college and high school cheerleading

Cheerleading is a challenging and exciting sport that involves music, dance, gymnastics, cheers, tumbling and stunts. Teamwork and leadership  are developed to benefit the individual's health and potential in life.

Cheerleading 1st began at Princeton University in the 1880s with the crowd chant, "Rah rah rah, tiger tiger tiger, sis sis sis, boom boom boom ahhhhhhh, Princeton Princeton Princeton!" as a way to encourage school spirit at college football games. A few years later, Princeton graduate Thomas Peebles, introduced the idea of organized crowd chanting or cheerleading to the University of Minnesota in 1884, but it was not until 1898 that University of Minnesota student Johnny Campbell stood in front of the crowd, and directed them in a chant, making Campbell the very 1st cheerleader. Soon after that, the University of Minnesota organized a "yell leader" squad of four male students.

Although it is estimated that 90% of today's cheerleaders are female, cheerleading started out as an all-male activity. Women started to take part in cheerleading in the 1920s, due to limited availability of female collegiate sports. By the 1940s, it was a predominantly a female activity.