A trip to the UCA Nationals competition during her junior season was all it took to get Kira Curlin hooked on cheerleading.
Trigg County’s second trip to Nationals earlier this year and Kira’s decision to continue cheering in college highlighted her senior year, which saw her graduate near the top of her class.
Kira signed to continue cheering at Kentucky Wesleyan College, something she didn’t see coming at the start of high school.
“I found out cheering is something I actually love. I find peace in it. It keeps me rounded because cheering is a very demanding sport, and it keeps me focused on what I need to do,” she said.
Kira also added mentorship to her resume in her senior season, becoming part of the start-up Phenominal Female Athletes.
“We have middle schoolers and we’re their big sisters. We’re mentoring them, helping them with whatever they need, home life, school life, and then we just help them come into high school,” Kira said. “We’re just a big sister to them.”
For Kira, it’s providing a strong support system to younger students who need that interaction and guidance. It’s something Kira has experienced firsthand.
“My mom, she’s my rock. I just thank her so much because she just pushes me out of my comfort zone. She just pushes me to do everything that I don’t want to do and that I want to do,” she said.
Kira expects to fall outside of her comfort zone again this fall as she heads to KWC for college and to cheer for the Panthers and study psychology. However, given her drive and support system, she’ll land back inside in no time.
Kira discussed her decision to cheer in college in this YSE interview.
