MC cheer team advocates for fewer limitations
By Abby Haney | Sept. 15, 2026
Along the sidelines of football and basketball, pompoms shake through the air as the cheer team rallies on for another point. While their work is noticeable and appreciated, cheerleaders aren’t given the same status as other sport programs at MC. Cheer is classified as a club sport and many team members say that limits what they can do.
The biggest difference for a club sport is school funding. While the cheer team has its uniforms, pompoms, varsity gear and other equipment, it isn’t fully funded like other MC sports. The school doesn’t cover costs such as travel, so the team doesn’t attend away games because it can’t afford to pay out of pocket.
“I know that we pay for all of our uniforms, and we do fundraisers so we don’t have to pay as much out of pocket. We [have to buy] all of our varsity gear, our pompoms and our shoes,” Claire Moore (‘29) said. Fundraising has become the team’s main solution for covering costs.
Coaching is another major difference. Serving as MC’s cheer coach isn’t Nikki Whaley’s (’20) only job — she splits her time between MC and a full-time position at a school in Knoxville.
Cheer has been a club sport for years, but the athletic department says it remains committed to supporting the team. Officials note that MC provides more support than many other schools offer their cheer programs.
Still, Whaley and team members believe many of cheer’s limitations stem from its club status, and that changing that status would open new opportunities.
“I think that if [MC] considered us an actual sport, we’d be able to do more. I think the limitations on us being a club definitely stops a lot [of progress],” Moore said.
Moore believes more support for the team would also benefit the school. Because the cheer team represents MC, she said, additional resources from the school could create opportunities for both sides.
“We do a lot. We not only cheer, but we also stunt. We always show up when we are needed, and I think that, in my personal opinion, it would make the school look better [to be considered a sport]. It would make our program look better because it would give us a lot more opportunities,” Moore said.
Whaley shares that vision, hoping cheer will eventually become part of the athletic program. She also wants to add competitions to the team’s schedule, which she believes would help pave the way toward that goal.
“I would love to be considered a sport and start competing. It’s hopefully in the future for us, but I am also happy with where the program is going,” Whaley said.
Whaley hopes to see continued growth for the program, including new camps, competitions and members.
“I would love to see this program really flourish and boom in the next year or so. I want to go to camps, host more camps, start competing and expand the team,” Whaley said.
Moore and other team members believe that leaving club-sport status behind could bring exciting changes, such as traveling to away games. They continue to advocate for the resources they say the team needs.
“I think that would be beneficial for not only us, but also the school because at the end of the day, you need a cheer team,” Moore said. “Right now we’re just kind of fighting on our own.”