MARIETTA, Ga. – The head cheerleading coach of Marietta High School has resigned over an internal investigation into a school trip to Washington, D.C. last month.
Marietta City Schools confirmed Friday that Teisha Fooster, who was a youth apprenticeship coordinator and cheerleading coach, resigned after she was placed on administrative leave while the district launched an internal investigation into an unauthorized cheerleading trip to D.C. to support the football team.
A petition to bring her back, led by Marietta High School students, has more than 600 signatures.
“It’s crazy because Ms. Fooster … all she did was make sure everybody was happy. And to see something like this happen to such a great person like that, it really hurts me,” said Scion Garcia, a junior at Marietta High School. “It’s affecting people and having a major impact. For someone who plays a big role in the school itself and to see them let go like that, it really affects people badly.”
Students told 11Alive that it was not unusual for the cheerleaders to travel with the football team to cheer them on during away games and that the trip was a known event among students and parents. The district said she didn't have permission to take the students to D.C.
“All the parents knew and as far as I know, it was the parents who took them,” said senior Jordan Rollo. “All of the cheerleaders went voluntarily and the parents knew.”
Fooster was an employee of Marietta City Schools for 17 years, according to the district.
Hunter Williamson, a senior at Marietta High, said Fooster was “always willing to help” any student and “worked harder than any employee I had every seen.”
In the petition, students asked school administration to bring her back as soon as possible, because losing her will have “a negative impact on all of us.” The students said they realized there were consequences for some types of behavior, but they would be “so hurt” if they lost an “amazing and influential mentor.”
“We know Ms. Fooster, she wouldn’t just leave. She cheered here, graduated here. She’s true blue,” Williamson said.
