Mold Remediation in Rochester, MI

With Three Schools Dominating State Championships, Rochester’s Cheerleading Legacy Shines on the National Stage

Tricia Williams said it’s “contagious.”

When a community has three high schools located within a few miles of each other, many coaches in several sports understandably bemoan how spread out the talent becomes and how it affects even one program from becoming elite.

But that is not the case in the community of Rochester, Michigan in a jaw-dropping way when it comes to cheerleading.

Williams, who has spent more than two decades as the head cheerleading coach at Stoney Creek High School — and so many others who follow high school sports in the state —has witnessed the complete opposite.

“I think the fact that we are all so close geographically makes us push each other even more and why we continue to get better and better every year,” Williams said.

Forget better. Dominant is a better word and description in what has been an unprecedented display of success for one community.

Rochester dominates the state In competitive cheer

Nestled roughly 30 minutes north of Detroit, Rochester Hills and Rochester technically are separate municipalities, but it’s pretty much known locally and around the region as one affluent suburb.

Downtown Rochester has gotten national acclaim for having a stunning light display throughout the Christmas season, so much so that the Wall Street Journal did an article on it in 2023.

But what’s likely not known nationally — and maybe even locally as well — is that Rochester is a high school competitive cheerleading hotbed.

Meets feature gyms that are jam-packed, with rabid parents and supporters making the environment deafening with applause and cheers. Cheerleading events in the community often draw more fans than basketball games or wrestling meets.

It might be hyperbole to say it’s the high school cheerleading capital of the Midwest or nationally. But at the same time, it might not be such an outlandish statement, either.

There are three high schools in the area, Rochester, Stoney Creek and Adams, with each winning three state championships since 2016.

Stoney Creek raised the Michigan state championship trophy for a second straight year. The Cougars edged Rochester area rivals Rochester and Adams as the schools have finished 1-2-3 at states for three consecutive years. / Tricia Williams

Not only that, but the Division 1 state meet in Michigan of late has turned into the de facto Rochester Invitational.

At each of the last three state championship meets, the schools have placed 1-2-3.

On Feb. 28 at this year’s event, Stoney Creek repeated as champion by finishing 32 hundredths of a point ahead of runner-up Rochester. Adams was third.

Williams rightfully points out it’s not like other schools and communities around the area or state don’t also work hard or have a formula of success to follow.

“Teams all across the state are working just as hard and just as long as the Rochester schools are,” she said.

It just seems to mean a bit more in a community where cheerleading never really stops at the high schools.

Setting a standard for excellence in high school cheerleading

The founding mother of cheerleading in the community was former Rochester coach Susan Wood, who was head coach of the program for 41 years before retiring in 2023.

In the 1980s and early 90s, Wood led Rochester to five state titles and three runner-up finishes when state championships were conducted by the state’s coaches association.

The Michigan High School Athletic Association sanctioned competitive cheerleading as a sport in 1994, and Wood guided Rochester to 14 state championships and three runner-up finishes between 1994 and 2017.

With such a powerhouse program to emulate nearby and no doubt wanting to have their own success, it only seemed like a matter of time before Adams and Stoney Creek followed that blueprint and built their programs into a winner also.

It took a while, but it finally started to happen about 15 years ago.

Stoney Creek, which opened as the community’s third high school in 2003, broke through and won its first state title in 2010, and then won another in 2019.

After Rochester won what would turn out to be the final titles of Wood’s tenure in 2016 and 2017, Adams broke through and won three straight from 2020-22.

New head coach Samantha Koehler helped guide Rochester to the title in her first year in 2023, but now Stoney Creek is back on top of the state after winning the last two years.

“Susan Wood has been the pioneer coach for our sport,” Williams said. “Her team was the first to throw team-back tucks —the first to do a lot in our sport.”

During the regular season, league, district or regional meets are essentially state meets every time, with the three regularly alternating victories.

Given how much cheerleading is in the fabric of the community and the young girls that grow up in it, the trend figures to continue.

A year-round passion sets the stage for championship results

Following the state meet, the programs will get roughly three months off. Then, the cycle starts again. Tryouts happen at the start of June and off and running the girls go in the summer and beyond.

The fall is reserved for a “sideline” season where the cheer teams are present for football games and other activities to promote school spirit. It all really starts to get going in the winter when the “competitive” season starts, where routines are worked on tirelessly during practice and at meets.

The Stoney Creek cheerleading squad pose with their medals and state championship trophy after winning a second straight Michigan state crown in February. / Tricia Williams

“Anyone in any shape, any height or any size can be successful in our sport as long as they are willing to work for it,” Williams said. “We have roles for tall girls, short girls, medium girls, etc. Not all sports can say that.”

The feeder programs for the high school’s are humming also, with camps conducted for elementary and middle school aged girls who look up to the high school cheerleaders as heroes.

Offseason workouts are just as plentiful as other sports, where cheerleaders are in the weight room with other athletes trying to get stronger for the season. Various team bonding and fundraising activities are also conducted.

It’s a long commitment on par with football or basketball programs that take pride in all the work they put in their offseasons to get better.

“Cheerleaders are athletes that train just like every other sport,” Williams said. “This is not different in Rochester than around the rest of the state.”

While that is correct, in Rochester it is clearly different.

All the trophies being won every year is all the proof needed.

Published Mar 13, 2025|Modified Mar 14, 2025

This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Schools

OU recognized for efforts to encourage students to register and vote

Community Contributor

Oakland University has been named a Voter Friendly Campus, one of 272 campuses in 39 states and the District of Columbia by Fair Elections Center’s Campus Vote Project and NASPA – Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education. The initiative recognizes institutions that have planned and implemented practices that encourage their students to register and vote.

The mission of the 2025 Voter Friendly Campus designation is to bolster colleges and universities’ efforts to help students overcome barriers to participating in the political process – every year, not just during years featuring federal elections.

OU was evaluated based on its written plan to register, educate, and turnout student voters in 2024, how it facilitated voter engagement efforts on campus and a final analysis of its efforts. As part of its effort to be designated a Voter Friendly Campus, OU hosted numerous election engagement opportunities for the campus and community, highlighted by an October visit by renowned campaigners Karl Rove and Donna Brazile to discuss Michigan’s importance in the 2024 election cycle. The university also served as a resource provider for students to know how to get registered to vote and request an absentee ballot.

“This is a testament to our students' interest and engagement in voting and election engagement more broadly. It's also thanks to the OU leadership's – including President Pescovitz and the Board of Trustees – support of this work,” said Dave Dulio, distinguished professor of political science and director of the Center for Civic Engagement. “The Center for Civic Engagement looks forward to continuing to lead OU’s election and democratic engagement work as we look forward to the 2026 election cycle when Michigan again will have several important contests and be front and center in the national political conversation.”

The institutions designated Voter Friendly Campuses represent a wide range of two-year, four-year, public, private, rural, and urban campuses, collectively serving over one million students. Notably, the list of designated institutions includes 13 Historically Black Colleges and Universities, as well as 47 Community Colleges.

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NASPA is the leading association for the advancement, health, and sustainability of the student affairs profession. Our work provides high-quality professional development, advocacy, and research for 15,000 members in all 50 states, 25 countries, and 8 U.S. territories.

Fair Elections Center is a non-partisan organization dedicated to safeguarding the future of our democracy through innovative efforts focused on voting rights and civic engagement. We use advocacy, litigation, organizing, education, and technology to protect and expand the right to vote, understanding the particular impact on disenfranchised, underrepresented, and marginalized communities. Fair Elections Center’s Campus Vote Project works with universities, community colleges, faculty, students and election officials to reduce barriers to student voting and helps campuses institutionalize reforms that empower students with the information they need to register and vote.

This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

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