High School Cheer vs. All-Star Cheer
It's not just football games and the glitter
The School Image and the All-Star Image
The image above shows the image of both your typical high school cheerleader (left) and your typical competitive cheerleader. On the left is a photo of three cheerleaders from Paul Laurence Dunbar High School in Lexington, Kentucky. On the right, five competitive cheerleaders from the World Cup All-Stars of Freehold, New Jersey. The Dunbar cheerleaders are displaying a simple red 1.5" ribbon in their hair. Their hair is pulled back in a neutral ponytail and there is minimal to no make-up worn. Notice they are dressed in full length red and black clean and simple uniform that covers their entire torso. The World Cup cheerleaders have their hair pulled up in a high ponytail with a flashy, 3" cheetah print bow. Their uniforms are "crop top" displaying the torsos of the athletes. The design on the uniform is very visual and flashy. The gold is that of a sequins fabric, and when the lights hit the uniform, it is very glitzy.
The High School Cheerleader's Job Description
Cheering for a high school allows you the privelege to show your school spirit as well as support your community. You get the chance to support school athletes, get the crowd rallied up at games and helps build character. High school cheerleaders learn the importance of sportsmanship, respect, teamwork, physical health, self-improvement and competition. Aside from the hard work they put at practice, many schools make it mandatory for the athlete to maintain atleast a 2.0 grade point average and keep involved not only in school related activites, but community 
service activities as well. A typical season starts at the end of the school year and runs throughout the length of the entire following school year where they attend camps, fundraise, cheer at games, and support their student body.
Many schools send their cheerleaders to camp. These camps (many founded by Laurence "Herkie" Herkimer) allow the new team to bond, build skills and sets the bar for the rest of the school year. Not only do you work on team building, skills and character, you also learn about the demands of cheerleading. The athletes must be physically fit to perform stunts and tumbling with proper technique. The camps supply instructors who are there to answer questions, and help teach cheerleaders the basic motions and stunts so that they can move on to more difficult and elite stunts and transitions. The camp instructors are typically former and current college and/or all-star cheerleaders. Camps also allow you to meet cheerleaders from
other schools and build friendships that will last for years to come. When the school year starts, a cheerleader moves onto the next chapter in the book. Games are a big part of cheer, and it is a cheerleader's job to keep the crowd motivated and spirited. For the entire length of a football game and a basketball game (and some volleyball games and wrestling matches), a cheerleader is constantly building stunts, dancing and performing cheers. During school hours, they must keep their grades up and follow school rules. If a cheerleader's grades fall below a 2.0, they are benched and unable to perform at any games until grades are brought up.
The Season of an All-Star
Levels and Competition Time
In the past fifteen years, cheerleading has grown to be more competitive and more demanding. All-Star cheerleaders do not cheer for a specific school, rather a club or what is called a "cheer gym". They do not attend camps and do not cheer for football teams. Instead they train all summer and most of the fall to perfect tumbling skills, stunt sequences and pyramid building. They then go on to compete against other gyms in their division for trophies, banners, medals, jackets and in some cases world titles. Teams are compiled of 12-36 athletes per team, and each team is allowed two minutes and thirty seconds on a 54' x 42' spring floor (similar to a gymnastics floor) to perform a routine that is packed with skills, stunts, jumps, tumbling and dance.
In 2004, the United States All-Star Federation created a system that allowed athletes with certain skills to compete against teams who also had those skills. In addition, they've also divided teams by age. The grid below breaks down age groups and levels.
| USASF LEVEL 1 | ||||
| Tiny | 5 yrs & younger | Female/Male | 5-36 Members | 1 |
| Mini | 8 yrs & younger | Female/Male | 5-36 Members | 1 |
| Youth | 11 yrs & younger | Female/Male | 5-36 Members | 1 |
| Junior | 14 yrs & younger | Female/Male | 5-36 Members | 1 |
| Senior | 18 yrs & younger | Female/Male | 5-36 Members | 1 |
| USASF LEVEL 2 | ||||
| Mini | 8 yrs & younger | Female/Male | 5-36 Members | 2 |
| Youth | 11 yrs & younger | Female/Male | 5-36 Members | 2 |
| Junior | 14 yrs & younger | Female/Male | 5-36 Members | 2 |
| Senior | 18 yrs & younger | Female/Male | 5-36 Members | 2 |
| USASF LEVEL 3 | ||||
| Mini | 8 yrs & younger | Female/Male | 5-36 Members | 3 |
| Youth | 11 yrs & younger | Female/Male | 5-36 Members | 3 |
| Junior | 14 yrs & younger | No Males | 5-36 Members | 3 |
| Junior Co-Ed | 14 yrs & younger | 1 or more Males | 5-36 Members | 3 |
| Senior | 18 yrs & younger | No Males | 5-36 Members | 3 |
| Senior Co-Ed | 18 yrs & younger | 1 or more Males | 5-36 Members | 3 |
| USASF LEVEL 4 | ||||
| Youth | 11 yrs & younger | Female/Male | 5-36 Members | 4 |
| Junior | 14 yrs & younger | No Males | 5-36 Members | 4 |
| Junior Co-Ed | 14 yrs & younger | 1 or more Males | 5-36 Members | 4 |
| Senior | 18 yrs & younger | No Males | 5-36 Members | 4 |
| Senior Co-Ed | 18 yrs & younger | 1 or more Males | 5-36 Members | 4 |
| USASF LEVEL 4.2 | ||||
| Senior | 18 yrs & younger | Female/Male | 5-36 Members | 4.2 |
| USASF LEVEL 5 | ||||
| Youth | 11 yrs & younger | Female/Male | 5-36 Members | 5 |
| Junior | 14 yrs & younger | No Males | 5-36 Members | 5 |
| Junior Co-Ed | 14 yrs & younger | 1 or more Males | 5-36 Members | 5 |
| Senior Open **Tumbling Restrictions | 18 yrs & younger | Limit 0-4 Males | 5-36 Members | 5 |
| Senior | 12-18 yrs old | No Males | 5-36 Members | 5 |
| Senior Limited Co-Ed | 12-18 yrs old | 1-4 Males | 5-36 Members | 5 |
| Senior Semi-Limited Co-Ed | 12-18 yrs old | 5-12 Males | 5-36 Members | 5 |
| Senior Unlimited Co-Ed | 12-18 yrs old | 5 or more Males | 5-36 Members | 5 |
| USASF INTERNATIONAL DIVISION | ||||
| International Open | 14 yrs & older | No Males | 5-24 Members | 5 |
| International Open Co-Ed | 14 yrs & older | Female/Male | 5-24 Members | 5 |
| SPECIAL NEEDS | ||||
| SPECIAL NEEDS | Any Age | Female/Male | Unlimited | --- |
| USASF LEVEL 6 | ||||
| Open | 17 yrs & older | No Males | 5-24 Members | 6 |
| Open Co-Ed | 17 yrs & older | 1 or more Males | 5-24 Members | 6 |
Levels are divided up by skills. 1 being the lowest level and 6 being the highest level. The skills are based on both tumbling and stunting abilities.
Programs usually take their athletes to 6-8 different competitions throughout the season. Level 5 and Level 6 athletes compete against other teams in their division for a bid to the Cheerleading World Championships held every year in Orlando, Florida. At this competition more than 200 teams battle for the title "WORLD CHAMPION" as they compete against the best of the best.
Competitions can be one or two day events. Athletes prepare all season long to ceompete against the best of the best.