PELLA—A triumvirate of Central College graduates will lead the cheerleading and dance squads coming off another stellar year of competition results.
           
The new leadership comes following the departure of longtime head cheerleading and dance coach Lexi Gbogbo who served in the position since 2012.
           
Sydney Bradford and TiAhnna Thomson are the new co-dance coaches while Megan Bouska has been promoted to lead the cheer squad.
           
"We're excited about the direction of our dance and cheer programs," Vice President for Athletics Eric Van Kley said. "Both programs have had success at the conference and national level for over a decade and we believe that will continue under these three alumni."
           
Bradford was a four-year member of the Dutch dance team from 2015-19. She has been Grinnell High School's coach since 2021 and will continue in that dual role this season. She's a board member of the Iowa State Dance Association and an NDCA certified dance judge. Additionally, she has run Sydney B. Choreography for eight years working with high school and college programs across the country.
           
Thomson was a four-year member of the Dutch dance team from 2019-23. She was a captain on the 2022-23 team that won the inaugural American Rivers Conference championship and also won a national championship at the NDA competition in Daytona, Florida. An experience dance instructor, she also works at Express Dance Movement in Newton while serving as a choreographer for teams around central and southeast Iowa.
           
Bouska has over a decade of high school cheer coaching experience prior to being an assistant with Central last year. She was also a four-year member of Central's cheer program from 2009-2013. Last year, she helped Central to a first-place finish in the game day routine at the American Rivers Conference Invitational.