At the CYC our goal is to develop young individuals to grow in athletics, academics and life. We recommend that our athletes take advantage of The CYC Academic Excellence (AE) program. This program is designed to augment our members’ current studies. Our instructors are on site Monday through Friday from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. and will assist students with their educational needs.

CLASSES: Classes are held Monday and Thursday – see an updated schedule at the front desk or in our newsletter. We ask that you have your son/daughter here on time for class; it is very disruptive to the class when students walk in late. Your son/daughter will not be able to participate in class if they arrive more than ten minutes late.

RULES: We expect all of our students to follow these rules and procedures in order to maintain a safe and fun learning environment:

General Cheer Program Rules:

1. Must complete the required warm up at the beginning of each class.
2. All clothing must match the requirements listed below.
3. No admittance to any class 10 minutes after the scheduled class time.
4. During classes, the following standard rules are expected:

a. EYES watching
b. EARS listening
c. MOUTH quiet
d. HANDS to yourself
e. RESPECT others
f. DEMONSTRATE good sportsmanship
g. USE equipment correctly

Any student that has problems following the above rules and procedures will be subject to discipline, including:

• NON-ADMITTANCE TO ANY CHEERLEADING CLASSES FOR THE DAY
• WARNINGS
• TIME OUTS
• PARENT CONFERENCE
• POSSIBLE DISMISSAL FROM CLASS

Proper attire for practices: T-shirts, shorts, and tennis/athletic shoes. All clothing worn on the mat must be clean, free of rivets, buckles, zippers or any sharp objects that may damage the mat or accidentally get caught on others. Remove all watches and jewelry.

1. HAIR: Everyone needs to have their hair out of their face. Should be pulled up into a pony-tail, including bangs.
2. CLOTHING: Should be close fitting, not baggy.
3. FOOTWEAR: Tennis/athletic shoes are required. Shoe laces are preferred. Everyone must wipe off the soles of their shoes before walking on the mats. A shoe cleaner is located at the northeast corner of the mats for cleaning shoes.
4. BOTTOMS: Must be soft material like cotton. Shorts or capri’s are preferred. No zippers, buttons or studs are permitted. Jean material is not accepted.
5. NO JEWERLY is permitted, i.e. earrings, necklaces, bracelets, anklets, rings, belly rings, nose piercing, etc.
6. MARK ALL PERSONAL EQUIPMENT: Be sure to mark your personal belongings and cheer equipment with your name and/or phone number. It's quite common for people to accidentally pick up someone else's personal property by mistake at the end of practice.
7. FOOTWEAR: Must have flat soles, tennis/athletic shoes are required. Everyone must wipe off the soles of their shoes before walking on the mats. A shoe cleaner is located at the northeast corner of the mats for cleaning shoes.
8. BOTTOMS: Only SHORTS or CAPRIS allowed in soft cloth material. No full-length pants are accepted including sweat pants, jeans, or leggings.
9. NO JEWERLY is allowed, i.e. earrings, necklaces, bracelets, anklets, rings, belly rings, nose piercing, etc.
10. FINGERNAILS: All participants MUST cut their fingernails to a very short length, and smoothly filed. No fake nails are permitted.

During practice, spectators are restricted to the bleacher area only. This helps keep street shoes from tracking dirt onto the mat, and also makes for a safer and roomier area for the students. Please do not disrupt practices by coaching or distracting your children from the bleachers or ask the coaches questions during class. It is difficult for some parents to stay out of the coaching process for their children. CYC is confident in its coaches’ abilities and knowledge of the sport. If you feel you have something constructive to add to the program, please set up a time to meet with the Head Coach or Program Director at a time other than practices. The following are common disruptions that are detrimental to the training process and goals of CYC: Speaking to your child for something other than an emergency, making gestures from the bleachers, calling them away from the training area, coaching your child from the side, or distracting the coach during training. Training schedules are strictly for the development of your children by CYC coaches. Parents are adviced to discuss concerns and issues regarding the program their children, or CYC coaches outside of scheduled training.

Students will be moved to different classes when the CYC coaching staff feels that the student has developed the technical skills and is physically ready. This is not a parental decision, if for some reason you think that your child should move to a different class or you want to discuss your child’s progress, please schedule a meeting with the Head Coach of your son/daughter’s class. All advancements MUST have the Head Coach's signature of approval prior to any level changes.

PURPOSE: The CYC Competitive Cheer program is designed to teach girls of all ages about the sport of cheerleading. Not only does this program offer the girls training in tumbling, stunting, motions, and jumps, but it also provides the girls with values to use for life. Becoming a part of a cheerleading team teaches the girls about teamwork, sportsmanship, discipline, desire, leadership, time management, and more. Because this program requires the girls to spend a lot of time together and to rely on each other, this program also places a great emphasis on friendship, trust, and fun.

COMPETITIVE TEAM: The competition team runs from June to the end of March. It is designed for students to have fun as well as to become skilled in the components needed to be competitive in the sport. The competitive team is more serious than the recreational classes and requires more time and commitment on both the parents and the students. Tryouts for this team will be held every year. The girls on the team the year before must try out again the next year. They are not guaranteed a spot on the team just because they were on the team the year before

1. AGES: The CYC Cheerleading program will be offering a competitive cheerleading squad for girls 14 years old and under. Athletes selected to the team will already have the basic fundamentals of cheerleading.
   
   
2. UNIFORM: The Competitive uniform is comprised of: shoes, briefs, shell, skirt, and bow. The cheerleading team members are expected to purchase their own uniforms (approximate cost of $180-$300). The girls will have the opportunity to personally raise funds for their uniforms as well as travel funds. In cases where the family cannot cover the full cost of the uniform, scholarship may be available.
   
3. TRAVEL: The CYC Competitive Team will travel to compete at various competitions during the year.

a. REGIONAL: The competitive team will compete in 3 to 5 regional competitions each year. They are generally in the months from September to February. These competitions are all-day events. There is usually a small fee of approximately $10 per spectator. On the day of competition, the team meets at the CYC and caravans to the regional competitions.

b. NATIONALS: The team also travels to USA Nationals held in Anaheim. This is a 4-5 day trip. Typically, the team would leave on Thursday and come back on Sunday or Monday depending on the time of the awards ceremony. The team will stay together (not with their parents). There will be one CYC chaperone assigned to each group of 3 girls. The team will either drive or fly down to Anaheim together. The team members will each purchase the USA Cheer package which will include hotel, competition entrance, and 3-day Disneyland park hopper fees (approximate fee of $300). Each girl should bring extra money for food and souvenirs. Various fundraising opportunities will be available to raise money for this trip.

NOTE: Parents are welcome to travel to USA Nationals and support the girls. Parents will be required to find their own travel and hotel accommodations. They are welcome to tour Disneyland with their daughter’s group, but may not take their daughter away from their chaperone.

The recreational team runs from August to the end of February. It is designed to help the girls learn and practice the skills that are necessary to be part of a competition team. The team will be given a competitive routine to practice all year and will perform at a regional competition, one time only, sometime in January or February. The team will be run similarly to the competitive team. This team is more serious than recreational classes, but less serious than the competitive team. The girls are expected to be committed to the team. They will practice once a week for two hours. The time and day of practice TBA. Tryouts for this team will be held every year at the same time as tryouts for the competitive team. This team is aimed at having fun, learning new skills, learning to be a part of a team, and getting their first experience of what it feels like to perform at a real competition.

Past team participation does not guarantee a spot on the cheer team’s roster the following year. All interested athletes must try out every year.

1. Tumbling: forward rolls, cartwheels, round-offs, handstand forward rolls, bridge kick-over, back walk-over, front walk-over, standing back handspring, running back handspring, multiple back handsprings, tucks
2. Stunting: knowledge and execution of thigh stand, progression, extension, liberty, cradle
3. Motions: knowledge, placement, sharpness, and execution
4. Facials and team spirit
5. Effort and Attitude
6. Punctuality
7. Team position needed to be filled
8. Strength and Flexibility

Cheerleading is a team sport! Thus, commitment is probably the most important component of the Cheerleading Team. Choosing to be on the competitive team requires dedication and commitment. If one athlete misses practice, their entire stunt group cannot practice the routine. It is very important to make every practice possible.

1. Cheerleading team practices will be announced at the parent information night.
2. A cheerleading team member wants to be at practice! Competition members can miss no more than 5 practices during the season. Recreational team members can miss no more than 3 practices during the season. If you are going to be absent or late, please call the coach in advance so that she can make the proper preparations for practice.
3. The summer portion of the season is for the competition team only and runs from tryouts in June to August 12th. During this time, cheerleading members are only allowed to miss 4 practice sessions if the student is on vacation or if absence is due to illness. If you are in town, you must be at practice.
4. Be on time for practice! If you are late, do your warm-ups and quickly join the team. Three late arrivals is equivalent to one absence. If you are more than five minutes late and you do not call the coach, you will have to jump rope for five minutes before being allowed to join in at practice. Remember, cheerleading is a team sport! The extra five minutes of jump roping is five minutes delayed training time for your team.
5. Cheerleading is a sport, thus, there is the possibility of injury. However, the team members will be properly trained in warming up and spotting, etc. to reduce chances of injury.
6. The CYC encourages athletes to play more than one sport. However, we would hope that cheerleading comes first the closer we get to our competition dates. Team members can not miss any practices two weeks prior to the competitions. They also can not miss practice during choreography. Coaches will work together with you to work out a schedule beneficial to everybody. Thus, it is important that parents and athletes communicate effectively in advance to alert coaches of any potential conflicts. All doctors, dentists, and other appointments should best be worked around cheerleading practice times. We appreciate your effort on this.
7. Coaches will choose what position each girl will participate in-not parents or athletes. Each athlete will be placed in the position on the team that best suits her height, ability, and the needs of the team.
8. A team is like a family. We encourage only positive attitudes and encouragement toward fellow team members and coaches. If there are any issues, we ask that the athlete or parent speak directly with the coach to work together to solve any problems. Head Coach Mullarkey has an open door policy and will be available to speak with parents either before or after practices.
9. Team members are encouraged to begin strength and conditioning regimens with the CYC Sport Specific Conditioning Program that will supplement their training.

The CYC cheerleading program will hold annual winter and spring performances. These performances allow the girls to demonstrate the skills they have learned and to have fun performing in front of a crowd. These performances are a chance for the girls to perform for their family, friends, classmates, and CYC members. All cheerleading classes will perform in each show. Performing is optional and a permission slip will be handed out a few weeks prior to the performance.

RECREATIONAL: Rec classes run for 6 to 18 years of age

COMPETITIVE: See section C