NEW ORLEANS ( December 18,2023) – The cheerleading team is looking to move in a new direction this season with the addition of a
new head coach.
Dillard University hired T’ya Brooks RN, B.S.N, former cheer captain, class of 2023, as the new Head Coach shortly after Coach Courtney Cadore left.
“Initially it was going to be just me coming temporarily to help the team out since there was no one else. When I started coming temporarily they [asked] if I wanted to just be the coach,” said Brooks. “At first, I had to rethink it but I felt like it would be the same thing I did when I was on
the team.”
T’ya Brooks is a New Orleans native who was on the cheer team throughout her collegiate career at Dillard. During her time on the team, Brooks saw the ups and downs of the cheer program after dealing with two different coaches.
“I knew everything about Dillard Cheer from the ins and outs. I went through a lot of faculty and team changes from the worst of the worst to the best of the best,” said Brooks. “ Seeing how it grew to where it is today is crazy. It feels weird in a good way but it’s only up from here.”
Since her freshman year, Brooks has been a key leader on the team. She started cheering in middle school where she was on the team for five years. Although Brooks has a love for cheering, coaching at Dillard is not something she had planned.
Brooks graduated from Dillard with her degree in Nursing. Currently, she is working in her field as a full-time nurse. Brooks has plans to further her practice and become a travel nurse in a few years. “Being a full-time nurse and a head coach balances itself out. I’m still adjusting but I work three to four days as a nurse so I can work around my schedule and be here more for practices etc,” said Brooks.
T’ya is looking to improve the program in many ways such as wanting to change the perception of the cheerleaders on campus, changing the uniforms, and improving social media interactions.
“ When you look at other HBCU cheerleaders at different schools they look up to par, always, and they are a key part of student interaction on campus,” said Brooks.
During her days as a Dillard cheerleader, Brooks felt the disconnect between the campus and the cheerleaders. She understood the disconnection because she felt there were some things that could’ve been changed.
“ Our old cheers, halftime dances, and performances all could have been better and more crowd-engaging,” said Brooks. “ I will be implementing new cheers and dances to the program. I used to be the choreographer during my time on the team.”
Brooks and the cheer team are looking forward to displaying new cheers, dances, and routines throughout basketball season. For more information on the Cheer Devils you can visit www.dillardbleudevils.com.
