Fans aren’t the only ones missing from sporting events this year. Virginia spirit teams — including Cavman, the dance team, all-girl cheer and co-ed cheer — are currently unable to perform on the field at games under new ACC mandates. Although team members were prepared for an unconventional fall season, they were not aware this year’s changes would include being prohibited from practicing. Since being notified Oct. 13 that Virginia’s training staff would be unable to handle the spirit teams’ return, members have created an open petition, asking Virginia Athletics to implement the teams’ pre-approved practice plans.
The petition implores Athletics Director Carla Williams, Executive Associate Athletics Director Brittany Whiteside, External Affairs Director Todd Goodale, President Jim Ryan and the University community to consider how other ACC schools’ and Virginia high schools’ spirit teams have resumed activities, the teams’ impact on the community and the available solution.
Upon returning to school, spirit teams Coach Kelley Haney worked alongside Goodale to create a practice plan meant to reduce stress on the training staff, which was approved by the athletics department. The plan involved a three-phased system starting out with “material, basic tumbling, drills and conditioning,” which would lead up to stunting and basic pyramids over a 12-week timeframe while maintaining COVID-19 guidelines. The athletics department did not ultimately follow through with the plan and decided to revoke the spirit teams’ ability to practice, which Goodale, Haney and Whiteside communicated in the virtual meeting held Oct. 13.
When Haney shared the link for the Zoom call with the spirit team members, no one had been warned of the decision they were about to hear. In fact, the meeting had been scheduled for the same time as the teams’ previous bi-weekly meetings during their typical Tuesday and Thursday practice times, which suggested an aura of normalcy.
“[The pre-approved plan started] the multi-tiered process every team here at the University went through to get back on board,” sophomore all-girl cheerleader Lexi Magenheim said. “We thought we were following the same trajectory as every other team at U.Va.”
But after adapting to virtual tryouts, 12-member limitations, prohibited participation at games and prohibited practice, it was clear Virginia spirit teams were not on the same “trajectory” as other sports. Sophomore co-ed cheerleader Emma Imbarlina acknowledged this imbalance by explaining the multi-faceted nature of the petition.
“We want to keep up our skills for when we do have the opportunity to get back out there, but at the same time, [the petition] is also advocating for us to get better treatment because we haven’t been made a priority throughout all of this,” Imbarlina said.
According to Magenheim, spirit teams from all other ACC schools are — at minimum — practicing, but most schools are making additional efforts to include spirit teams while still abiding by the ACC mandate that bars cheerleaders and dancers from performing on the field. For example, Virginia Tech Cheer is holding masked practices while using platforms like Instagram to promote spirit on gameday. Additionally, spirit teams from Notre Dame, Clemson, Wake Forest, Virginia Tech, North Carolina State, Pittsburgh, Louisville and North Carolina have recently re-entered their respective sports venues for games and competitions, cheering in stands and on hills.
Virginia, on the other hand, has not allowed its spirit teams to do the same or even permitted spirit team practices to occur. When it comes to the idea of virtual practices, the spirit teams’ ultimate goal is to be in person, as spirit teams at other ACC universities have been able to do.
On the high school level, spirit teams in Virginia are beginning to participate in out-of-season conditioning and are slated to resume practice Dec. 14, according to Haney. Sophomore all-girl cheerleader Haven Higgins says that Virginia spirit teams are “open to compromises,” and at the end of the day, just want to be involved in any way possible.
Senior co-ed cheerleader William Price is not new to the challenges of being a member of a Virginia spirit team and working with Virginia Athletics. After noticing what he feels like is a consistent lack of fair and equal treatment throughout his time with the program, Price has become passionate about speaking up for the spirit teams.
“I feel like if change is going to occur, it has to go through people like me and the other fourth years,” Price said. “We’re just asking to be treated fairly and equally like everyone else is being treated both at U.Va. and around the ACC.”
According to Price, the major issues the program faces are miscommunication and legitimization. Price explained that, had another sport been barred from practicing for — potentially — a year and a half, that team would be incapable of functioning “as a unit.”
As the end of his career with Virginia Cheer approaches, Price notes the importance of having the spirit teams’ voices heard. If Price can help foster notable change in the program because of his work with the petition, his time with the program will “absolutely be worth it.”
Senior dance co-captains Kiara Cross and Nadeen Rollins also share a stake in having their voices heard, especially as this is their last season with the team. Coming into this season, Cross — a dancer of 19 years — was looking forward to one last year “surrounded by a group of incredibly talented and driven women who continue to motivate me to be a better dancer and person each day.” Cross also reflected on what it would mean to finish out her last season without the opportunity to perform again.
“It is hard knowing that I will realistically not perform in Scott Stadium or at JPJ ever again, but to have the opportunity to continue to create dances with my team members would be the best out of this tough situation,” Cross said.
While the petition came about because of pandemic-related struggles the spirit teams are facing, Rollins emphasized that the petition isn’t just for the teams’ current members.
“It’s for the future generations of young dancers and cheerleaders who deserve to be treated fairly by a University they give so much to,” Rollins said. “It’s to call attention to [the spirit program’s] lack of value in the eyes of our administration.”
The aforementioned Oct. 13 meeting ignited and unified Virginia spirit teams’ collective desire for change.
“We were on the call for an hour and a half asking, ‘What is in place to make [practice] possible in the spring? What can we do? Why is this going on?’ and their answer was simply that ‘the training room could not accommodate us,’” Magenheim said.
The Virginia spirit teams operate from the same training rooms at the McCue Center as varsity athletes. While written to Williams and Whiteside — two Virginia Athletics administrators — the petition hasn’t formally been sent to the athletics department as those behind it wait for it to gain momentum. However, Virginia Athletics explained that a return to practice is contingent upon “the ability of the Athletics Department to provide the appropriate level of care for the squad members.”
“The Sports Medicine unit is understaffed this fall and is not in a position to effectively manage an increase in the number of students under their care at this time,” said Jim Daves, assistant athletics director for media relations, in an email statement to The Cavalier Daily. “Once the sports medicine staff can provide appropriate care for the spirit squad members to return to practice safely, we will begin to implement a return to practice plan.
After hearing that the teams would be unable to practice, team members brainstormed and decided to create a petition, inspired by previous sports’ petitions such as #WeWantToPlay — started by Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields to reinstate 2020 Big Ten football season — and their positive responses. Using GroupMe, text, email and even Instagram direct messaging, the authors and supporters of the petition have generated significant traction.
The petition has had an extremely diverse and wide reach which can be easily seen as those who signed are asked to associate themselves with a school and sport, if applicable. The over 1,000 signees include University alumni as well as alumni of other colleges, “Virginia sports fans,” friends and family. Several student-athletes — both from Virginia and other programs — have also signed in solidarity with the spirit teams.
“We were actually really surprised by the amount of support we received from fellow students-athletes, students, alumni and fans,” Cross and Rollins said. “People seem just as outraged as we are about our inability to practice.”
Examples include athletes from sports ranging from baseball, basketball, football and golf to lacrosse, swim and dive, tennis and wrestling and from universities like the University of Southern California, Northeastern University, Bucknell University, the University of Kentucky, Duke University, Oklahoma State University and Elon University.
“The signatures mean that our efforts to foster a sense of community and togetherness have not gone unnoticed,” Imbarlina said.
As an institution created to foster community and connection, the Virginia spirit teams feel especially appreciative of the support they are typically in the position of giving to others. Members of spirit teams such as Higgins, Imbarlina, Magenheim, Price, Cross and Rollins have been humbled by the positive response from the petition and are extremely grateful to those standing behind and beside them.
“There is not a more necessary time for community than right now and we believe we can be a strong part of contributing to and reestablishing these connections during and after the pandemic,” Magenheim said.
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