Illini Chearleading Club
Regina Munoz
(rmmunoz@uiuc.edu)
(ready to use)
Coauthors
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About the ethnographer
Unit Keywords
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kw cheerleading, kw club activities, kw athletics |
Partner Projects
| Ethnography of the University |
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Rationale of the Unit
What subculture have you chosen to research and why? What do you know about this group and what do you want to know? List your intial research questions.
I have chosen to research the Illini Chearleading Club. I chose this because I would like to find out how involved the University is in funding/providing resources for the Chearleading club. I have spoken to a member of the club who has told me that funding is mainly provided by each member and that the University does not financial support the club. The University also fails to properly provide basic essential needs of the team such as: places to practice, equipment (tumbling mats), and et cetera. |
Project diary
11/11/03.
The University of Illinois is considered one of the top schools in the nation, having well-renown professors that educate the student body, big ten conference sports teams that bring in a substantial amount of income, and numorous other noteworthy achievements and resources, which combined are what gives the University the positive reputation that is has. But has anyone ever heard of the Illini Club Cheerleading team, which is dedicated to the athletic ability of cheerleading and the application of cheerleading skills at National competitions. Illini Club cheerleaders like any other athletic team undergoes rigorous practices four days a week, consisting of conditioning exercises and difficult stunts. I would like to find out if the Illini Club Cheerleading team is receiving adequate resources from the University or from any other sponsor, or receives support and recognition for there hard work, dedication, and continuous efforts. |
Research Plan
Discuss your initial research method. How will you begin to seek out answers to your research questions? Where will you begin taking field notes? Who are you considering as a possible informant?
Intially, I will research basic background information on the Illini Chearleading Club, finding out when it was established and what the basic goals of the club are. Articles from newspapers and other informative resourses will be used to find out the basic idea of University funding for extracurricular activities and how that funding is distributed among the different athletic organizations. I will conduct fieldwork by attending some of the team's practices and performances in order to establish what types of activities are performed during practices/performances, and observe the interactions and behaviors of the members. I also will interview some of the members and some important officials within the team (team captain, coach, different officers)and ask them questions on their basic knowledge concerning team funding. |
Project diary
11/4/03. Through the use of search engines, I plan on exploring beyond the aspect of funding for the Illini Cheeleading Club and into exploring the concept of what kind of athletic status does cheerleading recieve at a college level and how the University cators to that status. I will explore cheerleading articles to find out what kind of recognition/benefits does one recieve as a college cheerleader. Not only will I explore the status of cheerleading, but the athletic ability/skill that are necesary for being a cheerleader. Exactley what type of training do cheerleaders undergo and what kind of time do cheerleaders commit to when becoming a team member? Should cheerleading be compared among other sports at an athletic level, or should it be viewed as a leisurly activity? |
Readings, Keywords, and Constructs
Discuss what sources, other than your own field notes, that you consult for your project.
The first resources I plan to utilize are search engines containing articles (newspaper/magazine/scholarly) with informative data regarding my topic. I plan on using search engines such as: google,infoseek, and other sites to gain reliable and valid information regarding the sub-culture I am researching. I am also planning on looking at the Daily Illini newspaper archives for any articles written on the publicity and commentary regarding the Illini Club Chearleading team. I believe that because the chearleading team is relatively new, it will be difficult to gather written sources, so mainly my research is based off of the fieldnotes and interviews I will be taking. I also plan on not just focusing on this particular team, but maybe obtaining information on this particular sub-culture in different areas to establish a common basis for this sub-culture. Interviews are also vital in my research, allowing myself to obtain the minute details of the team that I can not find through magazines, newspapers, and electronic resources. |
Project diary
11/4/03. The author of the article "Cheerleaders Strive for Sports Status" claimed that cheerleaders are recieving scholarships for there athletic abilitys and have the same commitment as varsity players, but do not recieve the same recognition and perks that they do. The claims are supported with facts that pertain to the academic and athletic benefits given to varsity sports players. This article can be seen as mildly biased based on some of the wording that could possibly be interpreted as opinion. However, the author does not consider opposing arguments or various arguments regarding the benefits of other college athletic team. |
Field Notes
Use this space to discuss what interesting, significant, revealing, and/or strange information you've recorded in your field notes. What are you learning about your chosen subculture? You might also begin to synthesize the information you are getting from your observations and the other sources you consult.
I funny thing that I have noticed is that it is very rare for all team members to be present at a single practice, but the people at practice are very serious and focused on the tasks they need to perform. Many of the members have conflicting schedules, so it is difficult for the team to perform efficently with this conflict. The club president has now issued strictor guidelines for the members to abide by in order for the team to be succesful. Since the presidents new guidelines were issued and over the course of the past few weeks, some team members have quit. I find it interesting that when things become more difficult, some individuals choose to give up. I came to the conclusion that it is a possibility that some girls do not take the team very seriously because it is labeled a "club" activity, even though not any person can join without going through a series of tryouts.
Practices were not what I would have expected. The practices are run by the team's coach, who is a senior at the U of I and who is a very experienced person cheering both in high school and college. Leo is very serious and strict about the practices and runs them in a very efficient and orderly fashion. The girls do not talk doing practice, and if they do it is only to critique each other on the skills that they are working on. |
Project diary
11/10/03. I have attended some practices and observed how hard the girls work to make a productive and efficient practice. The team is now down to 25 girls all who share the common interest of cheerleading, which includes tumbling and competeing for nationals. Even though some team members have been lost, the team is focused and works together in order to perservere. The girls are pushed to learn more dificult skills, but if they really don't feel comfortable executing the skill the coach will not force it. This is becasue the coach does not want to lose girls for competions due to injuries in practice that could have been avoided. |
Findings
Discuss your findings.
11/10/03.
Pratices occur 4 days a week for three hours at a time, and are very structured and efficient. For the first hour of practice the girls practice a series of standing tumbling skills. These skills consist of: back handsprings, back tucks, back handspring backs, and more. The next hour is spent doing stunts such as: pyramids, liberties, and arabesques. Then for a half hour the girls do running tumbling and finish off practice (the last half hour) with conditioning. Conditioning usally consists of doing a series of cruncehs and situps, or doing intervals of stairs, and also go outside to the tennis courts to run laps/sprints. There is a lot more to cheerleading than I knew before. I didn't realize the financial aspect of going to competition, which requires a large sum of money to pay for registraiton, airfare, hotels, uniforms, and choreographer for the competition. |
Project diary
11/10/03. I found it interesting that on top of going to practices the girls attend additonal tumbling practices that the coach (Leo) provides at IMPE. Some girls even pay money to go to private lessons for tumbling outside of practices the coach plans. The University of Illinois is not really involved in any aspect of the team, but I find it interesting that when the squad goes to Nationals they represent the U of I but don't recieve financial aid. Most of the time the girls are paying out of their own pocket |
Refer to other EOTU work
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Users' Comments on this Unit
- She is focusinf on the points of training and recognition. She is talking about the skills and attributes that one must have to become part of a cheerleading team. There are different types of skills that go beyond athleticism, and there is much training that must be done to get ready for participation. She is also focusing on the recognition of being a cheerleader. Is there benefit to it other than just the satisfaction and self confidence that one picks up from being a cheerleader. Are cheerleaders differently than other athletic teams and should they be included in the same group. She has some good points to go after and has a couple different ways to go at this paper - by kdjohnso@uiuc.edu
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