Adviser splits with Cheerleading Club

By: Lauren Alford

Staff Writer

Tasha Taylor, Program Assistant Academics, stepped down from her longtime adviser position, jeopardizing the Cheerleading Club’s future. Her absence has prompted club members to start searching for a new adviser.

“We’re looking for someone who likes cheer and wants to be a part of our club,” Leslie Mead, co-captain of the Cheerleading Club and business and marketing major said.

Hudson Valley Community College requires all clubs to have at least one staff or faculty adviser. Without an adviser, the club will be labeled inactive and removed from the college’s club listing.

The circumstances behind Taylor’s decision are unknown. Some members think that stress was a factor. Others say that Taylor simply doesn’t want to continue advising.

“There’s no situation, I’m just not advising anymore,” Taylor said. She declined to comment further.

Club members were sad to bid Taylor farewell, but are fully supportive of her choice. Many are happy to let her relax.

“She’s been doing it for a while and deserves a break,” Naja Ogburn, theatre major and assistant co-captain of the Cheerleading Club said.

To the club members, cheering isn’t just a hobby. It’s a sport. Taylor’s decision to stop advising came with an uphill battle to get the club recognized as a sports team.

“It’s classified as a sport in the United States now so why shouldn’t we be classified as one here?” asked Ogburn.

According to Ogburn, during the fall season, members often got remarks from spectators that questioned their athleticism and validity as a club.

“They treated us like we weren’t a sport or even a club most of the time,” she said. “The club isn’t even taken seriously by the athletic department.”

Mead said that getting recognized as a sports team would open up a lot of opportunities. The club would be able to compete and do more difficult stunts.

Currently, Hudson Valley Community College does not allow the Cheerleading Club to do overhead stunts.

“The new adviser is going to have a lot of stuff to learn in regards to what the school will and won’t allow us to do,” Ogburn added.

To Ogburn, the club is more than a place to use her skills in stunting, performing and tumbling. The Cheerleading Club is family.

“I can’t stand them sometimes but I love them and wouldn’t trade them for any team around,” Ogburn said.

Club members believed Taylor was more than an adviser. She was a mentor, a teacher and most importantly, a coach. Members believed the future adviser has big shoes to fill.

“She loves and cares about us as a coach would care for their athletes,” Ogburn said. “And we love her just as much too.”

As an adviser, Taylor invested her time and energy into the cheerleading club. Club members said that she was supportive and driven.

“She was an amazing coach and mentor,” Mead said. “If you needed anything you could go to her and she would be there,” she said. “That’s the kind of adviser we want.”