Wisconsin superintendent bans sexist cheerleading awards

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MILWAUKEE (AP) — The superintendent of a Wisconsin high school district has outlawed cheerleading awards that objectify students’ bodies and ordered mandatory staff training on discrimination and harassment.

Dr. Sue Savaglio-Jarvis said in a letter dated Monday and sent to all principals and administrators in the Kenosha Unified School District that “mock awards of any such kind” are prohibited.

The letter comes in response to revelations last month that coaches at Tremper High School were annually giving awards to girls with the largest breasts or buttocks.

The high school said it would stop the awards after the details surfaced. But the superintendent’s letter is a district-wide order and warns faculty they will be disciplined or fired if they harass students or fail to report harassment.

The awards revelation followed a yearlong investigation by the American Civil Liberties Union in Wisconsin.