ERIE, Pa. – Gannon Director of Athletics
Mark Richard has announced the addition of Competitive Cheerleading to the University's sports programs and named former Widener head coach
Meghan Foran as the program's first head coach.
Gannon is expected to begin its first season of competition during the spring of 2014 with an approximate roster of 20-30 student-athletes. The official competition season is February-April.
“As with the addition of Acrobatics and Tumbling, the sport of Competitive Cheerleading is becoming more popular with a larger demand among high school student-athletes,” said Richard. “This helps Gannon University provide more opportunities for the graduating high school student-athletes who already compete in the sport. We are extremely excited to begin this program.”
The competitive cheer team will compete at several local, regional and national events throughout the year. The schedule will include the National Cheerleaders Association (NCA) College Nationals where the team will compete in the All-Girl II division against other Division II institutions.
Competitive cheer removes the crowd-leading element of traditional gameday cheerleading and focuses on partner stunts, pyramids, basket tosses and tumbling. The competitive cheer program will follow the safety guidelines established by the American Association of Cheerleading Coaches and Administrators (AACCA).
Maintained as a varsity-level sport, the program will offer scholarships and will function separately from the gameday cheerleading squads currently in place.
Foran, who is AACCA certified, comes to Gannon after serving as the head coach at Widener University for the last two seasons. The program captured its first-ever title with a first-place finish in its division at the 2013 Reach the Beach National Championship in Ocean City, Maryland April 6-7. The Pride was also named grand champions of the college division for being the highest scoring college team at the event. She led Widener to its first major national appearance during her first season at the helm, taking the program to the 2012 Cheersport National Championship.
“I am excited for the opportunity to start a competitive cheer program here at Gannon and am grateful for the administration's support of this new endeavor,” said Foran. “We look forward to providing a new opportunity for student-athletes to compete at a national level while also receiving a great education in a service-focused environment.”
Prior to her stay at Widener, Foran served as the junior varsity cheerleading coach at Haverford (Pa.) High School for three years. She was responsible for the squad at games and competitions, participating annually in the Central League.
The Syracuse, N.Y., native cheered collegiately for Drexel, serving as team captain during her final two years. Foran led the Dragons to their first national appearance and a third-place finish at the Cheersport Nationals in 2010. She was also involved in Drexel's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), as well as being a four-time recipient of the Colonial Athletic Association Scholar-Athlete award.
Foran was a member of CNY Storm All-Star Cheerleading from 2000-05 where she won 11 national titles and numerous local and regional championships. She received multiple individual honors from within the program and from outside organizations.
Also at Drexel, Foran worked for the ACHIEVE Center as an assistant. She mentored academically vulnerable student-athletes and tracked their progress through weekly meetings. Foran was also an assistant with development, maintaining records with current and potential donors.
Foran graduated from Drexel in 2010 magna cum laude with a bachelor's degree in Communication and a minor in Marketing. She later earned a master's degree in Higher Education in June 2012.
For scholarship opportunities or more information on the Gannon Competitive Cheerleading program, please contact head coach
Meghan Foran at (814) 871-7205 or via e-mail at
foran001@gannon.edu.
