What’s the Goal

February had some of our industry’s largest events. Congratulations to everyone that found success at them. Here’s some of the news from the month.

• Jerry Harris of ‘Cheer’ Pleads Guilty in Federal Child Pornography Case via CNN.
• Attorney for U.S. Olympic Gymnasts Warns of ‘Epidemic of Sexual Abuse’ in Cheerleading via Dallas Observer.
• NFL Cheer Uniforms Have Been Scrutinized Since the 1970s, But Critics Might be Missing the Point via CNN.
• Rhonda Blanford-Green Named President of USA Cheer Board of Directors via USA Cheer.

Lately I’ve been thinking about why we do things in our industry, but from a what are we trying to accomplish by doing them point of view.

Why do we have Tiers? Do FUNdamentals, Novice, Prep, and Elite all have a place? Why do we have Levels? Is 1-7 the right mix? What are we trying to accomplish with each Level? Why do we have Age Groups? Is Tiny, Mini, Youth, Junior, Senior, and Open the right amount? What are we trying to accomplish with them? Why do we have Divisions? Is DI and DII right? What does having 2 options accomplish? Is 1 better? Is 3 better?

Are we as an industry in agreement about why these and other things in our industry exist or what’s the goal of them?