The newest sport in the fall line-up at Minnetonka is adapted cheerleading:  an innovative cheer program created for students with special needs.

Spearheaded by senior Marcy Adams and friend Nicolette Herpers, the team is the culmination of months of development.  After seeing an adapted cheer team at a competition, Marcy went to work creating the Minnetonka team. She looked to the Sparkle Effect cheer organization as a model.  A nonprofit group dedicated to the expansion of adapted cheer and special needs integration, the Sparkle Effect has been featured in various magazines and even on the Oprah Winfrey Show.  Aware of their great reputation, Marcy and Nicolette shaped the Minnetonka Adapted Cheer Team.

The inaugural season is off to a great start. Under the leadership of multiple varsity cheerleaders, several female adapted athletes are developing their skills and making new friends. However, the greatest aspect of the adapted team is the interaction between those high school students with disabilities and those without.   Program director Kristen Young-Herpers stresses, “The best thing about adapted cheerleading is that it gives those with disabilities the opportunity to integrate with other Minnetonka athletes”.  Not only is there interaction among varsity cheerleaders and adapted athletes during practice, but the girls also have the opportunity to cheer side by side with fellow cheerleaders and dance team members at football games.  This allows them to be an integral part to Minnetonka athletics.

Additionally, practice is a one-on-one experience.  Every Monday adapted athletes are paired with Minnetonka cheerleaders, and together they create new cheers, develop jumps, and polish dances. The practice truly creates a positive environment in which friendship between adapted athletes and cheerleaders can flourish.

All the teammates also truly enjoy practice. Adapted cheerleader, Mandy Pederson (sophomore), speaks for all the cheerleaders when she says she loves practice. Like her fellow teammates, she really enjoys her time spent with the girls and practicing their dances.

For now, the cheer team performs only at the football games.  However, in the future, Marcy hopes to expand the program. “I would love to start an adapted cheer division” she says, smiling at the cheerleaders surrounding her.  An individual adapted cheer division would allow the team to compete with fellow adapted cheer teams, with the opportunity to head to a state tournament, providing the cheerleaders the ultimate high school experience. With any luck, the team will start competing with fellow Sparkle adapted teams in Anoka, Farmington, and Champlin by January.

In the meantime, check out the adapted cheer team at our home football games this fall.   Be sure to wish them the best of luck for the future of their incredibly innovative and inclusive program.