Thomas Peebles took a Princeton yell to the University of Minnesota in 1884. Jack Campbell, a U of M student, stood before the Gopher crowd and led them in a rousing cheer in 1898 and thus organized cheerleading began. Cheerleading during that time period was a male dominated sport. It wasn't until World War II that women began to become the majority. In the 20's gymnastics and tumbling became a major component of the sport.

Information

The MHSA Practice Rule as it relates to spirit squads states, “No individual shall participate in a game until she/he has a minimum of ten (10) days of practice with at least one practice session per day on ten (10) different days (no practice permitted on Sunday) prior to the date of the first allowable game.”  What this means is your cheerleaders must have AT LEAST ten days of practice prior to their first appearance, however, this rule does not preclude them from beginning practices MORE than ten days prior if the school allows. There are no practice starting dates for cheerleaders.

MHSA does not place a limit on numbers of cheerleaders on a squad.

	2013 Spirit Changes to the MHSA Handbook
	2012-13 NFHS Spirit Rules Changes, Editorial Changes and Points of Emphasis
	Interpreting Inversion
	Inversions Checklist
	A Parents Guide to Concussions in Sports - NFHS
	New - Equity Guidelines for Spirit Groups

AACCA Certifications

AACCA Certification

All coaches who coach a stunting squad must be AACCA certified.  Certification is the first step to increasing credibility and protecting a coach from liability.

Good news -- the AACCA Safety Certification is now available online. This online availability will enable the coach to become certified without leaving their own home or office. Directions for accessing this site are:

Go to: www.nfhs.org
Click: Coach Education (located on right hand side of screen)
Under: Courses
Click: Sport-Specific Courses
Click: Spirit Safety Certification Available Online
Click: Please Login to Purchase

The cost of the certification is $75 and need only to be completed every four years.

Once the coach has tested and received confirmation of a passing grade, please fax a copy to 442-8250 so our records can be updated.

If your squad will not be stunting, or if your school will not be offering cheerleaders for the winter season, please respond to this email so I can update my records.

• MHSA Handbook - Spirit, Dance and Drill Team