Carroll Board Returns All Girls to Cheerleader Squad
By Jessamy Brown, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Texas
Mar. 22–SOUTHLAKE — The Carroll school district’s cheerleading dispute took a new turn this week when district officials announced that only five to seven girls — not 14 as originally announced — scored high enough to cheer for the Dragons.
Board members cited this fact and inconsistencies in district policies when they voted 5-0 late Monday to once again allow every girl who tried out in December to have a spot on the squad.
Debate over who should and shouldn’t have made the squad has been heated since shortly after the tryouts. The squad essentially split between the 14 Carroll Senior High School cheerleaders who were initially named to the team and the 19 girls who were added after their parents complained about the scoring.
In a statement Tuesday, the board said it made its decision Monday because:
Only a fraction of the girls who tried out actually met the standards.
Scoring standards for cheerleading skills were raised because conduct points were eliminated. Some students and parents did not understand the consequences of this change.
Some injured students were allowed to use videotapes to demonstrate certain skills instead of trying out live.
The board called for both sides to begin anew.
“I really appreciate the board’s decision to issue a statement clarifying all the various inconsistencies and problems with the cheerleading selection process,” said Kosse Maykus, whose daughter is among the 19 cheerleaders. “It is unfortunate that it has taken 90 days for this information to be revealed. It is hopeful that this will allow our daughters to begin a healing process.”
Parents of the 14 originally chosen said they were confused because they had not seen evidence of tryout problems.
“It is the judges’ prerogative to change the scores and make allowances. If there have been inconsistencies, they have never been presented to us or our girls. They need to explain it to us,” said Maggie Stonecypher, whose daughter is among the original 14. “We felt blind-sided.”
The board reached its decision after a six-hour discussion of a grievance filed this month by 13 families who had been saying since December that the tryout process was flawed. The parents asked the board to reconsider its March 7 decision to have their daughters removed from the squad and require them to try out a second time if they wanted to rejoin the team.
Trustees said the parents presented new details about the tryout process and administrative decisions that the board did not consider in its earlier decision.
“It became clear that there were a number of times that we varied from our past tryout procedures. The board saw that as a problem,” said Erin Shoupp, school board president.
In their statement Tuesday, board members said the most notable problem concerned scoring. The three judges were told by Carroll administrators to review the girls’ scores and increase the size of the team after only five to seven girls scored high enough to qualify.
A board member also confirmed the parents’ comments with one of the judges, district spokeswoman Julie Thannum said.
“The attempt was to get as many people involved,” Thannum said. “These judges went back and adjusted their scores.”
The judges destroyed the original score sheets, she said.
Trustees have asked Superintendent David Faltys, who began work on Jan. 3, to revise the Carroll cheerleader constitution for next year to ensure a clear tryout procedure. The girls cheer for the Carroll Dragons football and basketball teams for a year after tryouts.
Several of the original 14 girls began sobbing after the board voted Monday to add the 19 girls, and declared they would quit the squad.
But by Tuesday morning, the girls had reconsidered and decided that they will move forward, Stonecypher said.
Trustees Sue Armstrong, Deborah Frazier, Craig Rothmeier, Erin Shoupp and Sherri Williams all voted to add the 19 girls back on the squad. Bernie Ausdenmoore and Robert Glover were absent.
online: www.southlakecarroll.edu
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Jessamy Brown, (817) 685-3876 jessamybrown@star-telegram.com
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