum listed at the bottom of this email.

Rules Consistency

The new high school rules have been approved and will be announced today by the NFHS and AACCA. We had a joint conference committee in January that was designed to have the two sets of rules get back to the consistency we had many years ago. This involved both organizations looking at the reasons for having longstanding rules as well as what rules could be combined into a simpler “class” of rules. These classes of rules will help eliminate some of the uncertainty by coaches and nitpicking by rules interpreters when the skill is considered to be safe. The end result is that the NFHS and AACCA rules are closer than ever, and there are very few and minor differences. We are working to outline those differences so they can be addressed in the next rules cycle.

Yes, No Double Downs

The rumor is true. Both rules committees banned double twisting dismounts. The new rules replace the “2 1/4 twists” language with “1 1/4 twists”. We have all seen the decline in performance of these skills even as we have seen an increase in the number of attempts. While there are pockets where teams have improved through coaches education and judging criteria, the nation overall has not responded well to the years of warnings we’ve been giving. The final decision was easy once we were presented with two years of data showing that while the overall injury rate for cheer is low, head injuries – especially at practice – are high. Add to that the fact that the majority of those head injuries are from body to body contact and we knew it was the right decision.

We also required a spotter for single base shoulder stands where the base is holding the top’s feet. We were seeing more and more of this type of skill, which leaves the top person with no protection should she buckle and fall off the back.

Give and Take

That should really be “take and give”. In addition to the new restrictions, both rules committees are allowing two new classes of inverted stunts that add creativity without increasing risk.

The first is that all inversions below shoulder level are allowed. There are specific requirements in place, such as constant contact with a base or spotter and contact with two bases/spotters in a low inversion that is descending. An example of these would be a yoyo, a cradle to a back walkover, or a handstand on a double based thighstand. You can even now do a cartwheel over the thighs of someone else. All of these will allow for more creativity in choreography without additional risk of injury.

The second major addition is that we are now allowing braced suspended rolls/flips. This is a skill that is allowed for Level 3 and 4 all stars and is done with relatively little risk of injury. It must be braced on both sides by elevator preps with spotters and must have at least three people catching for a total of 12 people involved in this skill. It is not allowed to twist, so it is basically a front or back braced flip to a cradle, stunt or loading position. I get videos of these every month from someone asking if it is legal and I have had to tell them it is not. In each case, even the mediocre teams, I was given no reason for concern about the safety of the skill itself.

There are many other changes that tweak the rules in order to make it easier to follow as well as to align with the NFHS rules. One example is that we removed the rule that allowed a release transition as long as it made no more than 12 inches of separation between the top and bases. The NFHS now allows teams in braced pyramids to make up to a 1/4 turn around the bracer like our rules have allowed.

I am very pleased with the developments of this year’s AACCA and NFHS rules committees. They looked at the athletes and the available data and determined that they could help minimize the head injuries in cheer while also allowing more freedom to perform skills that are safe to perform. The new rules are now posted at http://www.aacca.org/hsrules. There is a link there for a complete summary of the changes as well.

As always, thank you for everything you do for cheerleading safety!

AACCA Rules Link (Link updated at Jim Lord’s request. Original Link)

NFHS Press Release

Jim Lord

Executive Director

Double Twists to Cradle No Longer Permitted in High School Spirit

INDIANAPOLIS, IN (March 28, 2012) — Effective with the 2012-13 season, a double twist to a cradle (double down) no longer will be permitted in high school spirit (cheer, dance, drill, pom).

NFHS LogoThis significant risk minimization ruling was one of 19 rules changes approved by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Spirit Rules Committee at its March 3-5 meeting in Indianapolis. The rules changes were subsequently approved by the NFHS Board of Directors.

With changes to Rules 2-8-9 and 2-10-2, a twist performed to a cradle must not involve more than one complete rotation except when dismounting to a cradle from a side-facing stunt or toss, which will permit 1¼ rotations. In these cases, the bases may make a one-fourth turn to catch the cradle.

“Data presented by the NFHS Sports Medicine Advisory Committee confirmed that the majority of head injuries in spirit are from body-to-body contact in stunts,” said Susan Loomis, editor of the NFHS Spirit Rules Book. “The committee recognizes that the primary body-to-body contact issues are presented during double-twisting dismounts. Prohibiting double twists to a cradle is consistent with the NFHS focus on risk minimization.

“Many of the other changes approved by the committee would be considered less restrictive and should allow for more creativity on the part of high school participants,” Loomis added.

Among those less-restrictive changes are several rules in a new section on Inversions. While allowing for more creativity and options, the committee believes these stunts do not increase risk of injury.

“These skills have been demonstrated to have a reasonable expectation for minimizing risk when given the specific limitations and conditions required for performance,” Loomis said.

Another less-restrictive change is the elimination of Rule 2-4-8, which previously required a spotter’s arms to be extended toward a top person in order to be in an alert, ready position. The committee agreed that there are a number of different ways for spotters to be alert and ready that don’t involve extending the arms and which don’t increase the risk of injury.

In other changes, the committee deleted rules regarding pendulums since they are now included in a set of rules regarding “horizontal” transitions. The rules committee also voted to allow swinging stunts to begin from below shoulder height rather than specifically from a cradle.

One change was approved by the committee in Rule 3 – Dance/Drill/Pom Risk Management. New language was added to Rule 3-4-1 which permits forward rolls from props low enough that the top person can put both hands on the performing surface before dismounting.

A number of the rules changes approved by the Spirit Rules Committee bring NFHS rules in closer alignment with the American Association of Cheerleading Coaches & Administrators (AACCA) rules. In addition, in a similar spirit of cooperation, AACCA will be revising some of its rules in other areas to align with NFHS rules.

This was the final meeting for Loomis to serve as the NFHS spirit rules consultant. She has served in that capacity since the organization moved to Indianapolis in 2000 and followed a 10-year involvement on the committee as a member and chair. Kent Summers, NFHS director of performing arts and sports, will now serve as staff liaison and rules editor.

Competitive spirit squads constitute the ninth-most popular activity for girls at the high school level, according to the 2010-11 High School Athletics Participation Survey conducted by the NFHS, with 96,718 participants nationwide. There are also 21,487 girls who participate in dance or drill teams, according to the same survey.