I have already started looking for next season, but I really don't ever stop, it is a constant process, as I look and interview all year long. I need cheer coaches and tumbling coaches now, as we are getting ready to open up a new gym.

Coaches MUST have a positive attitude and LOVE working with kids, and they must believe in our philosophy (which is where we lose a lot of people at). We teach through positive reinforcement, through building their self-esteem and self-confidence, we do not coach through fear, or yell at our kids. Our program is focused on teaching them that it is possible to have fun while winning! As we say, we "Dare to be different!"

As a parent, I am looking for a gyn who hires and has integrity. A Gym/coach who is fair across the board when it comes to rules etc...
A gym/coach who is dedicated to the sport and doing what is best for everyone on the team not just certain individuals. They understand that every child at the gym is an intergal part of the gym and make up off the team.
A gym/coach who is compassionate but also firm in their running of practice and their program
A gym/coach who is knowledgable in the new trends and techincal aspects of cheer. Whether it be uniforms, choreography,stunting,tumbling and dance. They know what is expected of all star gyms now! Not stuck in a time warp lol.
A gym/coach who is capable of teaching at their appropriate level, be ot level 1 to 5
A gym/coach who sets goals for the team has a whole and what will keep their squads competitive. Not ompeting at too low a level to not progress and not too high of a lvel to set the kids up for constant failure.
Agym/coach who is not under the influence of parents in their program and can handle negativity promptly!
And more importantly I am looking for a gym/coach who can communicate to us parents as well.  It is beyond unreasonable and bad customer service and relations to enter a gym and feel like you just dont feel welcomed there.  A gym should be a second family for the familes that spend the endless hours at a gym. The coach should greet each parent with a hi, when oiutside of cheer practice.  And most importan I am looking for a gym/coach that makes not only my child but every child in their program feel like the special person they are.

10 weeks?  How is that possible that nothing has been done?  Have you spoken to the owner?

be it ten weeks or just missing practice at least once a week it is frustrating. I know my gym will know i am speaking about them but we have a comp next week and again the entire squad was not there. so now they have 2 days of practice and before comp again. I am just sick of it all the way around. i have chosen to not say anything more to them but i will be at the end of the year not be returning to  the program as well as looking into some type of legal action. somewhere somehow they have to be held accountable. i have documentd every incident where kids are missing from practice from the day mandatory practices started. we sign a paper and we have to  follow the rules and the cheer program should have to abide by the rules they have too. it has been hurtful to the squad as a whole and to the other children in the program. if it wasn't on going all season it would be like ok a kid misses here and there but like i said i have documented every incident of kids missing from when mandatory practices when i noticed it was a continued problem not only do they not enforce practice many other rules are not followed through with. it has shown me that i shouldnt expect practice rules to be followed when they cant enforce the small things
all that is left to do is to finish out our comittment 
I will seek a gym with rules set in place and established and followed

Anonymous wrote:

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Are you competing this weekend or next weekend Feb 16th weekend?  Sometimes it is difficult to say no to a parent that will not bring their child to practice if they are sick.  Now not attending a practice due to other reasons other than school functions that have a grade riding on it is ridiculous.

Sometimes people are being repremanded for the behavior but you just dont see it on your end.  We compete this weekend and one of our girls did not show up to practice this week.  She was taken out of 3 stunts that she flies in and knows that she was irrisponsible in not contacting us about her missed practice.  Are there rules in play at your gym for when people miss without good reason?

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def. not it is cheerleaders cheering for school. sick kids are ok and school events but it has been on going all season and our kids do not do good at comp every comp there is a dropped stunt tumbling problems etc and that comes form kids not at practice a week before a comp. i am so completely exhausted from this experience. i made this comittment and gave them the benfit of the doubt and now the season is almost over and it cant get here fast enough. i have spoken to an attorney on the matter im just at my wits end. it has been a bad year. the gym has an excuse everytime and i have written those down too and it just doesnt make sense. it is all wrong. it makes me sad that we have endured this all season especially my kid and the other kids at the gym. i will not let this slide

Although we have gotten off topic... I would like to address this as a gym owner and coach, my policy on missing practice during the competition season is "no more than two unexcused practices or you are dropped to an alternate position". I have done this to one person this season. When I did this, the parent stated to me that she noticed other kids missed practice also. As a parent, you do not know whether a child has been excused from practice or not (I am not making excuses for the gym or the coaches, just explaining). I don't expect that this parent will bring her child back next year, may times my parents want me to follow the rules and be consistent, as long as it doesnt apply to them, as soon as it does, they want you to make an exception "just this one time".

I understand that as a parent I do not know why a child is missing practice.  However I have heard the same speech miss to many practices then you do not compete at the next comp.  Maybe if the coach's actually act on the words a few times the parents and child may straighten up.  Look at it this way ultimatly the gym is going to loss money anyway they are going to either loss the dedicated kids and retain the not so dedicated kids.  I am going threw this at my gym to.  I love the coaches and the gym however I am tired of seeing the look one my girls faces after every comp.  when it doesn't go so well.  When you have girls on a team that can't even remember the steps to the dance you know they have missed way to many practices.  For me I to am seriously thinking about leaving are gym.  A gym only grows if they have dedicated children and parents.  Sometimes you need to take the risk and let the not so dedicated ones go.

why an attorney? wrote:

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I'm very curious why you feel you have legal recourse on this issue. 

I really think it is best that you go talk to the gym owner and come to the table with a solution.  So many times a gym owner looks for ways to improve their gym over all.  It would be really cool if a parent that noticed a problem - actually walked up to the gym owner and said "I see this being an issue with me and perhaps it's even a issue with some other parents.  I think I may have a solution for you {share the solution}.  What do you think?" 

I honestly do believe that attendance is a topic that will never go away.  A gym can only go so far to setting rules and expectations for their gym.  The gym owners are hopeful that parents and the cheerleaders will follow the rules but how can gym owners really be responsible for every family and their commitments.

In my book - high school cheer is a school event.  How in your opinion is this different in your book?

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Thank you for your insight on the situation as well. here is the problem it has been adressed several time with the owner and nothing is being done.
Hs cheer is a school even and i understand that, but it is the gym policy that practices can not be missed. they have allowed a certain amount of time off but it clearly states that if you miss practice you will be sit out of comp. if their papers had upfront about hs cheer then as a customer yo can make that call to put your kid in the program. but they sell their program on a certain standard that isnt being met. now it is not about winning. what has made me the maddest is that stunt groups get taken out because they cant hit but its because of lack of practice. they fall at cheer comps consistently. they have not hit a routine yet completely. not once. so i say again if we were aware of the hs cheer policy ahead of time we could have made an educated decision on joing the gym and know what to expect. it is the actions that take place because of the fact that they miss.  let me just state this. we compete next weekend. we have 2 practices until comp and they have a new section to learn and havent put up a full routine yet. as a customer it is only a few weeks left until nationals is this ok? i cant justify it. i have tried to wait it out. i have gone to them. i dont know whatelse to do.
now here is the legal recourse after speaking with my attorney. I have followed their protocal and kept my comittment. they have not. cheer is expensive and we are paying for a service. if we didn't show up for a comp they would sit my kid out or kick her off the squad, why? because it is their rule to do that. so we follow the rules. they are not implementing or following their own rules.. i have fulfilled my comittment to them and just am not satisfied. i have not caused the gym any problems at all. i have pattiently waited for the changes they promised. this is not ok at all. believe me i would not seek an attorney if i dont have legal recourse. 

We are not seeking money back because we did not win. we are seeking a small judgement because the service was not provided. I am not going to hurt this gym and sue them for all kinds of money. that is evil and wrong. it is about accountability. what you just said is not the arguement here at all. it has nothing to do with results or scores etc. So no fight is started. I understand and appreciate your point of view. I have followed the gym policy and went to them and it was their response that led me to believe it wasn't an ongoing problem. I believed them, i continued to pay and it still was a problem. Now if when i came to them and they wouldve said. yes we have hs cheerleaders who are permitted to miss practice that is our policy and here is how we hande it. i would have been my own fault if i continued there and decided i didnt like it. that is not the case. it was thier response to the concern and if they felt it right to just apease us, then that was wrong. so i say again itis not about winning,placing or anything like that. i will not allow it to be turned into that or even into a petty arguement. they needed to be upfront about this policy especially after going to them.  we have canceled a comp that we paid for with nothing telling us why but from our kids telling us. no mention of where the money will go if you paid. all of this is not ok and is a result of a team not prepared. it just isnt ok