A former college cheerleader said she quit the team after her institution mandated that athletes stand during the national anthem.

Her decision comes after Buena Vista University in Storm Lake came under scrutiny following several football players and cheerleaders choosing to kneel during “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

BVU student Alyssa Parker sent an email to her coach Monday, saying that ignoring her personal strong beliefs on social injustice is “problematic.”

“Changing how this campus thinks about social injustice, helping people understand and moving this conversation forward, is the type of thing I want to accomplish before I leave here,” Parker said in the email.

The college’s policy, which was instated in October, required that “student athletes and cheerleaders will stand for the national anthem as a unified team. However, student athletes and cheerleaders will be allowed to kneel before the anthem if they choose.”

BVU President Joshua Merchant said in an email to the student body that the university has been a “microcosm for what is currently happening in our nation,” and that it’s the institution’s responsibility to “deepen the conversation for the better.”

“BVU, nor our student athletes, meant any disrespect for the national anthem or the flag,” Merchant said. “Many of you found the action upsetting, therefore, please accept my sincere apology.”

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