CHILDERSBURG, Ala. – When Vanderbilt traveled to Auburn on Saturday, Sept. 26, there was a familiar face from Childersburg on the sidelines at Jordan-Hare Stadium. Former Childersburg cheerleader Jayla Duncan made the trip back to Alabama as a member of the Vanderbilt cheer team, giving family, friends, and others from back home a chance to watch her cheer in the SEC.
It was actually Duncan’s second time cheering inside Jordan-Hare. Her first came while she was a cheerleader at Samford University.
“This was actually my second time cheering in Jordan-Hare. The first time was as a sophomore at Samford on the Samford cheer team, and now I’ve had the opportunity to return as a Vanderbilt cheerleader,” Duncan said. “Both times, it just felt so surreal.”
This trip to Jordan-Hare was different from her first. This time, Duncan was there as a Vanderbilt cheerleader for an SEC matchup, something she admits she never imagined when she first started cheering in Childersburg. It was also an opportunity to do it close to home, with former high school friends, family members, friends at Auburn and others from the community in attendance. Several reached out before the game to let her know they would be there, and she said it really hit her once the game got underway.
“It almost made me emotional because I couldn’t believe I was standing there in that moment with so many people rooting for me,” Duncan said. “Some of them weren’t even Auburn fans. They came simply because they wanted to see me and support me.”
Duncan grew up watching football with her family, but she remembers paying just as much attention to the cheerleaders on the sidelines. Her own cheerleading career started at Childersburg Middle School. She grew up dancing but had never participated in recreational or all-star cheer before making the school cheer team. She quickly fell in love with it and knew she wanted to continue cheering after high school.
She credits her time at Childersburg with helping prepare her for college cheerleading, especially the influence of coach Jessica Veazey.
“Childersburg cheer definitely gave me the discipline and work ethic that helped take me to the next level,” Duncan said. “I wouldn’t be the athlete I am today without my cheer coach, Jessica Veazey, who really set the tone for what it means to love the sport and take pride in doing your job.”
After graduating from Childersburg, Duncan headed to Samford University, a school she had wanted to attend for years. She cheered all four years for the Bulldogs and served as captain during her senior year. During that time, she had the opportunity to cheer at March Madness twice and experience college athletics on a bigger stage. By the end of her senior year, Duncan said she still felt like she had more to give.
When she began looking at graduate schools, Duncan wanted a strong academic program while also giving herself a chance to keep cheering. Vanderbilt gave her an opportunity to do both.
“I prayed about it and asked God to order my steps, and He did,” Duncan said.
She made the Vanderbilt cheer team and is now pursuing a master’s degree in Community Development and Action with a focus in public policy. She hopes to pursue law after completing her master’s degree.
Cheerleading and school aren’t the only things keeping Duncan busy. She is competing in Miss Alabama this year as Miss Shelby County and continues to run Be The SPARK Foundation, a nonprofit focused on bullying prevention and promoting kindness. Duncan’s passion for the cause comes from her own experience with bullying, and through the foundation she has been able to work with schools and communities across Alabama to provide resources and promote bullying prevention.
She has continued that work throughout college, involving her teammates at Samford and now at Vanderbilt, where her teammates are helping promote anti-bullying efforts in Tennessee. “That’s definitely where my heart is,” Duncan said. “I’m so thankful that I’ve had the platform to advocate for something that means so much to me.”
Even with everything she has been able to do since leaving Childersburg, Duncan is still proud to call the area home. She hopes younger students from Childersburg can see what she has done and know they don’t have to limit what they believe is possible for themselves.
“I want to be a role model for them and remind them that they can do anything they put their minds to, even if they haven’t seen someone else do it before,” Duncan said. “Childersburg gave me such a strong foundation, and I’ll always be grateful for that. No matter where my opportunities take me, representing Childersburg and the 256 will always mean a lot to me.”
