School Rules & Scoring

REQUIREMENT
All school coaches, choreographers and personnel wishing to access the warmup area, backstage or coaches’ box must have a USA Cheer Membership.  The Dance, Cheer Coach, STUNT Coach or Professional Membership is acceptable.

PROOF OF MEMBERSHIP
When checking in at Varsity Spirit competitions, you will now simply provide proof of membership for each person from your organization who wishes to go into the warmup area, backstage or coaches’ box. Upon proof of membership, each coach will receive a wristband that will allow them access.

Complete Membership Requirement

2025-26 NDA School Divisions:
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Intermediate Division:
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2025-2026 NDA School Rules & Regulations:
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Varsity Spirit Solo & Small Group Rules & Regulations:
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2025-2026 NDA School Scoring Guidelines:
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2025-2026 NDA School Scoring Webinar: Coming Soon!

2025-2026 NDA Game Day Scoring Webinar: Coming Soon!

2025-2026 NDA School Scoresheets:

• Team Performance
• Jazz
• Pom
• Kick
• Hip Hop
• Game Day

Varsity Spirit Solo & Small Group Scoresheet:
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2025-2026 NDA College Rules & Regulations:
Coming Soon!

2024-2025 NCA & NDA Collegiate Rule Book:
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2025-2026 NDA College Scoring Guidelines: Coming Soon!

2025-2026 NDA College Scoring Webinar: Coming Soon!

2025 Collegiate Scoring Webinar:
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2025-2026 NDA College Scoresheets:

Collegiate Sample Score Sheets:

• College Dance Score Sheet Samples
• College Game Day Score Sheet Sample
• College Spirit Rally Sample Score Sheet

Taking your routine to the next level is easy with NDA’s newest industry-leading cleaning tool! Get a professional’s perspective and feedback. NDA will select an expert to provide objective verbal and written feedback. Helping your team enhance their technical skills, movement quality, uniformity, spacing, formations, staging and much more! There is no better way to catch mistakes and critique a routine than seeking a fresh perspective – NDA’s Digital Dance Critique does just that!

Register

As a coach, it is important to be current on the NDA Safety Rules. If you have questions concerning any safety rules or questions regarding specific performance elements, please follow these steps. This will ensure that you receive a timely and accurate response to your video inquiry.

• All questions must be in written form.
• Due to the differences in interpretation and terminology, no phone calls will be accepted.
• Due to variance in camera angles/perspective, rulings on videos are not guaranteed.
• Do not rely on prior rulings from NDA Championships.
• Costume approval must be submitted in photograph format with at least one (1) athlete wearing the costume in Front and back views of costume must be shown. Official approval cannot be given to sketches or drawings.
• Music approval must be submitted in either MP3 or WAV.
• For all legality questions, you must send a video that contains the skill in question (each skill in question should be sent as a separate video clip).
• A separate video must be submitted for each competition to ensure legality.
• Video must include the following:

1. 1. Front, side and back view of skill.
   2. Name of the Championship where you will be performing skill and the Division you will be performing in.
   3. Include your name, team name, email and phone number with your video.
   4. Do not send the entire Routine, only the skill(s) in Your video will be kept on file at NDA.

VIDEOS THAT ARE NOT IN THE ABOVE FORMAT WILL NOT BE VIEWED. Videos MUST be received at least THREE WEEKS PRIOR to the Championship date. Videos not received in the three weeks prior to the championship date will NOT be reviewed.

Email videos to: ndascoring@varsity.com.

Scoring Review Process & Legality Review Process:
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Thank you for your interest in becoming a judge for Varsity Spirit! Applications for the 2025-2026 season will be open from May 1, 2025 until August 1, 2025. To apply click HERE!

Judges selected for one of our regional events should meet these standards

• Have no direct affiliation with any team/gym who will be attending (or potentially will be attending) in a division they will judge. This includes coaching, choreographing, cleaning, etc.
• Must be available for pre-event training via webinar at a time/date to be determined
• Must pass and be trained and educated in one or more of the category scoresheets that are used for judging.
• Must be of the highest ethical and moral values. Must possess and maintain the highest standards of integrity, ethics and professionalism.
• Must complete Varsity Spirit Compliance Course to include
  • Background Check
  • Code of Conduct
  • Understanding, Recognizing and Reporting the Maltreatment of Children
  • Affidavit of Good Moral Character
• Must be well-respected in the cheerleading, dance, band and/or song/pom industry.
• Judges will be informed that any behavior deemed to be unsupportive of Varsity Spirit’s mission may be factored into the final selection of judges.

In addition to the regional event standards these additional criteria will be used when selecting our National Championship Judges.

• Preferred to have judged or will judge 2 or more “Regional” type events during the 2024-2025 season.
• Preferred to have been a judge or equitable experience for at least 3 years.

Providing accurate, fair, and unbiased feedback for our customers is one of our top priorities.  With that said, our selected panel of judges must have no affiliation with teams in a division they are scheduled to judge.

Example of potential Conflicts of Interest:

• Current Coach and/or Choreographer
• Former Coach and/or Choreographer and/or Athlete
  • Must be 5 years out from any program
  • Must not have had any contact with a team this season
  • Did not go to any practices or performances in the last 5 years
• Married / Partner / Dating / Related to coach
• Parent of an athlete on a team

Due to the size of our National Championships, judge’s with conflicts may be selected. Every effort will be made to ensure that a judge with a potential Conflict of Interest is not scheduled to judge that team or school’s divisions.