VIRTUAL CHEER COMPETITION
VIRTUAL CHEER COMPETITION
FEBRUARY 25, 2023
FEBRUARY 25, 2023
**Screaming out in my legendary, “WOOOO!! WOOOO!!!”**
Can you feel my excitement? This is actually happening! Dreams do come true! This has been my lifelong dream of having a national cheer competition for our deaf young athletes, and it is finally here!
Before I ramble on though, let me introduce myself. My name is Jennifer Alka and I am the Co-Director and founder of this event which is called The National Deaf Cheer Competition (NDCC).
Coming from a very small deaf school while growing up, cheerleading had been a huge part of my life. It gave me something to look forward to every day. In many senses, cheerleading truly saved my life. It gave me the confidence, sense of belonging, motivation, and drive to be a better person. My coach played a very pivotal role in my life and she became someone I truly admired and respected so much When I graduated from Rochester School for the Deaf, I told myself that I will “pay it forward” by becoming a coach and making a difference for other cheerleaders someday
Fast forward many years later and I was given an opportunity to coach at Indiana School for the Deaf I was there for 12 years and then spent the past two years with Texas School for the Deaf. I was blessed with many cheerleaders who have touched my heart. My favorite part of being a coach watching them evolve from meek, “squeaky” team members into confident leaders! Thank you, ISD and TSD, and all of my former cheerleaders, for creating who I am today. <3
I promised myself, once I step down as a coach (when my daughter graduated from high school) that I would establish a competition for all deaf schools. This competition would have a heavy focus on small deaf schools. As I always tell everyone, I'm truly married to cheerleading and cannot divorce from it! I cannot fathom sitting back and no longer being part of the cheer world. This is where NDCC came to fruition! As a coach, I always struggled to keep my squad motivated after having only one cheer competition every year As a sports team, they are often ignored or forgotten. With NDCC, I feel this will fuel their motivation throughout the cheer season by having an additional competition to look forward to Due to the COVID pandemic, so much was made possible by means of virtual technology which then created a pathway for us to try this new concept of having a virtual cheer competition
I was shocked to learn that Levi Mathis from Oklahoma had the same vision as me We were introduced to each other, and from there, NDCC came alive! We have 12 schools participating in this historic event for our first year! We are ecstatic with the schools that are able to join us! We are looking forward to expanding this competition in the future!
We want to thank Indiana School for the Deaf for making it possible for us to host virtually from their school Also, kudos to our amazing committee and co-chairs, Peter Leccese and Zamica Gage, the judges, Rydrea Walker for his savvy live streaming and tech support, ISD Print Shop for making our t-shirts, ISD Woodworking for creating our awards, our private donors, interpreters, and Kalena Bumbala for all of her hard work on Public Relations I want to thank my family, too I apologize in advance if I forgot someone here, but please know you all are greatly appreciated by your generosity!
Can I scream one more time?! WOOOOO!!!! WOOOOO!!!! Here's to our very first NDCC!
GOOD LUCK TO YOU ALL!! SHINE BRIGHTLY!! Show off your beautiful pearly white teeth!! Cheer your hearts out!! Dance as if no one is watching!
BE CONFIDENT, but most of all…Have fun!!
RAH RAH Yours, Jennifer Alka
Athletic Directors and Cheer Coaches across the Nation welcome to the 1st Annual National Deaf Cheer Competition!!
My name is Levi Mathis and I am the CoDirector and founder of this event which is called the National Deaf Cheer Competition (NDCC)
I am currently a Teacher, Coach, and Athletic Director for the Oklahoma School for the Deaf (OSD). My family is a multi-generational family of Teachers and I originally had no plans to become a teacher(no surprise that is exactly what I became!) After graduation from the University of Oklahoma, I struggled to find a career that I enjoyed. I worked to receive my teaching certification and applied to several schools in the southcentral area of Oklahoma After being turned down my father-in-law pointed me to an open position at the OSD. I applied even though I had no exposure to the Deaf community or Deaf education. I was hired and instantly fell in love with the school, students, programs, and ASL I love to learn so I could adapt quickly and I strongly believe that my family, the teachers in my life, and the coaches helped develop me for the position I currently hold I want to commend all of you for the countless hours and dedication you put into your students.
In the last several years of working with the programs at Oklahoma School for the Deaf and watching my daughter be heavily involved with competitive cheer, it was always disappointing to see our Cheer athletes only have a few competitions annually and not have the same recognition as the other programs under the National Deaf Interscholastic Athletic Association (NDIAA) It has been my passion to see my students have as many possible opportunities and recognition as possible!
After submitting the idea for the NDCC to the NDIAA board I was thrilled that Jennifer shared the same vision for this program! The ideas flew off the paper in the first meeting, and NDCC was born!! I hope NDCC becomes a staple event for the future leaders in the community and the recognition boosts students into their future
As Jennifer stated, we want to thank Indiana School for the Deaf for making it possible for us to host virtually from their school Also, kudos to our amazing committee and co-chairs, Peter Leccese and Zamica Gage, the judges, Rydrea Walker for his savvy live streaming and tech support, ISD Print Shop for making our t-shirts, ISD Woodworking for creating our awards, our private donors, interpreters, and Kalena Bumbala for all of her hard work on Public Relations
Schools - thank you for the investment in your students and the bright future ahead!!
Good luck to all!!
GO NDCC!!
Levi Mathis
Greetings,
Weareexcitedandprivilegedtohostthe First Annual, National Deaf Cheer Competition, virtually, on Saturday, February25th,2023!
It is so exciting to be able to provide a second national cheer tournament for our student-athletes! This competition will consist of Division 1 (75 students or more) and Division 2 (less than 75 students).
Both divisions will be competing on the same day. Division 1 consists of Texas, Indiana, Model, Florida, and Marie Philips & Walden School. The Division 2 contestants are Western Pennsylvania, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Minnesota, Metro,Arkansas,and Iowa.
We look forward to the fun and spirit of competition while keeping in mind that sportsmanshipisacentralfocus.
Bestoflucktoallschools!!
PeterLeccese,ISDAthleticDirector
Hi everyone! My name is Zamica Gage, and I’m the co-chairperson for NDCC
It’s an honor to be part of this massive step in the deaf cheer world! I’m most known as a basketball player, but believe it or not, I cheered at Gallaudet University for two years under Head Coach Roberta Gage, my aunt, and Assistant Coach Tara Miles! I was inspired to be the 2nd generation Gallaudet cheerleader as my mom, Becky Gage, and Aunt Roberta did between1988-1992
I’m thrilled NDCC is happening! More opportunitiestoshowthatcheerleading is a SPORT! Do your best but don’t forget to have a blast too. I look forward to seeing the positivity flow through the gyms and screens nationwide! Cheers! Fun fact: my mom is an identical twin, but they never had the chance to cheer together! They took turns cheering for Gallaudet
ZamicaGage,AthleticSecretary
Jennifer Alka NDCC co-director
Levi Mathis NDCC co-director Pete NDCC co
Kalena Bumbala NDCC Secretary & PR
Rydrea Walker Live-streaming & Website
Kyle Me IT Suppo
Brice Lowe Admission & Concession
Darin Turner ISD Print Shop
Ben ISD Wo
Lottie Cassese Judge Committee
Monica Byrum Judge Committee
Jen Harbaugh Judge Committee
Marissa Lyons Babineaux Judge Committee
Curtis Sigafoose Crowd Control
Debi Bradach Crowd Control
Carrie Martin Interpreter
Amber Miniard Floater
Tiernan Booth Student IT Assistant
2. Model Secondary School for the Deaf (MSSD)
3. Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind (FSDB)
4. Indiana School for the Deaf (ISD)
5. Texas School for the Deaf (TSD)
Marie Philip and Walden School (MPWS)
1.
2. New Mexico School for the Deaf (NMSD)
3. Minnesota State Academy for the Deaf (MSAD)
4. Metro Deaf School (MDS)
5. Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf (WPSD)
6. Arkansas School for the Deaf (ASD)
7. Iowa School for the Deaf (ISD)
Oklahoma School for the Deaf (OSD)
1.
James Zeller (Drummer)
Head Coach: Traci Matuszak
Assistant Coach: Yelliann Forfa
Briellys Colon-Mendez
Head Coach: Lia Ferrante
Assistant Coach: AnneMarie O'Brian
Head Coach: Dosia Middlebrook
Assistant Coach: Emma Pippen = not pictured
Head Coach: Chris Joseph
Assistant Coach: Jane Osborn
Head Coach: Misty Skye Dreumont
Assistant Coach: Adriana Martinez
Cheyenne Rasmussen (Manager)* 11
Co-Coaches: Marika Ulrich and Kayla Gonzalez
= not pictured
Head Coach: Venita Smith
Assistant Coach: Oyamo Caracci = not pictured
Head Coach: LaHollis Hill Assistant Coach: Tasia Reynolds
