Kristin Gauvin '04 recently returned from performing at Super Bowl XXXVIII and the 2004 Pro Bowl.

Kristin Gauvin Cheers for the Home Team

As the region's sports fans rejoiced over the New England Patriots’ second Super Bowl win in three years, few may have realized one of Assumption’s own was right in the middle of the action. Kristin Gauvin ’04 was down on the field at Reliant Stadium, wearing the red, white, and blue uniform of a Patriots cheerleader. Gauvin, a Management major, has been on the squad for two years, serving as one of three captains during the 2003 season.

“The Super Bowl was overwhelming,” she said. “It’s one of the largest sporting events ever, and it was so exciting to be part of such an amazing thing. Not many girls can say that they cheered for a world champion team.”

Gauvin received a win of her own this season as well. She was named the team’s Cheerleader of the Year in 2003, which enabled her to travel to the Pro Bowl in Honolulu, HI on February 7, 2004 with 24 of the NFL’s best cheerleaders. Her coach and teammates voted almost unanimously for Gauvin to receive this honor. While in Hawaii, Gauvin bonded closely with the other teams' cheerleaders.

“It was hard to leave the other girls,” she said. “We’re making plans to see each other soon.”

Besides cheering and dancing on the sidelines at Foxboro Stadium, Patriots cheerleaders participate in a number of promotional appearances and autograph signings. In November 2003, Kristin and three of her teammates were chosen to travel to Europe as part of a USO tour, “Operation Season’s Greetings.”

The travel sometimes causes Gauvin to miss classes, but with the help of her teachers and advisors, she plans ahead to take her homework assignments on the road.

“I was the only one doing schoolwork at the Pro Bowl,” she laughs.

A longtime dancer, Gauvin didn’t have any traditional cheerleading training before her stint with the Patriots, but 17 years of dance experience proved to be fruitful. She currently teaches dance lessons at a local studio, and helps coach Assumption’s dance team, which she helped establish. She is also a member of the College’s varsity track team during the spring athletics season.

Gauvin is also an experienced pageant competitor in the Miss America system, earning the title of Miss Worcester County in 2003. She also received an academic achievement award at the Miss Massachusetts 2003 competition.

A top student at Assumption, Gauvin is working towards an honors certificate in her major. Her long-term goal is to use her business education to open her own dance studio. In the meantime, she plans to audition for Broadway after graduation.

Although some on campus know her as “the Patriots cheerleader,” Gauvin is quick to dispel that notion.

“I’m not all cheerleading,” she says good-naturedly. “I have so many other interests, and I spend time with my boyfriend, family, and friends—cheerleading doesn’t consume me. I’d rather be known as a dancer.”