Monica Aldama
Born (1972-02-09) February 9, 1972[1][2]
Alabama, U.S.
Alma materTyler Junior College
University of Texas at Austin
University of Texas at Tyler
Occupation(s)Cheerleading coach
Television personality
SpouseChris Aldama (January 1994-present)
Children2

Monica Aldama (born February 9, 1972) is an American cheerleading coach. She is the coach of the co-ed cheerleading team at Navarro College in Corsicana, Texas.[3]

Education

A graduate of Corsicana High School, Aldama enrolled at Tyler Junior College where she joined the cheerleading squad. She subsequently transferred to the University of Texas at Austin where she earned a BBA in Finance from the McCombs School of Business, and was a member of the Zeta Tau Alpha women's fraternity. She went on to graduate from the University of Texas at Tyler with a Master of Business Administration.[4]

Achievement in coaching

Under Aldama's leadership, the Navarro College Bulldogs have earned a national reputation for excellence in cheerleading.[5] Since 2000, Aldama's squads have won 16 NCA National Championships in the Advanced Large Coed division, and 1 National Championship in the Game Day Open division, in addition to 6 "Grand National" designations.[6][7] Grand National status is bestowed upon the team with the highest overall score in that year's competition. Aldama's team also holds the record for the highest score achieved at NCA College Nationals.[4] Her cheerleading program has been called a "dynasty"[8] and her athletes refer to her as the "Queen."[9] Aldama's success has had her appear on The Ellen DeGeneres Show and Oprah's live tour.[10]

Appearance in Cheer

In 2020, Aldama featured in a Netflix docuseries titled Cheer, whose focus on the 2019 Navarro College coed cheerleading team served to introduce the sport to a wide audience.[11][12] Cheer was directed by documentarian Greg Whiteley, who until this series was best known for his football-related documentary Last Chance U.[13][14] Both series empathetically follow college athletes struggling with injuries and challenges in their personal lives.[15] Cheer centers its narrative on Aldama's mentorship, which is generally nurturing even as mounting injuries to her athletes lead her to make pragmatic decisions in support of the team's goal of winning the national championship at Daytona Beach, Florida. Responses to the series' representation of Aldama highlight the resultant tension. Television critic Hank Stuever of the Washington Post describes Aldama's dedication as "fierce (and occasionally fearsome)."[14] To critic Jia Tolentino of The New Yorker Aldama "rules the program with a fearsomely controlled demeanor interrupted by flickers of maternal warmth."[16] Overall, the series highlights Aldama's perfectionism, encapsulated in her hallmark conviction concerning practice: "You keep going until you get it right, then you keep going until you can't get it wrong."[17]

Dancing with the Stars

On September 2, 2020, it was announced that Aldama would be participating in the 29th season of Dancing with the Stars. She was partnered with Val Chmerkovskiy, and was eliminated on the 7th week, placing 10th.[18]

References

  1. ↑ Rizzo, Laura (September 10, 2020). "'Cheer' Coach Monica Aldama Shows Off Rock Hard Abs at 50 Before 'DWTS'". Life & Style. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  2. ↑ Monica Aldama [@monicaaldama] (February 10, 2020). "Thank you everyone for the sweet bday wishes, and thank you @Jerry_K2TR for this special red carpet shout out. I am truly thankful for all of God's blessings. ❤️ ❤️ ❤️" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  3. ↑ "Navarro College | About Navarro College".
  4. 1 2 "Navarro College Athletics | Monica Aldama".
  5. ↑ "New Netflix series profiles just how hardcore this Texas school's cheerleading squad can get". Dallas News. January 8, 2020.
  6. ↑ Page, James. "Navarro Cheer 14 time NCA Champions". Corsicana Daily Sun. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
  7. ↑ Heching, Dan. "Cheer Team Navarro Wins 2022 National Collegiate Cheer and Dance Championships". Yahoo! Sport. Retrieved April 13, 2022.
  8. ↑ "Something to CHEER about: Netflix series highlights area college cheerleading dynasty".
  9. ↑ "'Cheer' Star Monica Aldama Wanted a Totally Different Career Before Coaching". January 18, 2020.
  10. ↑ Zeinab, Ben Church, CNN Video produced by Noura Abou. "The 'Queen' of Cheer reveals how Netflix mega-hit changed her life". CNN. Retrieved March 8, 2020. {{cite web}}: |first= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  11. ↑ Abad-Santos, Alex (January 16, 2020). "How a tough coach in a brutal sport turned Cheer into one of the best new shows on Netflix". Vox.
  12. ↑ Miller, Bruce. "Plenty to 'Cheer': New Netflix series goes behind the scenes". Sioux City Journal.
  13. ↑ "Cheer (TV Series 2020– ) - IMDb" – via www.imdb.com.
  14. 1 2 "Netflix's 'Cheer' is the documentary that hard-working cheerleaders have long deserved - The Washington Post". The Washington Post.
  15. ↑ Crimmins, Tricia. "Greg Whiteley of 'Last Chance U' on 'Cheer' and his empathetic approach to documentary filmmaking". Mashable.
  16. ↑ Tolentino, Jia. "The Pathos of "Cheer" and the Extraordinary Deceptions of Cheerleading". The New Yorker.
  17. ↑ William, Janice (January 8, 2020). "Who is Monica Aldama, the champion coach in Netflix's new docuseries 'Cheer'?". Newsweek. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
  18. ↑ ""Dancing with the Stars" 2020 Celebrity Cast Announced!". ABC.com. September 2, 2020.


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