No. 122.1 SECTION: PROGRAMS SHENANGO AREA SCHOOL DISTRICT TITLE: MAJORETTE, CHEERLEADER, FLAG, AND DANCE LINE TRYOUTS ADOPTED: January 16, 1989 REVISED: February 10, 2014 122.1. MAJORETTE, CHEERLEADER, FLAG, AND DANCE LINE TRYOUTS 1. Purpose The following policy is adopted for the purpose of establishing an equitable procedure for the selection of district students to participate as members of the cheerleading squad, flag corps, dance line and majorettes. A copy of this policy shall be distributed to each student trying out for a position in any of the above-mentioned groups and an attached statement shall be signed by the parent/guardian of the student as an indication that the parent/guardian has read the policy and understands that it is under the conditions as outlined that the student is participating in the tryouts. The high school principal shall rule on any matter not covered by this policy and grant exceptions to this policy based on extenuating circumstances. 2. Guidelines Information Sheets And Parent/Guardian Permission Slips A schedule of tryout practices and the dates of the tryouts shall be given to each candidate. No student will be permitted to try out if s/he has not signed up by 3:00 p.m. on the Friday prior to the first practice date. If school is canceled, the list will be available until 3:00 p.m. the following Monday. A copy of the rules that must be followed in trying out for the activities will be given to each candidate. Parents/Guardians shall be informed of the time and money commitment that shall be required if a candidate is selected for a squad. The projected costs will be listed on each group's permission slip. Any student owing money from a previous year is not permitted to try out unless all money owed is paid in full by the Friday before the first tryout practice. If school is canceled on the day of tryouts or tryouts are unable to be held for some reason, tryouts will be held the following Monday. Page 1 of 6
122.1. MAJORETTE, CHEERLEADER, FLAGS, COLOR GUARD, DANCE LINE TRYOUTS - Pg. 2 Academic And Residency Requirements All candidates must be Shenango High School students at the time of tryout sign-up and must have passed four (4) core classes or five (5) full-credit courses (a course that meets every day) the prior semester. The candidate must provide official proof of GPA if the candidate is not currently attending Shenango High School (i.e. LCCTC, Cyber Service, etc.) prior to the start of tryouts. In the event that a new student enrolls after the tryout period, attempts will be made to honor that student s status from their previous district (if they made the squad). This is contingent upon meeting residency and eligibility requirements. New students are not guaranteed a roster spot if enrolling after tryouts. If the student enrolls after the completion of summer camps it is unlikely they will be permitted to join the squad. Individual circumstances will be handled by the advisor in conjunction with building administration. Instruction And Practice Before Tryout Day The purpose of practice for tryouts is to teach all candidates the required skills, routines, terms, and styles. Seniors, who are members of the squad, shall not be permitted to assist candidates outside of practice. Underclassmen, parents/guardians, etc. may help candidates practice. Practice sessions for tryouts will be scheduled and advertised by the advisor. All practice sessions shall be held after school hours. Candidates shall attend ALL practice sessions unless excused by the advisor. Written excuses are required and must be signed by both the parent/guardian and the advisor. Only seniors who have not given private lessons and do not have a sister/brother trying out shall develop the tryout routine in conjunction with the advisors. New routines must be developed each year. If additional help is needed, the advisor may ask for assistance from former participants who have graduated or other appropriate personnel. Page 2 of 6
122.1. MAJORETTE, CHEERLEADER, FLAGS, COLOR GUARD, DANCE LINE TRYOUTS - Pg. 3 Tryout Day Requirements During tryouts, all candidates must wear plain navy blue or black shorts or pants, plain white socks, plain white shirt, and a white, blue or black hair tie-back, if a hair tie-back is used. There shall be no marking on any clothing that indicates previous membership on any squad. Jewelry and accessories shall not be worn. There shall be only one (1) day of tryouts for each activity. Students who miss twenty (20) or more days the previous semester will not be permitted to try out. Extenuating circumstances may be addressed by the advisors and principal. A candidate must be in school the entire day. In the event of tardiness, student handbook policies will apply. Full day absence because of extenuating circumstances may be considered by the building principal. The order in which the candidates shall try out shall be determined at random on the day of the tryouts, and the candidate's number shall be pinned on the shirt. The number selected by the candidate may not be exchanged with another candidate. In the event that numbers are exchanged, all candidates involved will be disqualified. Pol. 204 Only the judges, advisor, band director and senior instructor(s) shall be permitted to attend the tryouts. An administrator or School Board member may be present if those persons choose to do so. Parents/Guardians are not permitted to attend tryouts. Judges And Judging The advisors shall be responsible for selecting the judges and they shall be paid by the district. An attempt shall be made to hire judges who are unfamiliar with the students in the area, and to hire a different group of judges for each squad, and to use different judges each year. When judging candidates, the judges shall be directed to write as many comments on the score sheets as possible. A copy shall be made of each score sheet and shall be given to the candidate immediately after tryouts. The original score sheet shall be filed in the principal s office. Page 3 of 6
122.1. MAJORETTE, CHEERLEADER, FLAGS, COLOR GUARD, DANCE LINE TRYOUTS - Pg. 4 If the candidate is injured during the tryout, s/he will receive a score based on the combined decision of the judges, the advisor, and the administrator. Generally the candidate score through the point of injury is prorated for the remainder of the tryout if sufficient scores have been accumulated. If a pre-existing injury effects a candidates ability to practice and/or tryout it is likely that a physician s note will be required to outline what can and cannot be completed as part of the tryout. In the event that a candidate is not able to try out they will not be able to be on the squad. If the candidate can at least complete a significant portion of the tryouts it will be handled the same way as injuries occurring during tryouts. Candidates scores shall be tabulated by the judges and the scoring of the judges shall be announced immediately after the tryout session. In the event of a tie, the candidate with the highest grade point average (grades 9-11) or best academic standing (grades 6-8) will be selected using the grades earned during first semester only. If a tie occurs between an upperclassman and a current junior high student where the grade point average and academic standing cannot be compared, the student with the highest seniority will be selected. Selection of Captain or Co-Captains Cheerleading, Dance Line, Majorette, and Flag Line Varsity Squad The Captain or Co-captains will be selected each year. Candidates must have at least one (1) year experience on the varsity squad and must have a 2.5 GPA or higher to be eligible for a co-captain position. Captains or Co-captains will be selected based on the combined score of the following areas: skill (based on judge scores from the tryout and captain tryout) and leadership (based on an interview). Generally Co-captains will be selected, however in the event of a small squad (less than ten (10)), there may only be a need for one (1) Captain. The scoring breakdown for Cheerleading will be as follows: 1. Tryout Score: 300 points (100 points for three (3) judges; 150 points for two (2) 2. Captain Tryout Score: 300 points (100 points for three (3) judges; 150 points for two (2) Page 4 of 6
122.1. MAJORETTE, CHEERLEADER, FLAGS, COLOR GUARD, DANCE LINE TRYOUTS - Pg. 5 3. Interview: 150 points (50 points for three (3) judges; 75 points for two (2) In the event that candidates do not try out in the captain round and interview, co-captains will be selected by the advisors. Junior Varsity Co-captains will be selected each year. Candidates must have at least one (1) year experience on the junior varsity squad and must have a 2.5 GPA or higher to be eligible for a co-captain position. Co-captains will be selected based on the combined score of the following areas: skill (based on judge scores) and leadership (based on an interview). The scoring breakdown for Cheerleading will be as follows: 1. Tryout Score: 300 points (100 points for three (3) judges; 150 points for two (2) 2. Captain Tryout Score: 300 points. Candidates will not have a separate tryout for co-captains. The original tryout score will be used again here. 3. Interview: 150 points (50 points for three (3) judges; 75 points for two (2) In the event that candidates do not try out in the captain round and interview, co-captains will be selected by the advisors. Junior High There will be no co-captains selected for junior high squads. Any candidate with one (1) year experience will become a squad leader. Duties of squad leaders will be determined by the advisor and assigned on a rotating basis. Non-duplication/Substitute/Vacancies/Size/Rotation Of Tryout A candidate who has quit or been dismissed from any squad is prohibited from trying out for that squad which s/he quit for the following school year. A candidate who is selected as a regular member of any squad shall not be permitted to try out for membership on another squad until the following year. Page 5 of 6
122.1. MAJORETTE, CHEERLEADER, FLAGS, COLOR GUARD, DANCE LINE TRYOUTS - Pg. 6 When a vacancy occurs on any squad during the course of the year, the squad advisor shall decide whether or not to fill the vacancy with a substitute and shall also decide whether to fill the substitute vacancy from the list of candidates who tried out. A candidate shall not be selected from another squad unless a candidate is a substitute. The size and grade levels of each squad will be determined each year by the advisor and building principal prior to the first practice session. The order in which each squad will try out will be established by the building principal. References: School Code 24 P.S. Sec. 510 Board Policy 204 Page 6 of 6