Alan B. Shepard High School Cheerleading Tryouts
Thank you for your interest in trying out for the Shepard High School Cheerleading Team. Tryouts are open to any current, eligible students in 8th – 11th grade for fall season and 9-12th grades for winter season.
Here you will find tryout information, required forms, and the expectations and rules for the cheerleading program. If you have any questions, please contact Head Coach, Felicia Marr at Felicia.Marr@chsd218.org
Tryout Dates
Fall Tryouts are typically in mid May
Winter Tryouts are typically at the end of October
YOU NEED TO BE SIGNED UP ON 8TO18 TO TRYOUT (https://shepardhs.8to18.com/accounts/login)
What to wear:
T-shirt
Shorts/leggings
Cheer shoes or tennis shoes
Hair pulled back and secured in ponytail
All jewelry and piercings must be removed during tryouts
Day 1 of tryouts will be a “clinic day”, participants will be taught sideline chants, proper jump technique for each jump, proper stunting technique, and will be able to warm up tumbling skills. This is the time to ask any questions you may have or for any advice/feedback on skills.
Day 2 of tryouts will be the actual tryout; participants will have time to review this day for about 30 minutes before they begin being scored. Team placements will be decided by the end of this day. Each participant will receive a sealed envelope with the team they made inside. Participants will take their sealed envelope off the school premises and then open them.
Selection of teams
There will be two teams chosen at the tryout, a Varsity team and a JV team. The total number of cheerleaders for each team will be determined by the number of qualified candidates. Coaches will use information from the try-out score sheet to aid in final decisions.
There are two separate tryouts, one is for football season, another for basketball/competition season.
A few things to note:
If you are interested in competing during basketball season, it is strongly encouraged that you tryout for football season. We use football season as the foundation for our basketball/competition season.
Being a member of a team during football season does not guarantee a spot on a team for basketball/competition season.
Placement on teams is based on skill level and the needs of coaches.
Placement on teams can change between seasons.
Time Commitment
Members selected for a cheer team at tryouts must recognize that they are making a commitment when they join this program and are expected to treat it as a priority throughout their season(s).
All teams will have summer practices and a summer Cheer Camp.
Football cheer team members will usually have two or three practices a week and one game per week. Other events such as homecoming week, youth camps, etc. may require more time commitments.
Basketball cheerleading season begins in mid-October and ends in February or early March. Basketball cheer team members will typically have three to four practices a week and two games per week. Other required events during the season may require more time commitments.
Competitive cheerleading season begins in late October and ends the first week of February. Competitive team members will usually have practice and/or basketball games daily and competitions on selected weekends.
Members will face consequences (such as running, conditioning, or sitting out a portion of a game) for failure to uphold their responsibilities.
We look forward to working with you at an upcoming try out. Be sure to arrive with these items already completed:
Tryout Form
8 to 18 Registration
Outstanding debts paid in full
Coaching Staff evaluates based on the following criteria during evaluations:
Motion Execution
Tumbling Difficulty
Tumbling Execution
Stunting Position ( flyer, base, backspot)
Jump Technique
Athleticism
Willingness to accept instruction
Overall attitude and attendance from the past season, if applicable
**Grades and prior discipline will also be taken into consideration**
Notification of Team Placement:
Team placements will be emailed to parents and posted on our Instagram @Shepardhscheer, we will not use cheerleader's names in the post, only their tryout number. We aim to have placements done by Thursday night.