Kimberly Sams made waves in the national media last week when she told a local newspaper she was kicked off the ETSU cheerleading team for working at Hooters.
“I just called the press and 48 hours later I was on the Leno show,” said Sams, a freshman at ETSU.
She insists that she is not looking for publicity, she just wants to know what the standard is.
Cheering at ETSU is on a voluntary basis, but the cheerleaders on the squad have to sign a code of conduct that follows them even off campus. “Team rules are established by the coach and the team,” said Dave Mullins, ETSU’s athletic director. “Every coach has a different approach to rules and guidelines.”
Mullins said other reasons lead to the decision. “Hooters is just one of several issues (that led to) Kim’s dismissal,” he said.
Sams signed the code of conduct but didn’t know that working at Hooters could be grounds for termination, she said. “I love this school,” Sams said. “I felt so proud to cheer for our teams. I was always the loudest one out there screaming (for the Bucs).”
Since the cheerleading squad is a voluntary organization on campus, those who participate do not receive any scholarship money and are even asked to pay for their own warm-up gear.
“(Head coach) Tammy Bartow has put a lot of effort into making (the cheer squad) more like a legitimate sports team on campus,” Sams said.
The cheerleaders train at least four days a week. Sams turned in her cheerleading uniform on Friday, Feb. 3, so she could get her records released.
She said the team has a pile of outfits and team members just have to search for the one that fits them best. “I would have to hold my skirt down when I would walk up into the stands,” Sams said.
She said her school uniform made her more uncomfortable at times than her uniform at Hooters.
Sams said her priorities are cheering first, then waiting tables at Hooters. She said she believes her job is a good way to help pay for school. Sams was willing, however, to give up the waitress gig in order to stay on the team, she said. She was denied.
Now Sams wants to know if she could ever earn a chance to cheer for the Bucs again.