For Cheer Coach Stephanie Davis, Upperman High School has never just been a place to work or coach. It is home.
A graduate of Upperman herself, Davis began cheerleading as a freshman, following a family legacy deeply rooted in the school. Her aunts, uncles, mother, brother and sister all walked the halls of Upperman, helping shape the pride Davis now pours back into the program as the Bees’ head cheer coach.
Davis started cheerleading in her freshman year at Upperman High School. Davis’ aunts and uncles went to school at Upperman, alongside Stephanie’s brother, sister, and mom. Davis played basketball beginning her junior year as well.
“Just being out there myself, seeing how what it was, I wanted to come back and be around that,” Davis said. “I enjoyed being around the kids and enjoyed being around just the school…it’s something about the feel of hometown pride and putting hard work into a school where you’ve grown up, where your family actually went to school at.”
Davis’ time at Upperman was not limited to cheer. She added basketball to her resume during her junior year, an experience that broadened her appreciation for school athletics and teamwork, lessons she now applies daily from the sidelines and the classroom.
Her coaching journey began unexpectedly. When Davis’ former cheer coach needed help while caring for her mother, Davis stepped in. What started as lending a hand soon turned into a defining role. While still attending college, Davis took over as Upperman’s head cheer coach in 2003, a transition she admits was anything but easy.
“There’s some days I don’t know [how to balance everything,]” Davis said. “I just try my best to balance everything and try to be everywhere.”
At the time, Davis was juggling college classes, cheer practices and occasional lifeguard shifts. The demands quickly added up, pushing her to lean on the same family support system that first connected her to Upperman. Her mother helped her manage responsibilities, and after graduating, Davis’ sister joined in to assist with the program. A year later, her former coach returned, helping Davis settle into the role she still holds more than two decades later.
Today, Davis balances even more, and with greater perspective. She is a full-time teacher at Upperman High School and a mother of two. Her daughter plays basketball and volleyball at Upward Middle School, while her son competes in travel baseball. Davis said motherhood and teaching have strengthened her patience and understanding as a coach.
“[All my students] are so different,” Davis said. “They’re all alike in the same way. They all want to do their best, but it takes a little bit different approach for each of them. They don’t all learn the same way.”
That mindset has shaped the way Davis leads the Bees cheer program. This season, she has worked closely with her team to introduce new drills and expand their experience beyond home competitions. The Bees recently traveled to Lexington, Kentucky, alongside Smoky Mountain, gaining valuable exposure against outside competition.
For Davis, those trips and long practices are about more than routines and results. Davis said they are all about growth, connection and carrying forward a tradition she once lived herself.