Pride Cheer

Pride+Cheer

Kaci Wiens, Staff Member

Cheerleaders have always been known for their school spirit. They yell at the top of their lungs, attend every sporting event, throw flips, and put up stunts. This is what most people imagine when they picture a cheerleader. While the Jaguar cheerleaders do all these things, they’ve also taken the extra step to prove their love for the school.

The cheerleaders have partnered with the school’s CBI program to give special needs students a chance to show their school spirit and enhance their confidence through “Pride,” which is the name of the program that allows them to cheer. The cheerleaders dedicate part of the school day to teach the students cheers and dances. The Pride cheerleaders are even given the chance to perform at school sporting events, which the other students in the school love to watch.

Debbie Fussell, the CBI teacher, sees firsthand the effect that the Pride program has on the special needs students.

“Whenever you talk to the students about being a pride cheerleader, they all just light up,” said Debbie Fussell. “But whenever they put that uniform on, oh my gosh. It is a huge difference.”

Junior Brianna Castillo has been helping with the Pride cheer practices quite a bit and has even gotten a glimpse at how it’s changing the students.

“The parents of the CBI students told us that they really like what we’re doing with them,” said Brianna Castillo (11). “It’s really helped their self esteem and they love getting out there with us.”

Aside from the mindsets and confidence, they Pride cheerleaders have overall just enjoyed getting to be a part of the team.

“They just shine,” said Debbie Fussell. “They really, really do. It’s neat.”

“Just getting them involved in the group and making them feel like they’re a part of something has really helped them,” said Brianna Castillo (11).

After many practices, the Pride cheerleaders were ready to make their big debut at a fall pep rally.

“When they went out there for the very first time, at the very first pep rally, the coach made the announcement, but it was the entire student body that just lit the place up. It was like ‘oh my gosh.’ You know, you’re always worried as a teacher who’s been with these kiddos, you always worry that they’re not going to be accepted and that they’re not going to be loved. And the entire student body was so gracious and so wonderful. And the kids felt that. I think they were a little intimidated by it, but at the same time, I think they really realized it was for them.”

The CBI aids and teachers have so much gratitude for the cheerleaders–they pour their time and hearts into making connections with the Pride cheerleaders and teaching them how to show school spirit.

“Oh my goodness, they are amazing young ladies. Their love for our students is incredible,” said Debbie Fussell. “I have the privilege of watching regular, gen-ed students change whenever they really do interact with our kids. Standing on the outside and watching that relationship grow and change, and the understanding in where maybe they might have been a little unsure of how to approach some of our students before, it has just opened so many doors. Those relationships have grown. And you can ask any of those students about the cheerleaders, about every individual cheerleader, and they know. They do. And they consider themselves part of it. To see these young ladies come in and just embrace our CBI students, it has been really such a joy to see, because they really do own it. I really can’t say enough about them.”

But the cheerleaders are more than a coach to the CBI students. They’re friends that set good examples, and the Pride cheerleaders look up to them.

“Whenever our students are doing something that they need to work on, we can point to the cheerleaders and say, ‘do you think that they would do that?’ So they do look up to them, and they want to be just like them.”

CBI teacher Debbie Fussell held back happy tears when talking about what the cheerleaders have done for her students and thanking them for their efforts.

“To the cheerleaders: thank you is not enough. It really isn’t. For embracing our students, for seeing this through, and for really being diligent about getting it up and going. I know that this has been a long time in the making. It’s really neat to see it come to fruition. I hope that the other students and the community as a whole will really embrace and continue to support them and see the joy that we see in them. They really are extraordinary people.”