Sad SMU Cheerleader Denied Her Kicks

Jamie Burns says cheerleading is her life. She was well on her way to pursuing this life when administrators at SMU pulled the plug on her dreams.
 

A CNN video tells her story. Burns attends SMU on a cheerleading scholarship, but after just one game, she will no longer be able to give fans the spirit they crave. The problem is that Burns wears a pacemaker to correct a heart problem… a heart problem not covered by SMU’s insurance. As such, the school has practically banned the cheerleader from moving.
 

Sounds reasonable, right?
 

Not when you consider that her cardiologist has sent release forms stating that Burns can participate in full activity with no restrictions, and Burns herself has signed a waiver of liability ensuring that she will not sue the school.
 

The school’s defense is that her health problem could potentially injure another player, for example if she collapses when on the bottom of a pyramid. But there are so many other random, wacky, possible injuries in cheerleading, it's hard to believe this could really be a cause for major concern.
 

While Burns can keep her scholarship, she also has to stick to simple clapping on the sidelines. Not clapping with foot movements, not clapping with jumps, and not clapping with kicks. Just clapping.
 

Burns will accept the decision, but she is left to wonder why she was given the scholarship in the first place. Isn’t the answer obvious, though? Everybody loves hot cheerleaders… even if they are just clapping from the sidelines.

Image: A screenshot from CNN