High School Wwyd? - High School Uniforms Or Lack Thereof

[CoachTamara]

Hello,

I am a high school coach and I am running into a snag with uniforms. We have 24 new uniforms from GK Cheer. They were first worn in 2014 and we are still wearing them now. When they were purchased they were purchased at custom fit for the current team, not thinking about the future. They are that sublimated/stretchy material.

My first snag is that now, as the years go on the athletes are getting smaller and smaller! Most uniforms are bigger sizes and the girls feel VERY uncomfortable in them.

Secondly, our JV Uniform we have a certain number of them, and more girls than uniforms. There are also 2 girls who are on the bigger side and our Varsity Rep has informed us that even if we did want 2-5 uniforms, we would not have them in time for competition in February. We are trying to rebuild our program by also taking cheerleaders who have little to no experience.

If I was a parent and my child came home and said well I made the team but they don't have a uniform for my size, I would blow a gasket.

My athletic director said that there is no money in the budget for uniforms or replacement uniforms and to seek help from boosters.

He also said if we buy new uniforms of the current uniforms we have now.. we can kiss getting a new STYLE uniform goodbye for another 4 years and, the program consensus is we do not like our uniforms so we hope to get a new style within the next couple years.

Do we, spend our available money on replacement uniforms, or if we are going to spend that much money do we just go with a new style? Obviously this is a preference question but I just am wondering what other coaches would do if they were in this situation !

GK has a rapid reorder option which means you could get at least a few uniforms in the correct size in 4 weeks if they've been ordered before. I would at least fundraise for a few with the bigger girls that absolutely cannot squeeze into something smaller and speak to your GK rep on timing!

 

[quitthedrama]

We must live in a very different part of the world. There would be no cheerleaders here if it cost $2000 to cheer. I wouldn't pay $2000 for my own daughter to cheer for a school team. $200 would be a stretch for some of our kids.

And no, sports aren't a right. But in my mind they are a privilege earned through good grades and being a responsible student/team member - not based on whether their parents have the discretionary funds available. So, I guess I'll take scraping uniforms together/making alterations and only getting new ones every 4-5 years if it means every student who is eligible, is able to afford to cheer.

I live in the same world you do and am bowing down to your opinion which I put in bold. My CP's went to 2 different districts. One charges $225/season for sports. The other charges $50. If you are eligible for free lunch your fee is waived. You can fundraise but you can not collect any additional funds directly from the student. The school district I coached for was very low income. I wouldn't ever consider turning a kid away - most of them walked home from practice because their parents don't have cars - some kids are even homeless. That extra 2 hours a day gave these kids somewhere to go - someone else to talk to - someone else to build them up and give them structure. @cheer25mom I may be on the defensive but your posts on this subject are very ignorant to how many of these families struggle.

 

[OldskoolKYcheercoach]

We must live in a very different part of the world. There would be no cheerleaders here if it cost $2000 to cheer. I wouldn't pay $2000 for my own daughter to cheer for a school team. $200 would be a stretch for some of our kids.

And no, sports aren't a right. But in my mind they are a privilege earned through good grades and being a responsible student/team member - not based on whether their parents have the discretionary funds available. So, I guess I'll take scraping uniforms together/making alterations and only getting new ones every 4-5 years if it means every student who is eligible, is able to afford to cheer.

This!

Not to mention, $2000 is asinine. Including our trip to nationals this year, even my first year cheerleaders who are purchasing warmups etc will only be out about $1200. The ones established in the program who have all of that junk will only be out the cost of the trip to nationals. If I made them purchase one each of all three of our uniforms that number would go up to about $1650. Prior to my taking over the program, people were paying in the thousands every year. I put a stop to that crap and am on a mission to prove that you can win competitions without sending your athletes' families into the poor house.

 

[ScottyB]

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[ErinS]

When I did high school cheer the costs where somewhere between 1k-2k. We alternated paying for uniforms and the school paying for them. The ones the school paid for the school kept, we kept the others.

I currently coach at a low income middle school/ varsity competition HS cheer. Despite our students living below the poverty level, the school district itself (for the HS) has money to buy athletic uniforms

We ordered stock uniforms and had the lettering done locally. Super cheap. They weren't as trendy as the competition uniforms other teams had, but they were nice


Last week for my middle schoolers I had to piece together uniforms for our pep squad. It's hard looking at a middle schooler and telling them we don't have a uniform their size.

I don't have much to offer suggestion wise other than to say I know what you're going through

I would check into having the uniforms altered. I'd have an honest discussion with both JV and Varsity and if moving some of the larger JV girls to Varsity to wear the larger uniforms are an option, I'd try that. I'd fundraise to try to make the slightest of dents in the cost and there's also go fundme if that's something you're okay with.

And piece together older uniforms is possible.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[cheer25mom]

Yea that's the quickest way to ensure cheerleading and other sports in your area die off. It's a shame that the local administration organizes itself like that.

No, we routinely have 50 girls try out for 16 spots. No lack of interest. It's the way it has always been.

 

[cheer25mom]

We must live in a very different part of the world. There would be no cheerleaders here if it cost $2000 to cheer. I wouldn't pay $2000 for my own daughter to cheer for a school team. $200 would be a stretch for some of our kids.

And no, sports aren't a right. But in my mind they are a privilege earned through good grades and being a responsible student/team member - not based on whether their parents have the discretionary funds available. So, I guess I'll take scraping uniforms together/making alterations and only getting new ones every 4-5 years if it means every student who is eligible, is able to afford to cheer.

We routinely have to make cuts. Teams that don't compete are sometimes less, but even my CPs no competition middle school was almost $1000 last year and they had over 30 at tryouts for 12 spots. This is NOT a wealthy area.

 

[CoachTamara]

In California it's against the law to require payment for sports. We can ask for a "donation" but things are getting cut left and right because parents are choosing not to pay (even when they can).

 

[cheer25mom]

I live in the same world you do and am bowing down to your opinion which I put in bold. My CP's went to 2 different districts. One charges $225/season for sports. The other charges $50. If you are eligible for free lunch your fee is waived. You can fundraise but you can not collect any additional funds directly from the student. The school district I coached for was very low income. I wouldn't ever consider turning a kid away - most of them walked home from practice because their parents don't have cars - some kids are even homeless. That extra 2 hours a day gave these kids somewhere to go - someone else to talk to - someone else to build them up and give them structure. @cheer25mom I may be on the defensive but your posts on this subject are very ignorant to how many of these families struggle.

No, trust me I know some families struggle, that is why , as I said before, we have programs in place for kids who can show financial need. if they have the talent to make a team, their fees are paid. I am not saying it's right, but it's the reality of the situation in many places. It's also a reality that most high school squads in our area have way more girls try out than they can take. One school had over 100 girls show up. They cut everyone who couldn't throw a round off 3BHS on basketball floor before tryouts started. Everyone they took had a standing tuck. You don't make a high school squad around here without tumbling, and polished game day skills. You cannot get to the level required to make these squads without lots of money already invested. These moms are happy to spend itbto get their kids on the squad. It's they way it is around here. We aren't a wealthy area, but sports are a big deal, and typically if you want to play in high school you have already invested a significant amount of time and money in your sport, again not saying it's necessarily the best reality, but it's the truth. Very few kids with no training make high school teams, be it cheer, soccer, football, baseball, etc.

 

[cheer25mom]

In California it's against the law to require payment for sports. We can ask for a "donation" but things are getting cut left and right because parents are choosing not to pay (even when they can).

We wouldn't have sports if parents didn't pay because the money just isn't there in the school system to fund them to the level needed to be safe. We don't have the tax base to do it.

 

[CoachTamara]

We wouldn't have sports if parents didn't pay because the money just isn't there in the school system to fund them to the level needed to be safe. We don't have the tax base to do it.

We don't either. Our school gives zero funding, but legally nothing can be pay to play. You fundraise, or you don't go/buy it. If we don't have uniforms, then the expectation is to get some white t-shirts and put them out there. We do have some families that help fundraise for everyone basically, and we actively ask for parent donations, but if they don't pay then things get cut. We eliminated camp this year due to lack of funding, and have moved to very cheap options.

 

[cheer25mom]

This!

Not to mention, $2000 is asinine. Including our trip to nationals this year, even my first year cheerleaders who are purchasing warmups etc will only be out about $1200. The ones established in the program who have all of that junk will only be out the cost of the trip to nationals. If I made them purchase one each of all three of our uniforms that number would go up to about $1650. Prior to my taking over the program, people were paying in the thousands every year. I put a stop to that crap and am on a mission to prove that you can win competitions without sending your athletes' families into the poor house.

do you pay for tumbling and stunt instruction from outside coaches, or is everything done in house? Because if a lawsuit, our system MUST hire certified coaches.

 

[cheer25mom]

We don't either. Our school gives zero funding, but legally nothing can be pay to play. You fundraise, or you don't go/buy it. If we don't have uniforms, then the expectation is to get some white t-shirts and put them out there. We do have some families that help fundraise for everyone basically, and we actively ask for parent donations, but if they don't pay then things get cut. We eliminated camp this year due to lack of funding, and have moved to very cheap options.

How do you ensure safety in instruction with no money? Most cheer sponsors in our area aren't qualified coaches.

 

[CheerBank]

In California it's against the law to require payment for sports. We can ask for a "donation" but things are getting cut left and right because parents are choosing not to pay (even when they can).

Our booster club is no longer allowed to make the annual fee mandatory nor do parents have to participate in any fundraisers. The kids whose parents choose not to still receive everything the other girls do that are provided by the booster club.

 

[CoachTamara]

How do you ensure safety in instruction with no money? Most cheer sponsors in our area aren't qualified coaches.

Our coaches are paid by the district. Otherwise there is no additional funding.