\nGlenn wanted to be a cheerleader since he was a little boy, so he and his family were overjoyed when he finally made his high school\u2019s cheerleading squad after his freshman year. But during the summer, his family began to get suspicious when his training materials didn\u2019t arrive. Was there discrimination involved? Was Glenn being kicked off the team because he has Down syndrome? His uncle and grandmother were determined to get to the bottom of it.
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\n[post_page_title]Dreams of cheerleading[\/post_page_title]
\nEveryone has dreams, goals, and wishes that they hope to one day accomplish. Of course, some people\u2019s dreams are more achievable than others, but no matter how fantastic their wishes may be, everyone deserves a chance to try to make them a reality.
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\nGlenn Wilson is a 17-year-old high school student from Columbus, Ohio, who had a very special dream – he wanted to be a cheerleader. That may not seem so far-fetched, but a lot stood in the way of the teenager\u2019s goal.
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\n[post_page_title]Life goals[\/post_page_title]
\nWhen Glenn was young, he watched as his older cousins joined their local competitive cheerleading team. He saw his family members practice their cheers and lifts, their splits and kicks, and he loved attending their competitions.
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\nGlenn felt inspired by the cheers, and so, he made it his goal to become a cheerleader one day. Glenn\u2019s family supported and encouraged him to pursue his dream, and so he waited patiently until he was old enough to finally become a cheerleader himself.
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\n[post_page_title]Down syndrome[\/post_page_title]
\nEven though becoming a cheerleader doesn\u2019t sound like such a lofty goal, there is something that made it more difficult for young Glenn Wilson. Glenn was born with Down syndrome, which is a genetic disorder that occurs in about one out of every 1,000 babies born each year.
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\nDown syndrome is caused by an extra chromosome in a person\u2019s DNA, and usually leads to delays in learning and physical growth. Many people with Down Syndrome go on to live full lives, and that\u2019s exactly what Glenn intends to do.
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\n[post_page_title]The opportunity of a lifetime[\/post_page_title]
\nFor many years Glenn Wilson dreamed of becoming a cheerleader.
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\nWhen he was just part way through his first year at West High School in his hometown of Columbus, Ohio, he learned that he would be able to try out for the cheerleading team the following spring. Glenn was so excited – he would finally get the chance to make his dream a reality. He was sure that he would make the team and cheer for the Cowboys the next year.
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\n[post_page_title]Making the team[\/post_page_title]
\nIn the spring, the time came for cheerleading tryouts at West High School, and Glenn Wilson was ready.
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\nAfter all, this was the moment he had been waiting for. Glenn showed up with all of the other students who wanted to join the cheerleading team and gave it his all, impressing everyone with his passion and motivation. Once the tryouts were over, Glenn and his family received the notification they were waiting for – Glenn had made the team!
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\n[post_page_title]An excited teenager[\/post_page_title]
\nGlenn was ecstatic when he learned that he had been accepted to the cheerleading team. “He was the happiest kid when he found out,\u201d said Glenn\u2019s uncle Ray Valentine.
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\n\u201cYou would have thought he had just been handed a million dollars and three puppies.\u201d The 17-year-old got right to work and started working on his cheers. He continued practicing throughout the summer, and was always proud to show off his splits, his heel stretches, and his cheers.
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\n[post_page_title]Waiting for practice[\/post_page_title]
\nSoon enough, however, Glenn\u2019s family started to understand that something wasn\u2019t quite right. The family didn\u2019t receive any materials from the school regarding Glenn\u2019s future cheerleading team.
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\nThey knew that they were supposed to receive a packet in the mail with Glenn\u2019s uniform and information about the practices, but as the summer wore on, they started to worry. \u201cHe kept asking when practice was going to start,\u201d said Glenn\u2019s grandmother Carolyn, who is also his legal guardian.
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\n[post_page_title]A message from the coach[\/post_page_title]
\nAt the end of August, the cheer supervisor called the family to let them know what was going on. According to Glenn\u2019s gran Carolyn, the supervisor \u201csaid that she didn’t have a spot for him on the team, but that he could be a water boy.\u201d
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\nThat\u2019s how they all found out that for some reason, Glenn was no longer on the cheerleading team. Glenn was very sad, of course, but Carolyn told him that they would figure everything out.
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\n[post_page_title]A concerned family[\/post_page_title]
\nWhile Glenn was excitedly practicing during the summer, the family was trying to understand what had gone wrong. Once school began, Ray Valentine was finally able to get through to the school to ask what was going on.
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\nHe said that he had been trying to call all summer but since the school was closed for the summer vacation, there was no answer. Now, Valentine was finally able to get through to the athletic department to ask the questions that he wanted answered.
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\n[post_page_title]The reason why[\/post_page_title]
\nRay Valentine was determined to get to the bottom of the situation, and he continued to ask the tough questions until he got an explanation. During the phone call, Valentine said that tension was running high and \u201cit got a little heated.\u201d
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\nThe cheerleading coach told him that she had made the executive decision to remove Glenn from the team. Valentine was angry and surprised. After all, Glenn had been so happy to make the team just a few months earlier, and now the coach was reversing this decision.
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\n[post_page_title]Team \u2018image\u2019[\/post_page_title]
\nGlenn\u2019s uncle didn\u2019t give up. He pressed the coach for an explanation as to why Glenn had suddenly been removed from the cheerleading roster.
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\n\u201cWhen I questioned why, she told me that he did not fit the image she wanted the team to portray,\u201d said Ray Valentine. He was shocked, and still didn\u2019t understand what \u201cimage\u201d she was talking about. He started asking her what aspect of Glenn was standing in the way. \u201cWhen I said, \u2018Is it because he has Down syndrome?\u2019 she shut up,\u201d said Valentine.
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\n[post_page_title]A different offer[\/post_page_title]
\nThe cheerleading coach went on to tell Ray Valentine that she didn\u2019t have the qualifications to coach special needs children.
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\nShe wasn\u2019t ready to have Glenn on the team because of his Down syndrome, and thought that it would be the best for the squad if he was removed from the roster. She wanted him off the team, but was willing to offer him another position – that of team manager. Glenn still wouldn\u2019t be able to practice or cheer with the squad, so Valentine wasn\u2019t ready to accept it.
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\n[post_page_title]Back to school[\/post_page_title]
\nAfter Glenn had spent the entire summer looking forward to being a part of the cheerleading team, he was barred from practices and only allowed to participate in a few home games.
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\nAfter just one month of school, Glenn had already missed a total of eight practices. \u201cThe only time that he had got to practice with the team was at the actual games,\u201d said his grandmother. When he was allowed, Glenn still went out there and cheered his heart out.
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\n[post_page_title]Cheering at home[\/post_page_title]
\nDespite the fact that Glenn did not have the opportunity to practice with the squad, he still made quite an impression when he was allowed to cheer at games. “The kids just love him,\u201d said his Grandma Carolyn.
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\n\u201cDuring his first game all the girls on the team hollered and clapped for him.\u201d The family wasn\u2019t ready to give up, though. They were determined to give Glenn the chance to practice and cheer with the cheerleading team that had accepted him that spring.
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\n[post_page_title]An angry uncle[\/post_page_title]
\nUncle Ray Valentine decided to take the matter to the officials in the Columbus City School District, but they said that they would support the coach\u2019s decision.
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\nSo, Valentine went to share his grievances with the school board to see what the board members had to say about it. He told Glenn\u2019s story, and found support. “When I spoke about it at the Columbus city school board meeting, people were speechless and in total shock,\u201d said Valentine.
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\n[post_page_title]A question of discrimination[\/post_page_title]
\nGlenn\u2019s family is sure that the reason for Glenn being left out of the practices comes down to discrimination, and they are determined to keep fighting for Glenn\u2019s right to be on the cheerleading team, just like any other teenager.
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\nGrandma Carolyn doesn\u2019t think the discrimination is limited to Glenn, either. \u201cIt’s unfair, because I’m sure a lot of other children have been discriminated against like he has been,\u201d she said. \u201cThey’ve just had no one to step up to the plate for them.\u201d
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\n[post_page_title]Working for change[\/post_page_title]
\nCarolyn is right – Glenn\u2019s case is not unique. In fact, children with Down syndrome often have trouble making friends and can even be excluded from school events and other functions.
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\nIn addition, it can be very difficult for adults with Down syndrome to get paid jobs, and only about 20% of adults with Down syndrome are employed in the United States. Many organizations and individuals, like the members of Glenn\u2019s family, are working to try to change this troubling status quo.
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\n[post_page_title]A member of the team[\/post_page_title]
\nAt first, when Ray Valentine contacted school authorities, they upheld the coach\u2019s decision. However, after he spoke at the school board meeting and got the support of other parents, the officials changed their minds.
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\nThey finally gave Glenn the team\u2019s schedule so he could practice with the other cheerleaders, and they allowed him to cheer at home games. It may have been a step in the right direction, but Valentine said that the gesture was too little, too late.
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\n[post_page_title]An uncle\u2019s demands[\/post_page_title]
\nThe school may have changed its decision on the matter, but Glenn had already missed half of the season. On top of that, his family still feels that he is not being treated equally.
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\nGlenn showed up to a scheduled practice one day only to find out that the team had moved the practice to the night before without notifying him. Following the ordeal, Ray Valentine is asking that the coach change her position on the matter or be let go.
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\n[post_page_title]The school\u2019s claims[\/post_page_title]
\nThe cheerleading team staff have not made any statements about what happened to Glenn, but a spokesman for the school district released a comment. “He is a full member of that cheerleading team,\u201d said Scott Varner.
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\n\u201cWe are looking into the matter to try and understand what had happened.\u201d He went on to admit that there were indeed mistakes made in the handling of the situation but that now, \u201cHe’s just like any other cheerleader on that team, and he is not being excluded in any way.”
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\n[post_page_title]Everyone deserves a chance[\/post_page_title]
\nIt\u2019s heartwarming to see how happy Glenn is when he\u2019s on the field, cheering with his team. His family refused to give up until he was allowed on the squad, but not everyone has a loving family to advocate for them.
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\nCarolyn worries about these children, and believes that everyone deserves the opportunity to succeed and follow their dreams. “No matter what they have or what they are, each child deserves the chance to do what they want to do in life,\u201d she said. \u201cThese kids need attention, not discrimination.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Glenn wanted to be a cheerleader since he was a little boy, so he and his family were overjoyed when he finally made his high school\u2019s cheerleading squad after his freshman year. But during the summer, his family began to get suspicious when his training materials didn\u2019t arrive. Was there discrimination involved? Was Glenn being […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":77,"featured_media":73121,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-73125","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories"],"yoast_head":"\n