The coach of Rochester High School’s dance team, Allie Mercer, has been speaking with members of the school board in order to push for her team to become a sport, instead of an athletic club.

Ever since the dance team was created, it has been an athletic club, but now Mercer is trying to change people’s minds in order to get the respect it deserves.

“Ever since I made the RHS dance team my freshman year of high school I wished it was considered a sport,” Mercer said. “I think dance team would start to gain more attention throughout the district for our accomplishment.”

Students responses to the dance team are all around positive and encouraging towards dance being a sport.

“I would consider dance a sport and an art because it is very challenging yet there is beauty and grace in every move,” senior Delna Sholapurwalla said. “I have a lot of respect for the people on dance team.”

Students on the dance team put in many hours every week, and many of them even dance for studios outside of school, as well.

“I have been dancing for 14 years,” senior Claire He stated. “I dance at a studio, outside of school, for about 15 hours a week.”

Even with all of their hard work, the members of dance team still do not get the same recognition.

“If we were a sport then we would get a facility or area of our own for practices,” Junior Chloe Imlay stated. “Dance is not considered a sport, so we are looked down upon.”

Although the team may not get the same recognition, there are still some positives to being a club that allows dance team to be more competitive.

“In Michigan, sports can’t compete outside of the state so like as a club we can go to nationals in Florida and stuff and that is fun,” He shared.

When it comes to being a sport, dance team could help some students out even in an academic standpoint.

“Dance team would finally count as a gym credit,” Mercer said. “We would no longer have to get into the argument of whether dance is a sport or not.”

Overall, after all of Mercer and the dancer’s hard work, the dance team is beginning to gain recognition as a hardworking group of dancers, despite the title of a athletic club.

“Dance team is continuing to grow as a program from one competition a year to three competitions, and traveling to Florida for a national competition,” Imlay said. “We are only getting better and stronger from here!”