As the Texas Highsteppers take the field at halftime, senior lieutenant Nyreah Chatman stands tall on the 45-yard line, beaming with a radiant smile that lights up the entirety of the Tiger Stadium at Grim Park. As her silver and orange uniform glows brightly under the Friday night lights, Chatman captivates the crowd with her seasoned dance moves, but her journey to this moment demanded many years of pure determination, growth, and even rejection.
In January of 2022, the Texas Highstepper team announced that their annual tryout would be held the following month. Due to the fact that dance served as a core component of Chatman’s life, trying out for the team seemed to be a no-brainer.
“Growing up, I remember going to football games and watching [the Highsteppers] perform under the lights, and they looked so sharp, confident, and united,” Chatman said. “Something about the way they lit up the field made me want to be part of that one day, and I wanted to feel that same pride and represent my school the way they did.”
Upon her attendance of the informational meeting in regards to joining the team, Chatman began intently preparing for every aspect of the tryout. When the night of tryouts came, Chatman felt prepared and ready to take on this challenge, but unfortunately, when results came out, she found out she did not make the team.
“It was heartbreaking [when I found out I didn’t make the team],” Chatman said. “At that moment, I felt like all the work I had put in wasn’t enough, and I questioned myself.”
Through her tears and heartache, Chatman made a promise to herself that she would not let this setback determine the entirety of her high school dance career, and she knew that she would try out for the team again the following year.
“The first year, I just focused on knowing the choreography,” Chatman said. “The second year, I took everything more seriously. I practiced consistently, worked on my technique, pushed myself harder in conditioning, and also worked on my confidence.”
Staying true to her promise, Chatman returned to tryouts the following year with a renewed sense of focus and purpose. This time around, her kicks soared above everyone else’s, her smile radiated brightly, and she contributed strengths the team couldn’t afford to miss.
As the tryout season grew closer and closer, Chatman trained harder than she ever trained before. When most dancers went home and got in bed, Chatman continued to work on building her flexibility, skillset, and most importantly, her confidence.
“I didn’t want to give up on something I truly wanted,” Chatman said. “Highsteppers had been my dream for so long, and I wasn’t going to let anything stop me. I wanted to prove to myself that I could overcome setbacks and come back stronger.”
After tryouts in 2023, Chatman went home and waited anxiously for the results. With butterflies in her stomach and a prayer in her heart, she opened the results, and saw her tryout number on the list.
“[When I made the team,] I remember just crying happy tears,” Chatman said. “It felt like all my hard work and perseverance finally paid off, and that was the best feeling in the world”.
From that moment on, Chatman knew that her determination would not end with this success. Instead of being just another face on the team, Chatman wanted to evolve as not only a dancer, but as a person.
During her rookie year on the team, Chatman observed the upperclassmen intently, and took every opportunity to grow her skillset as a dancer, and her leadership skills. Chatman did not just want to dance, she wanted to lead.
“Anytime Nyreah got a correction she would work on it and apply the correction,” Highstepper alumni Jordan Womack said. “She was very teachable and always had a positive attitude. She wanted to be the best version of herself every day she walked through the door.”
After a few short weeks into her rookie year on the drill team, Chatman knew that this team would be her new home, and she continually looked forward to every single practice, performance, and contest. This desire to learn and grow positively impacted not only Chatman, but the entire team. Girls navigated towards Chatman anytime they needed an encouraging word, a reason to keep working hard, or a simple piece of advice.
“Nyreah is a very gentle and supportive leader, which has been extremely helpful to me,” senior captain Meredith McPhaul said. “She is so good at bringing light to any situation and uplifting those around her. ”
By the time Chatman began her second year on the team, her vision grew bigger and more complex. She no longer danced to prove she belonged, she danced with purpose and leadership in her heart. The title of lieutenant felt like a calling rather than a goal, but Chatman knew that earning this position meant more than mastering technique and kicking high. She needed to embody something deeper.
The week of officer tryouts felt quite similar to her first year of tryouts. Many times during the week, Chatman’s emotions felt heavy and she thought giving up would be in her best interest, but then she remembered how far she came. Instead of giving up, she embraced every challenge that the week brought, and handled every obstacle with determination and heart.
“Officer tryout week was such an emotional and stressful experience because every day I felt the pressure of wanting to do my absolute best, and the nerves definitely got to me at times,” Chatman said. “It was exhausting physically and mentally because I knew how much I wanted to be on the officer line. During that week, I learned a lot about pushing through stress, leaning on my family and friends for support, and trusting myself.”
Chatman left the officer tryouts feeling confident in her performance, and she earned a spot as a senior lieutenant for the 2025-2026 team. From that moment, she began brainstorming how she could be the most fruitful leader for the team.
“My biggest goal [as an officer] is to lead by example not just in how I dance, but in how I carry myself,” Chatman said. “I want to leave my team feeling supported and motivated, knowing that they can always count on me to push them but also to cheer them on.”
That said, Chatman does not confine her impact to the dance floor. Many younger members of the team look up to her as not only a leader, but as a big sister figure.
“Nyreah has impacted my rookie year because she is so kind and amazing, ” rookie team member Karleigh Tazlynn said. ”My rookie year has been a little stressful, but Nyreah is always there to [give me] words of inspiration.”
Tazlynn does not seem to be the only team member that feels this way about Chatman. Across the team, members speak incredibly highly of not only Chatman’s leadership skills, but her heart.
“[I really enjoy] working with Nyreah,” junior lieutenant Laney Russ said. “She doesn’t let things get in the way of how amazing she actually is.”
Chatman’s empathy, heart, and kindness drives everything she does, making her a fruitful mentor for the whole team. Instead of letting one setback minimize her dreams, she allowed it to mold her heart and she uses that experience to guide others.
“[Not making the team my first year] taught me resilience and humility,” Chatman said. “[The experience] reminded me that failure doesn’t define you, it’s what you do afterward that does. As a leader, I carry that lesson with me and remind others that setbacks are just stepping stones.”
Due to her own prior experiences, Chatman always takes the time to notice the smallest details about the girls on the team. Chatman strives to be the first person to encourage a struggling dancer, offer a hug or a kind word after a tough practice, and her presence leaves an irreplaceable impact on the team, proving that she doesn’t need to be the loudest in the room to make the biggest impact.
“Nyreah’s most valuable qualities are her kindness and reliability,” McPhaul said. “She is constantly checking in with me and other teammates to see how we are doing and she genuinely listens.”
As the season progresses, Chatman takes in every moment of her time on the team she worked so hard to become a part of. Although she does not currently plan to dance at the collegiate level, she looks forward to seeing what her dance future holds.
“I’m sad [that this is my last year] because this team has been such a big part of my life, but I’m also excited for the future,” Chatman said. “I definitely plan to keep dancing recreationally in college because it’s such an important part of who I am.”
Although Chatman’s physical presence will not be with the team after this season, her impact will continue to motivate and inspire dancers for years to come. Through her radiant empathy and warm presence, Chatman became so much more than a teammate; she became a role model for many girls.
“I look up to Nyreah because she is always focused in class,” Tazlynn said. “She is always doing the right thing, and always has the biggest smile on her face while doing it all.”
