There’s nothing routine about Burnet High School Highlandettes

DANIEL CLIFTON • EDITOR

BURNET — For Burnet High School Highlandettes director Caity Clinton, when someone says they could do that after watching a performance, she takes it as a compliment.

“It means that the girls make it look so easy,” she said. “But it’s really not that easy.”

In fact, the 2016 Highlandettes started back up mid-July to prepare for the upcoming football season, pep rally schedule and contests. It means not just working as the dance team but also as the color guard.

“We’re one of the dance programs that also are the color guard, so that’s just another level of work,” Clinton said.

While many drill teams perform during pep rallies and football game halftimes, the Highlandettes do all that but also add in a routine where they serve as the color guard with the Burnet High School marching band.

All that equates to more time and work practicing as the girls learn each routine along with a few more for when they’re in the football stands. If you’re looking for an “easy” activity, you should probably cross being a member of the Highlandettes off that list.

Clinton, who was a Highlandette when she attended Burnet, knows the program is more than just a dance squad and the girls are more than just dancers. Even though it might sound a bit cliche, the heart of the Highlandettes is that they are a family.

“I think everything for us starts there,” Clinton said. “For us, it’s all about being a family.”

Now being a family definitely has its challenges. It’s never perfect and can sometimes be downright frustrating. But at the end of it all, Clinton said, there’s the strength they get from each other and the bond they develop. Even as the director, she has found times where she’s leaned on the girls and learned from them.

“I think I’ve definitely grown since I’ve been here (as the director),” Clinton said. “And each group of girls is different, so I’ve grown in new ways each year and learned different things.”

As a mother of a young daughter, Clinton said the Highlandettes have helped her become a better, more patient person. Plus, she pointed out, she has a good idea what to expect as her daughter grows into a teenager.

This year’s Highlandettes squad features 24 members — not the largest but still a great group of young ladies. With the first football game approaching, the Highlandettes went to work this summer. Clinton starts from scratch, choreographing the routines. Then Clinton and the Highlandettes start building from there.

But the building that goes into the routines also goes into the larger picture: who the Highlandettes are as a group and their future as individuals.

“Their role is to be leaders in the classroom, leaders in the school, and, yeah, leaders in the community,” Clinton said. “They know that’s what I expect from them.”

The impact of being part of the Highlandettes program extends beyond the class and even graduation. Clinton stresses the importance of setting goals to the girls in dancing and academics but also as something they can use for the rest of their lives. Success as a Highlandette doesn’t necessarily mean how well they performed during halftime or the awards earned during a contest — though those are important — but how well they live their lives after graduation.

“I hope they take with them the high expectations and dedication,” Clinton added. “I hope they take what they learn here and apply it to their future job and career.”

While she loves teaching them dance, Clinton’s role isn’t about creating dancers. It’s about creating young women.

And that, Clinton said, isn’t as easy as it looks.

“It comes back to being a family and giving them a place they can feel comfortable and accepted enough in to grow,” Clinton added.

daniel@thepicayune.com