OASSA and OHSAA announce cheerleading championship partnership

COLUMBUS — The Ohio Association of Secondary School Administrators (OASSA) and the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) have announced the establishment of a new partnership. The two organizations will recognize the annual OASSA state championships as the official cheerleading state championship for Ohio. OASSA, on behalf of Ohio school leaders, has hosted the state championship for the past 34 years, including this weekend at Big Walnut High School, where Edison, Norwalk, and St. Paul will compete. This new partnership with the OHSAA acknowledges the experience and expertise that OASSA provides when planning and supervising a cheer state tournament. "The OASSA has successfully hosted the cheerleading state tournament for many years and we are excited to partner with them as we look to add cheerleading as an official OHSAA-recognized sport in the near future," said Doug Ute, OHSAA Executive Director. "High school principals, which belong to OASSA, are the voting members in our association, so this move to further link the OHSAA with the OASSA is a win-win situation." The partnership is the first step towards the recognition and adoption of competitive cheerleading as an OHSAA recognized sport in member schools, possibly as early as the 2027-28 school year. Under this new partnership with the OHSAA, OASSA will continue to host the state championships each year moving forward. "We are very excited about what the future holds," said Tim Freeman, OASSA Executive Director. "As Ohio school leaders, OASSA members and our Board of Directors have had a longstanding partnership with the OHSAA. "That partnership has always been directed at supporting Ohio's students, student-athletes, their teams, schools and communities." Thousands of Ohio high school cheerleaders compete at the OASSA championships each year. "Their coaches, parents, and administrators work very hard to make that happen," Freeman said. "This new partnership is a great example of cooperation and is an important step forward for Ohio interscholastic cheer." Across Ohio, thousands of student-athletes participate in cheer programs at their OHSAA member schools. These cheerleaders devote the same time, energy, hard work, sacrifice and dedication as other student-athletes. The OHSAA and OASSA celebrate this partnership as an opportunity to fully recognize them as an important part of their school's interscholastic athletic programs. Next school year, the 2026-27 OASSA competition program will continue in its current structure with one change. The Game Day cheerleading category will shift from its current place in the winter to the fall, with a Game Day state championship tournament scheduled for early November. The Traditional category would remain in the winter. This weekend, both categories will be contested Friday through Sunday at Eversole Run Middle School in Dublin and Big Walnut High School in Sunbury. The Chargers, Truckers and Flyers all compete on Saturday at Big Walnut. The current rules, regulations and scoring structures used by OASSA will remain in place for the 2026-27 seasons.