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Published Monday, March 23, 2009 in Local

Photo by Brenda Pedraza-Vidamour

Brandon Rasch watches some of the cheer team members practice jumps with assistant Rose Thompson as Kayla Dyer awaits her turn.

Newnan's 'Super Stars' head to world cheer competition

By Brenda Pedraza-Vidamour

The Times-Herald

The Newnan Southern Stars "Super Stars," a cheerleading team made up of special needs students, is heading to a world competition for cheer and dance on April 10 in Atlanta.

The 12-member team is made up of students who range in age from 6 to 17 years old. Some of the students suffer from autism, Down's Syndrome and other physical and mentally disabling conditions that have caused varying degrees of developmental dysfunction and delays. One student is blind, another is deaf and another is so sensitive to sound he wears a headband to help muffle loud noises, including the music to which he performs the routines.

But it isn't the disabilities that earned them their place in next month's International All-Levels Dance and Cheer Championship. It was their skills.

The team qualified for the chance at a world title by first winning the 2009 Cheersport National Championship last February in the Special Needs II Division.

The boys and girls competed against seven other special needs teams across the state. With the win, they became the first cheerleading team from Georgia to win a national title in their division and were recognized for that distinction last Friday at the state capitol.

The Cheersport Nationals is the world's largest cheerleading competition, hosting more than 900 teams and 20,000 cheerleaders.

The International All-Levels Dance and Cheer Championship involves teams competing from countries all over the world. The competition is so large, it is held in five cities including the event this April in Atlanta.

The Super Stars are co-sponsored by the Newnan School of Gymnastics and Cheerleading and the Coweta County Special Olympics. Greg "Cricket" Shelnutt of NSG and Kelly Abercrombie of CCSO coordinated the program for Coweta's special needs students last summer.

For the team's accomplishments in their first year, they were honored on March 20 with a Senate resolution -- sponsored by Sen. Mitch Seabaugh, R-Sharpsburg -- which included commendations for their discipline, coordination, teamwork, creativity, spirit and dedication.

The Super Stars squad is made up of Brittany Blackenship, Morgan Byrom, Caitlyn Davis, Kayla Dyer, Darrius Gray, Michelle Keith, Brandon Rasch, Autumn Richardson, Katie Shiffert, Joshua Sloman, Sara Tinney and Holli White.

Their assistants, a mix of student volunteers from NSG and Coweta schools include Morgan Blalock, Paige Boose, Cassie Brown, Anna Cole, Katey Dobson, Courtney Freed, Nikki Gentry, Jessi Griffies, Morgan Hestley, Emilie LeClair, Katheryn LeClair, Jordan Misutka, Samantha Mizzell, Alex Noles, Allison Oesterle, Brooke Robinson, Rose Thompson, Amanda Wilkin and Erin Zauner. The student helpers have accompanied the disabled squad at every practice, competition and event since the program began nine months ago.

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