In most places, the cheer squad is primarily made of girls, but this year at  Fredericktown two boys have shown its capacity to be co-ed. Kaidyn Harper and Cameron Lindsey, freshmen, are the first boys on the cheer squad for at least as long as any of us have seen. This raises the question: Is the cheering experience different for boys? Kaidyn thinks so. In fact, he thinks cheer is easier as a boy. “My role as a boy is easier in my eyes because I just lift and yell, while the girls learn arm movements and where to step.” Although the boys had a bigger role last year, Kaidyn isn’t bothered by the lack of movement for the boys.

As for the social aspect of being a cheerleader, Kaidyn says he does not feel isolated even though he is a boy among an abundance of girls on the squad. “I feel we were treated differently in the beginning of the season because they weren’t used to male cheerleaders, but now everybody treats everybody the same.” Outsiders, however, seem to have a more negative feeling towards the male cheerleaders. “Other people don’t agree with a guy throwing their girlfriends in the air.” I think that its great to have males on the squad however, because it has really allowed them to perform stunts that they couldn’t show the crowd before.

You may have noticed how different the uniforms are for the boys, as well, and this isn’t supposed to change any time soon, either. The boys’ uniform is simply a cheer shirt and a pair of black and gold sweats, much different from the flare our girls have at every game and performance. The boys don’t seem to mind, though, and continue to do a fantastic job cheering for our teams. You can help them cheer on our team at all of our basketball home games.