This letter was sent to the Board Members of USASF from a concerned parent. I wanted to share this with so many that are concerned about the rules and the procedure they used to announce them. The original letter was signed by the parent how ever I felt that it was not my place to include her name due to her having a minor age child who cheers.
April 1 , 2012
Mr. Jim Chadwick Mr. Dan Kessler Mr. Justin Carrier Mr. Lance Wagers
Ms. Catherine Morris Mr. Mike Burgess Ms. Elaine Pascale Mr. Mack Hirshberg
Mr. Jeff Fowlkes Mr. Happy Hooper Mr. Jody Melton Mr. Steve Peterson
Mr. John Newby Ms. Colleen Little
Dear USASF Board of Directors:
I have been an All Star Parent for 9 years. I am writing to the USASF Board of Directors as a result of the recent rules announcement. I am truly astonished that a group of experienced business leaders would intentionally create an atmosphere of confusion and mistrust among the people that are most important to their business… customers. Change is inevitable. In fact, if an organization or an individual does not change they do not thrive and if one does not thrive, they die. I spent 24 years as a Human Resources Executive, managing change in a Fortune 100 company. Never in all of my years have I seen an attempt at change managed so poorly. I don’t disagree that rules need to be reviewed and updated. However, The USASF has a process to change the rules that impact the cheerleading industry. This process, if followed, would solicit feedback from variety of constituents, including gym owners, coaches, parents, athletes. The feedback would then be discussed and debated with the designated committee and then after all parties had the opportunity for discussion, rules would be developed. Where in your recent process did any of this occur?
The rules that you announced this week were not well thought out. You designed these rules behind closed doors based on non public information and personal agendas. You designed these rules without the feedback from your constituents. You determined that these rules would be adopted without following the process you have outlined on your website and regardless of the consequences to the industry. Are these rules all invalid? Probably not. Some of them, written the right way, might even be positive for our industry. Had you followed your own process, each and every rule would have been discussed, debated and finalized with the group of people that you most need to drive change in this industry, our gym owners and coaches.
I do not want to address each rule in this letter. I do want to ask that as the rules of cheerleading evolve, please do not create rules that foster mediocrity. Life is not about mediocrity. Life is about striving to do your best in everything you do every time you do it. Will all cheerleaders achieve the same tumbling, stunting or dance skills? No. Cheerleading is a microcosm of life. Life is about competition and in life you don’t always win. Someone will always be better than someone else. When our kids enter the workforce, these kids will face stiff competition from their peers and colleagues. Standards will not be lowered to make it easier for these young adults to succeed. People are expected to set goals, work harder, develop new skills and in turn make positive contributions to their company. The rules you have recommended diminish Cheerleading as a sport and create a culture of accepted mediocrity. You are telling our children that there is no need to continually grow and evolve their skills.
You are telling them that mediocrity is acceptable and you are creating rules that favor the lowest common denominator.
I understand that the rules announced this week will be reviewed and vetted with the appropriate parties. I expect that as leaders of the USASF you will do everything in your power to engage the right people and solicit and incorporate their feedback in the final decisions. When rules are announced, there should be nothing that comes as a surprise to the people who make the biggest difference in our industry… coaches. As parents we spend a lot of time and money on a sport that our children love. My desire is that you don’t forget who your customers are as you design and you evolve this industry. This is not about a handful of people, sitting in a boardroom, coming up with ideas that you like and support. This is about the thousands of children who make sacrifices to do what they love each and every day.
A concerned parent.
April 1 , 2012
Mr. Jim Chadwick Mr. Dan Kessler Mr. Justin Carrier Mr. Lance Wagers
Ms. Catherine Morris Mr. Mike Burgess Ms. Elaine Pascale Mr. Mack Hirshberg
Mr. Jeff Fowlkes Mr. Happy Hooper Mr. Jody Melton Mr. Steve Peterson
Mr. John Newby Ms. Colleen Little
Dear USASF Board of Directors:
I have been an All Star Parent for 9 years. I am writing to the USASF Board of Directors as a result of the recent rules announcement. I am truly astonished that a group of experienced business leaders would intentionally create an atmosphere of confusion and mistrust among the people that are most important to their business… customers. Change is inevitable. In fact, if an organization or an individual does not change they do not thrive and if one does not thrive, they die. I spent 24 years as a Human Resources Executive, managing change in a Fortune 100 company. Never in all of my years have I seen an attempt at change managed so poorly. I don’t disagree that rules need to be reviewed and updated. However, The USASF has a process to change the rules that impact the cheerleading industry. This process, if followed, would solicit feedback from variety of constituents, including gym owners, coaches, parents, athletes. The feedback would then be discussed and debated with the designated committee and then after all parties had the opportunity for discussion, rules would be developed. Where in your recent process did any of this occur?
The rules that you announced this week were not well thought out. You designed these rules behind closed doors based on non public information and personal agendas. You designed these rules without the feedback from your constituents. You determined that these rules would be adopted without following the process you have outlined on your website and regardless of the consequences to the industry. Are these rules all invalid? Probably not. Some of them, written the right way, might even be positive for our industry. Had you followed your own process, each and every rule would have been discussed, debated and finalized with the group of people that you most need to drive change in this industry, our gym owners and coaches.
I do not want to address each rule in this letter. I do want to ask that as the rules of cheerleading evolve, please do not create rules that foster mediocrity. Life is not about mediocrity. Life is about striving to do your best in everything you do every time you do it. Will all cheerleaders achieve the same tumbling, stunting or dance skills? No. Cheerleading is a microcosm of life. Life is about competition and in life you don’t always win. Someone will always be better than someone else. When our kids enter the workforce, these kids will face stiff competition from their peers and colleagues. Standards will not be lowered to make it easier for these young adults to succeed. People are expected to set goals, work harder, develop new skills and in turn make positive contributions to their company. The rules you have recommended diminish Cheerleading as a sport and create a culture of accepted mediocrity. You are telling our children that there is no need to continually grow and evolve their skills.
You are telling them that mediocrity is acceptable and you are creating rules that favor the lowest common denominator.
I understand that the rules announced this week will be reviewed and vetted with the appropriate parties. I expect that as leaders of the USASF you will do everything in your power to engage the right people and solicit and incorporate their feedback in the final decisions. When rules are announced, there should be nothing that comes as a surprise to the people who make the biggest difference in our industry… coaches. As parents we spend a lot of time and money on a sport that our children love. My desire is that you don’t forget who your customers are as you design and you evolve this industry. This is not about a handful of people, sitting in a boardroom, coming up with ideas that you like and support. This is about the thousands of children who make sacrifices to do what they love each and every day.
A concerned parent.
