Another set of eyes

Displaying memorable moments with friends on social media can bring a wave of anxiety. The fear of not being funny or looking good enough can cause a carefully composed Snapchat story to melt into disregarded memories. Add another pair of eyes that carefully monitor every post, and the fear of perfection grows.

For the HighSteppers, this monitoring is their digital reality.

“It makes us more conscious of what we do. If you wouldn’t post it on social media for your director to see, then it’s probably not something you should be doing,” said senior London Edwards, drill team manager. “It kind of keeps everyone in check.”

Drill team receives a helping hand when it comes to molding a good image on social media. The team is being prepared to put their best foot forward for future employers and colleges to see.

“So there’s two main reasons why we started monitoring social media this year,” HighStepper director Amber Reynolds said. “We want to put forth a positive image of HighSteppers and what we represent.  I simply ask the girls to clean up their posts, not use profanity and of course no drugs or alcohol.”

While making sure to uphold the image of the Highsteppers, Reynolds is also trying to ensure success for them in the future.

“I want to protect their futures.  I know of so many girls who were not selected for collegiate dance teams or denied membership to sororities because of poor social media choices, and I would hate for that to be the reason any of my girls aren’t given those opportunities.”

The importance of social media image is growing along with the competitiveness of the national job market. With each post, teens are adding to what their future employer may see.

“I have always been really influenced by my parents to keep my social media clean because it’s something that is always going to be there even if you delete something from offline,” said senior Sarah Stark, HighStepper captain. “Someone can find it in some way and can dig it up anyway.”

The Texas Highsteppers perform at every football game and volunteer at many events throughout the community. The white uniforms the officers wear hold great responsibility and are easily spotted in the eyes of the public.

“Now more than ever, being captain of the drill team, I feel a lot of pressure to be a good influence to people around the school,” Stark said. “I want to be seen on social media and in public as a solid person.”

Many of the girls have a positive response to the monitoring of their pages, and they understand it is out of care that Mrs. Reynolds is doing so.

“My goal is for the girls to realize that what they say and post is not always easy to take back.  What they put out there matters, people see it and yes, it can affect their future,” Reynolds said. “I want them to have a fighting chance at whatever they want out of life, not for them to be rejected because of something they posted in high school.”