Melissa Shipman is the Head Coach for Avila University's All-Girl Cheer program. This will be her 5 th year as a coach. Her experience in high school and college cheerleading has given her the ability to recruit talented young women into this incredibly successful program.
During her career here at Avila, the team has accomplished many goals and received nationally acclaimed awards. Every year, the team competes at UCA/UDA College National Championships, and have finished in the top 10 in the very competitive All-Girl Division II. Most recently, Avila placed 4th in their division in 2012, and heads into this year’s competition with strong hopes of a higher finish.
Avila's Cheer Team has taken great pride in being involved in the community and outreach in the Kansas City area. They are the official cheerleaders for Bikers for Babies, and participate in several other programs such as March of Dimes, Light the Night Cancer Walk, and many more. The student-athletes are great role-models, and enjoy being able to get to know the various communities of Kansas City.
Melissa is very excited for the upcoming year, and believes this team will be the strongest cheer team to come through Avila. Melissa's goal is to help these young women to grow not only into successful athletes, but successful graduates that are prepared to go out into the real world and achieve great things. She looks to recruit strong students, with the talent and ambition to take themselves and their team to new heights. Melissa has been happily married to her husband, Andy, for 6 years, and has a beautiful baby girl named Mallory.
