WINNING
WAYS
A Collection Of Success Stories
CALLERLAB
The International Association of Square
Dance Callers
June 16, 2003
467 ForrestAve,
Suite 118 Cocoa, FL 32922 (321)
639-0039 E-mail - CALLERLAB@aol.com On The Web - www.callerlab.org
INTRODUCTION
The CALLERLAB Board of Governors
and the Recruit, Promote, and Retain (RPM) Committee has implemented a plan
whereby the RPM Committee collects "Winning Ways" success stories from
the square dance activity. These stories come from club, associations, dancers,
callers, and others. The RPM Committee would like to hear your recruiting
success stories, no matter how great or small. The purpose is two fold;
1) To share
successful ideas that other callers, clubs, and federations can adopt and/or
adapt to assist in their recruiting; and
2) To recognize
clubs, associations, and federations which have been successful and are growing.
This is NOT a contest. Everyone is a winner. As more dancers are recruited, we will
all have more people to call to and dance with.
We have found that a positive attitude is very helpful in
our efforts to recruit new dancers. Some time ago a major metropolitan
newspaper, reporting on a "fair demo," said the dancers "tried
to make it look like fun" and in an interview one dancer talked about how
much time it took to learn and all the steps they had to learn, but now it was
fun. If you are uncertain as to how to approach people and answer questions,
Mike Seastrom has some positive ideas in the September 2002 issue of American
Square Dance Magazine in the CALLERLAB Viewpoints article.
Now, tell us about your recruiting ideas which have worked
for you. How many new dancers have you gained? Do you use multi- cycle
programs? What has contributed to their success? Does your club offer free
nights, free lesson give aways, recognition to club members for their
recruiting efforts? Do they use flyers, business cards? Do they use newspaper,
radio advertising? There are many clubs, callers, and federations that are
having great success. Do you have any other information you believe to would be
helpful to others? Include your name and/or club with an address, phone number
and an email address for additional follow-up.
In past years a "Promo Pac" with success stories
and recruiting ideas has been available. The RPM Committee is looking at ways
to continue this project and expand on ways of making it available.
You may send these stories to the CALLERLAB Home Office,
467 Forrest Avenue, Suite 118, Cocoa, FL 32922, E-mail - CALLERLAB@aol.com OR
Tom Rudebock, 4551 Grafton Road, Leetonia, OH 44431, or email
rudebts@Sky-Access.com. Your "WINNING WAYS" success stories will be
distributed printed in DIRECTION and other media including the Internet.
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION
Northern California
The Valley Trailers Square Dance
Club ( Northridge, CA
The 49'ers Square Dance Club
(South Milwaukee, WI)
The Sage Swingers (Brunswick, ME)
The Flushing Roadrunners
(Flushing, MI)
The Gnat Boxers (Wooster, OFI)
Dallas/Ft Worth Texas
Youth Group Dancing (Hilton, NY)
The AL e MO Squares (Brooklyn,
NY)
Kittyyhawk Squares (Kettering,
OH)
Square Benders (Milwaukee, WI)
Multi-Cyle Success (Hillsboro NH)
Town Howlers (Portsmouth, RI)
Richmond Dancers (Staten Island,
NY)
Akron Area Square & Round
Federation (Akron, OH)
News From
Northern California
(Walt Cooley)
(April 26, 2002)
One of our members runs a local bed and breakfast, that happens to be an old farm (Victorian farmhouse and a big old barn). At his suggestion, we've started having dances on our regular club night over at his barn about once every 6 weeks, and we invite all three of the local clubs. These have turned into a regular affair. It has become traditional that everyone dresses down a little (more jeans, even some of the ladies), and warmer (the barn is unheated), and folks bring more food. Also, in a newly forming tradition, we always have a Virginia Reel and occasionally a contra in addition to our squares. We get lots of visitors and usually have no trouble filling the barn (pretty easy, since it can only hold around 5-6 squares). This is a very old-fashioned thing-- no entry fee, no minimum dance level, no club membership required, just bring something to share and come to visit and dance.
In April 2002 a group of visiting exchange students from France were planning a beach party but the weather turned too cold, so one of our members invited a few of them to come to our club dance and see square dancing. Word spread among the exchange students, and before we knew what had happened we ended up with over 100 visitors, mostly French, and our club night turned into an unplanned new dancer party. We did squares and line dances, hampered by language and needing to do lots of demonstration-- but very successful. Everyone had such a great time we ran late (nobody wanted to leave).
News From
The Valley Trailers Square Dance Club Northridge,
California
(May 14, 2002)
During the early 1990's, the Valley Trailers
Square Dance Club of Northridge, California had lost much of its membership from
earlier years. The club had also fallen on bad times financially. The then
board of directors decided that something new should be tried in order to
secure the club's future.
It was decided to try the Multi-Cycle new
dancer program to see if this would bring in more revenue and class members. The
President approached caller Vern Weese, who was familiar with the program, to
teach the class and in September of 1994, the Multi-Cycle program was started
using a 12 + 12 system through the plus program. For the first couple of years,
very little improvement was seen in membership, although starting classes four
times each year did increase the overall number of new dancers. In December of
1995, Vern left the area and Mike Seastrom took over as the class instructor.
At about that same time, the Multi-Cycle program started becoming profitable.
However, the level of the dancers graduating at plus after only 24 weeks was
not acceptable.
In May of 1996, the program was changed to a
17 + 17 program. Three classes are started each year, always on the second
Tuesday of January, May and September. Graduations are held on the first
Tuesday of those months. The first 17 weeks the students attend Phase I from 7
PM to 8:30 PM and learn the calls in the basic program and about '/2 of the mainstream
program. At the end of the 17 weeks, those students (if they are ready) move to
the 8:30 PM to 10 PM time slot and enter Phase II which consists of the
remainder of the mainstream calls and all of the plus program. On the same evening
that the above transition is made, a new Phase I class starts at 7 PM. This
means that year around there are two classes simultaneously -- one in Phase I
and the other in Phase II. When the program started in 1994, the club had just
under 150 members. The current membership is just under 300 members.
Financially, the club is now very sound.
The success of this program can be primarily
attributed to the club members. They come 51 weeks a year to angel the new
dancers. The classes sometimes must be cut back a week or two when Tuesday
falls on a major holiday, such as Christmas or New Year's Day. On that 52nd
Tuesday, the class may just go dark or may have a fun dance night, no instruction.
Each of the three graduation nights during the year are also a fun night, with
alternating tips at the Phase I level and plus level. That night also has
special events such as contra and country western dances, in addition to the graduation
exercise.
The benefits of the Multi-Cycle program are
many. Probably the most important is the fact that you start a new program for
each phase three times each year. If you have a new dancer who cannot keep up
with the class, they can be asked to drop out then start over with the new
class - not "next September" but in just a few weeks. If a new dancer
has not. fully grasped the Phase I calls after 17 weeks, they are asked to
repeat Phase I. Likewise, if a dancer upon completing Phase II is not ready to
attend plus dances, they are asked to repeat Phase II. It is surprising how
many dancers voluntarily choose to repeat the phases.
Although many types of recruitment have been
tried throughout the years, word of mouth is still the most effective. By starting
three classes each year, you have three new groups of dancers to recruit for your
next class. You are now^ tapping a new source of potential dancers.
We have also obtained some students through the radio advertising program
conducted by Open Squares Magazine, l-800-fun4all.
Another benefit is financial. You have two
classes attending and paying simultaneously twelve months each year. In the case
of the Valley Trailers, we also have a workshop category of dancers. These are
recent graduates or dancers from other local clubs that want more floor time.
They pay the same as students and will not be removed from a square to make
room for a student unless absolutely necessary. The club's angels dance free
and are removed for students.
Since the inception of the Multi-Cycle
program in September of 1994, the Valley Trailers have started 24 new classes
and graduated 23 classes, one still being in progress as of May 2002. A total
of 832 new dancers have attended at least one class (a high of 77 and a low of
13) and have actually graduated 315 new dancers (a high of 34 and a low of 5).
To bring the students into club dances as
early as possible, the club dance on the third Saturday of each month has alternating
tips - mainstream and plus. When a student goes into Phase II, they are invited
to attend the club dances and dance every other tip. Mike Seastrom contacts the
guest callers each month to let them know where in the mainstream program he
has reached with the Phase II dancers. This agenda has been particularly
beneficial as it allows the new dancers to feel as if they are now part of the
"square dance" world and encourages them to continue after sraduation.
John Nash - E-mail: info@'valley-trailers.org
News from
The 49'ers Square Dance club
South Milwaukee, WI
(January 1,2003)
Hard work and perseverance has
paid off for the 49'ersSquare Dance Club of South Milwaukee, Wisconsin. There
are 24 new dancers in their 2002-03 class. Their promotional efforts started in
1999 after not having any new dancers in 1997 or 1998.
Their promotional efforts are as
follows:
1) Events calendar of the
Milwaukee Journal Sentinal (Circulation 250,000+). The information was
submitted every week so it would run for 5 weeks.
2) Events calendar in 23 local
newspapers owned by the Journal Sentinal. The calendar covers the seven
southern suburbs of Milwaukee. This was submitted every week so it would run
for 5 weeks.
3) On line Calendars :
OnMilwaukee.com and OnWisconsin.com for 5 weeks.
4) The information submitted was:
Beginner Square Dance Lessons; 7-9 PM every Thursday starting September 12;
Grobschmidt Center, 2424 15th Ave., South Milwaukee; couples and
singles of all ages welcome; S3.00: first lesson free; sponsored by the 49'ers
Square Dance Club; for information call (414) xxx-xxxx or (414) xxx-xxxx.
5) Flyers, with an envelope of
free passes, were posted in all the city halls and public libraries of
surrounding communities and several Senior Centers and community Centers.
Flyers were also posted in businesses with public bulletin boards.
6) Demonstration at the Racine
County Fair. Flyers were passed out.
7) McDonalds Place Mats; There
are 9 McDonalds Restaurants in the area that are locally owned. They have a
free service listing local activities. Information was listed on the August and
September place mats. Information had to be submitted at least 6 weeks in
advance.
8) Flyers were distributed door
to door on 2 streets.
9) New graduates and current
members were encouraged to invite friends and co-workers. Approximately 175
flyers an 200 free passes were distributed.
The 49'ers Square Dance Club
starts their new dancer program the second week of September and runs through
early April, with time off during holidays. Mainstream in the destination
program. The club has 85 members.
In January 2003 the club had not
surveyed the new dancers to learn where they found out about their new dancer
session. In pervious years no one activity was prominent.
Congratulations to Rick &
Cheryl Wilke, club presidents and Janet Halfmann & Bernie VanDusen, new
dancer class co- chairs, for their efforts.
(Thanks to Bernie Coulthurst,
editor of the Club Leadership Journal, for the initial contact for this Winning
Ways Success Story.)
News From The
Sage Swingers
Brunswick, ME (January
2, 2003)
In the various square dance
magazines and web sites you can read how square dance clubs and national
organizations have plans for advertising square dancing, for
"improving" our public image, for altering the dance program and for growing
memberships. For the SAGE Swingers in the process began with a change in
philosophy.
What are the club's goals for its
dancers? The Club thinks this can determine how you go about gaining and
keeping new members. The Clubs goals today are different from what they might
have been five and ten years ago. For example, at SAGE Swingers some of our
goals are:
1) To help the club grow by
getting more new members
2) To make sure people are having
a good time learning to dance.
3) Insure that new members
return.
Here are some of
the-"old" goals the club no longer strives for.
1) The Club does not feel people
need to graduate from a Mainstream program by a certain date.
2) Classes do not have to start
in September only.
3) Learning to dance is not a
race to see how quickly you can get to Plus or A-l
4) The Club tends to downplay
classic square dance clothes and make sure people know it's optional
These ideas express themselves
many ways in how the club recruits and how new dancers are treated. The club
does start a class in September, but a class also starts in January.
With the help of club caller,
Bill Fulton and his wife, Norma, SAGE Swingers try to make dancing as low key
and fun as possible. They have recognized in order to keep new dancers
interested there have to be many opportunities for them to dance, and that
means more Mainstream dances. SAGE Swingers has been scheduling more and more
Mainstream dances and we search for Mainstream dances on the schedule for our
club to support. If you want to get and keep new dancers, Mainstream is the
place to be.
The SAGE Swingers tried all the
methods described in a handout they prepared to recruit for the club. No single
one of the methods brought in mobs of people but, taken together, they have
helped them build classes of two and three squares and graduate 39 dancers over
two years. The Fall class of 2002 has witnessed a continuation of the club's
success with 28 additional dancers participating in the first two free
workshops and 18 remaining through October. The additional regular support of
club members has helped us dance with 5 to 8 squares at every workshop this
year.
The handout mentioned above
describes the methods The SAGE Swingers use for the operation of their club.
These methods have worked for them. These handouts are available from the
CALLERLAB Foundation via electronic mail as a .PDF file or via regular mail as
a paper copy to anyone who requests them, please contact the Foundation: Phone
(321) 639-0039; E-mail: FoundationFL@aol.com for more information. A small
donation of $5.00 would be appreciated to help defer postage and handling
costs.
News From The
FLUSHING ROADRUNNERS
FLUSHING, MI
(February 27,
2003)
The Roadrunners of Flushing,
Michigan have partnered with Lifesteps to help recruit new dancers. Lifesteps
is an organization providing health related classes and activities for GM
employees and retirees that worked in the Flint, Michigan area. It is a
negotiated benefit between GM and the local unions. Lifesteps pays for
their members that attend the lessons. Wayne Pelmear, the caller/teacher for
the Roadrunners, sites two advantages for working with Lifesteps. The
first is the people who see the information are looking for health and exercise
classes. The second is that the people do not look at them as being free but
something they earned by working at GM. Lifesteps lists the new dancer
schedule in their quarterly calendar and flyers are put in the union halls.
They also get new dancers from demo's and advertising, but the majority come
from word of mouth.
A couple of years ago the
Roadrunners started using a multi-cycle program and started teaching 3 sets of
classes a year. All three classes are taught the same night for one hour each.
The classes run from 10 to 15 weeks and are divided between basic, mainstream
and plus. The dancers are encouraged not to move on to the next level until
they feel confident where they are. Pelmear states they want everyone to enjoy
dancing and not think it is too hard.
Wayne states another thing about
the way he runs his classes and dances is that the most important thing for
anyone who walks through the door is for them to laugh, have fun, and enjoy
themselves. He teaches the CALLERLAB definitions but does not discourage the
extras some dancers put in. Pelmear states; " I think that some of us have
become more concerned that the dancers do it the proper (our) way than that the
dancers have FUN. I think that this may be the main problem with square dancing
today, people are not having enough FUN."
News From
The GNAT BOXERS
WOOSTER, OH
(February 27, 2003)
The Gnat boxers of Wooster, Ohio
have 22 members in their new dancer group for the 2002 -03 dance year. They
have 4 singles, 2 men and 2 women, and 9 couples that range in age from their
late 30's to early 40's. The destination level is plus with all the calls
taught in one continuous season starting in September to mid April.
This past year they had a story
in the local paper with a picture of two couples with contact names listed. The
club also has a float they use in area parades which gets good audience
reaction.. The club also does demo's for local activities and passes out
flyers, with word of mouth still the best advertisement.
Angel participation is good at
their new dancer sessions with several who attend the new dancer group regularly,
where they are most comfortable, but very seldom attend club dances. All
dancers pay $3.00 per session for their new dancer group with credits given to
angels who attend the regular club dances.
A former club officer stated one
of the club's weaknesses is the support and encouragement of the new dancers to
attend other new dancer dances sponsored by nearby clubs and the area
Federation.
News From
Dallas/Ft. Worth,
TX
(Jim & Ann
Short)
Growth Committee Chairman
(March 13, 2003)
In May 2002, Jim & Ann asked
to chair a "Growth Committee" for the North Texas Square and Round
Dance Association. The primary direction was to try to figure out a way to turn
around the declining membership in the association. They talked with callers
and dancers from all over. They asked what had worked in other parts of the
country. They also asked what hadn't worked. They asked for ideas for might
work. They "stole" ideas from everyone they could find. Their conclusion
was that there were two basic problems: Recruiting and Lesson format.
Most recruiting had been done by
advertising using flyers and placing advertisements or notices in periodicals.
Often a club would put on a square dance demonstration in a mall or at a fair.
Occasionally someone would ask a friend to take lessons. Whatever they has been
doing hasn't worked very well. In the past 20 years the number of square
dancers has decreased by about two thirds.
One of the clubs in their area
tried recruiting dancers one-on-one, face to face. It worked and it worked and
it worked. The conclusion was that square dancers, like eagles, don't flock,
you have to find them one at a time. With this in mind they began to ask clubs
if they could meet with them and talk about recruiting new dancers. They did
not talk about students - they talked about new dancers. They think the new
people need to perceive themselves as dancers from the very beginning.
The plan called for the club to
start about seven months before lessons are scheduled to be held. They start by
appointing a lesson coordinator and setting up a database of prospective new
dancers. Two months before the lessons start the club sends a letter to
everyone in the database, introducing the club, describing the non-square
dancing activities of the club and suggesting to the prospects that getting to
know the club would be fun.
Two months before lessons start
the club sends an invitation to a "party night". A party night takes
on the personality of the club and can be a chili supper or salad supper or
whatever. It is at this time that the prospects meet club members. The purpose
of the party night is to "sell" the club, not square dancing. A month
before the party night the recruiter who made the first contact calls to
confirm the prospects attendance at the party. Two weeks before the party the
club sends another follow-up invitation. Three days before the party the
recruiter calls and offers a ride to the party.
At the party the prospects are
seated with a club member who is selected because they are upbeat and positive
about the club and square dancing. Ideally there are three prospective couples
and one club member couple at each table -just the right number for a square.
This provides for the newcomers to begin to make new friends. After eating and
conversation the caller gets an experienced square up to show square dancing.
Then get the new dancers up and teach them the beginning moves. In fifteen
minutes they are having fun and square dancing. Sign them up for lessons before
they leave.
They found that another of the
problems with the way they had been recruiting was getting people to commit to
taking lessons for 18 to 20 weeks. To overcome this objection we decided to
offer lessons on three consecutive Saturdays.
The sessions began at 9:30 in the
morning and ended at 3:30 in the afternoon. They provided lunch and also
refreshments all day long. They had a different caller each Saturday and they
used the CALLERLAB dance program teaching list. They determined that the
callers could teach 55 to 60 Mainstream calls in the three Saturdays. They also
found that, contrary to every thing they had been told, it does work and
the new dancers can go for six hours. A great majority of new dancers in the
Saturday lessons went to new dancer dances after the 2nd Saturday.
To reinforce the lessons, clubs and callers were asked to hold workshops before
their dances.
Clubs were asked to hold New Dancer dances with calls
limited to the first 40 CALLERLAB Mainstream calls with a workshop before the
dance and no more than one round between tips. The first club to hold a New
Dancer dance in October 2002 had 8 squares and 12 new dancers. In February 2003
a New Dancer dance had 27 squares and 44 new dancers. The New Dancer dances
focus completely on the new dancer dancing every tip - they are the guest of
honor. They should be brought to these dances by the club by whom they were
recruited. If new dancers are sent to New Dancer dances on their own it is a
bit like sending your girlfriend to the prom alone, she will probably go home
with someone besides you. What does this mean? It means cater to your new
dancers, take them to dances because if you don't they are not being stolen, you
are giving them to someone who is paying attention to them. We give the New
Dancers a "New Dancer" dangle so they can be identified and invited
into squares by experienced dancers. When a New Dancer dangle is spotted, the
dancers are asked to introduce themselves and ask if they are having a good
time. The experienced dancers are also asked to tell the new dancers they are glad
to have them at the dance and ask them to join their square? This helps
reinforce the fun and feeling of acceptance for the new dancers. All of these things
have helped the clubs to become more energized by the great attendance of new
dancers, it is a win-win situation. These new dancers are our future in square
dancing
News About
YOUTH GROUP
DANCING
Hilton, NY
(March 13, 2003)
Mike have been working with a
teen group for the past year or so. It started out as a "family dance
group" but has evolved into a "young-middle aged" teen group.
They are lucky to get about 2 squares. The organizing couple has been
frustrated by the fact that the Church Hall that we dance at is not available
regularly and our group sometimes is not allowed to use the hall at the last
minute. Mike suggested that they contact the local Co-operative Extension
Office (4H) to see if they would be interested in sponsoring the teens as a
part of 4H. Not only was the Co-operative Extension Office hugely interested,
they have offered to give the group a hall every Friday night at no charge!! It
will also be publicized in the 4H catalogue as a part of their many programs
for youth. But this is not the end of the story.
In March 2003 one of the local
callers had an ongoing square dance beginners' class. In this class are 4 or 5
"home schooled" youth. Our teen group invited them to come over and
"bring a friend". The brought 10 other youth last night. Six of them
were from a family of 13 kids who are all home schooled!!
This situation resulted in two
"winning ways" stories:
1. The Co-operative Extension
Program in our area is crying for new ideas and ways to attract youth to their
programs. Perhaps those of us who are trying to work with youth square dance
programs should look into this.
The "home school" youth
market is huge with thousands of kids in this area alone. These are the kids
that would be interested in square dancing as they don't have to deal with peer
pressure in their public schools. As far as I know, this market is
"untapped" as far as youth square dancing is concerned, and these are
the type of kids who might enjoy this sort of thing.
Information provided by: Mike
Callahan
News From
The KITTYHAWK
SQUARES
Kettering, OH
(March 23, 2003)
The Kittyhawk Squares are a
social club that square dances and not a square dance club that socializes. We
have an excellent home dance location: The Lathrem Senior Center of the
Kettering Recreational Center. They help recruit and publicize our events in
their bi-monthly news letter.
Our home dances are the 1st,
3rd and 5th Friday monthly. Our club caller, Jason
Raleigh, does 8 to 10 of the dances and our emeritus club caller, Sam Dunn does
about 6. The remaining dates are filled by excellent area callers spiced by a couple
of National callers. We have line dancing between tips. These are taught by
Jeff and Diane Hissong, professional instructors. Caller cost is a secondary
consideration.
We are informal. We want people
to attend. We don't worry much about dress. We do club visitations 6-8 times a month.
Raid dress is optional, we just want people there.
We sponsor several special dances
a year, including a charity event that raised $3700.00 last year. We publish a
bi- monthly 8+ page newsletter that is distributed free to all members and
posted on our web site. Our web site is http://members.tri
pod.com/kittyhawk_squares/
Our club officers and trustees
are elected for 1-2 years. This avoids leadership entrenchment and formation of
cliques. We have 20 or more people involved in a home dance. Those that work a
dance get in free as do the elected officers and trustees.
Our new dancer classes are 30
weeks and are taught by our club caller. Angels dance free at our new dancer
classes. We are very active - about 30 home dances, 80 raids and 30 new dancer
sessions. We give a free home dance pass to each member every time they attend
5 raids. This encourages member participation.
Information furnished by Marvin
Stibich
News From
Square Benders
Milwaukee, WI
(April 24, 2003)
The Square Benders are currently
one of the larger clubs in the Milwaukee, WI area with 22 couples and 13
singles. Their 2002-2003 new dancer group has 5 couples and 5 singles. This
group of new dancers came from several sources. The club runs an ad in the
local paper, beginning in June, with a number to contact for more information.
The names are recorded of all those responding for later follow up. One couple
invited members from their Bible Study Group and another invited people from
their camping club. They lost some this past year due to health reasons, work
schedule conflict and snow birds. Each year approximately 35 invitation letters
are mailed.
The prospective dancers are
invited to a free evening of dance activities in August featuring line dances,
circle dances and basic squares. The idea is to get them dancing and having fun
immediately. At the activity they are encouraged to join the clubs new dancer
session beginning soon.
The camaraderie of lessons, which
develops between the angels and the new dancers, is very important. They usually
have at least 15 angels helping each week. Every 6 weeks is a review and treat
night. Beginning in February the new dancers are invited to attend one club
dance a month free and dance the first 3 tips using only the calls they know.
They are then invited to stay for the rest of the dance to visit and enjoy
refreshments.
Each month a new dancer
newsletter is printed. It covers topics such as; US Square Dance history, dance
apparel and it's history, etiquette and styling, the structure of square
dancing in the state and an introduction to other clubs in the area.
In December all new dancers in
the area are invited to a "New Dancer Dance" which includes a chili
supper. The Square Benders new dancers are encouraged to attend other dances,
sponsored by other callers, for new dancers. All new dancers are encouraged to
return in the fall as angels and bring their friends.
The Square Benders are a
Mainstream Club welcoming both couples and singles. Some of the experienced
dancer women learn the beau part while they angel. Last summer the club had
casual attire with about half still choosing to wear regular square dance
clothing. The club feels it is important to be warm, friendly and welcoming.
Eric Tangman is the club caller/
teacher. Information furnished by Ruth Witt
News From
Hillsboro, NH
Multi-Cycle
Success Story
Milwaukee, WI
(May 5, 2003)
There is some good news for
square dance clubs that want to grow. A solid solution is available to help any
club willing to be smart and progressive. But the club must have people who are
willing to make some fundamental changes in programming and attitudes. The
Multi Cycle system offers two or more starts for new dancers each year. Clubs
using this system reach more people more often. New dancers are tireless,
enthusiastic recruiters and they tap into new networks of friends and
associates not just once, but two or more times per year.
I want to tell about a success
story using the Multi Cycle system with the addition of some enhancements. I
must warn that this is not a quick fix. A solid effort is required initially.
Changes in business procedures and a progressive attitude are a must. Club and
caller must both give up the old way of thinking and be prepared for a new and
interesting experience. It took two or three years for the plan to reach
"critical mass" and become self- feeding in my club.
Recruitment is always necessary
but a group that recruits more than once a year has a distinct advantage.
People who cannot start in September or who must drop out in mid-season can now
join or come back in January or May or whenever the club decides to make new
starts. Thus we can bring them into square dancing or get them started again
before the enthusiasm fades and they find another activity.
Four years ago, I presented the
Multi Cycle plan to three clubs that I was working for. Two of them hired
another caller. One, the Riverside Squares of Danvers, Massachusetts, had
bright, forward thinking people who gave me a raise and decided to put the plan
to use. Riverside was then a healthy club with successful dances and road trips
but was beginning to feel the pinch at class and workshop night. They saw the
writing on the wall. Something had to change because the old system was not
working.
(As a side note, NECCA, the New
England Callers Council used its annual clinic to host Multi Cycle proponents
Mike and Gail Seastrom who presented this concept to all who were interested.
Only one other group, the Sage Swingers of Maine, took the bait and are now
prospering.)
Strong recruitment efforts and
some new advertising efforts yielded a reasonably good group even the first
year. For the next few months we prepared ourselves for our first January start
and our new evening schedule. The first major change was to start calling new
recruits new dancers to reduce the separation between club and class. Teaching
was just a walk thru and lessons became sessions. Learning was disguised as
fun. From the first night, we are all "square dancers". Badges are
given out immediately and inclusion became one of our greatest allies.
Additionally, new dancer sessions were held open longer to give more people
chances to join us.
Hard work and a lot of fun
brought us another group of new dancers for our January start. We treated that
as a second season. At least half of the new group was made up of friends of
the September starters. Our second season also inaugurated our new schedule:
7:00 to 8:00 PM Phase I New
Dancers; 8:00 to 9:00 PM Phase II Dancers; and 9:00 to 9:45 PM Plus Dancers
Phase II dancers picked up right
where we had left off the previous week and were encouraged to be there for the
Phase I sessions for review and support of the newest dancers. At this point we
found ourselves dancing three to five sets on Wednesdays and enthusiasm was
beginning to catch on.
Our first two seasons brought
about new realizations and other changes. The Wednesday club night became more
relaxed and entertaining. I knew, and the club soon realized, that with only
one-hour teaching segments, we could not move people through Plus in one year.
This allowed me to slow down the entire process. I could teach more slowly,
keep the dancing fun, and move away from the previous rush/rush approach. In a
Plus club, this was a tough nut for those traditional thinkers used to doing
business in the same old way. Several of them suggested that I work in a few
Plus calls to get new dancers up to speed. I refused and we moved on.
The first year yielded other
changes. One was the "no graduation" concept. Since we no longer
referred to Basic and Mainstream, "Square Dancing" became the
program. Our September and January Phase I dancers do not finish Basic during
their first season. Nor do the September and January Phase II dancers finish
Mainstream. Instead we have turned the whole process into a continuum, learning
a little each week and dancing as much as possible. The Multi Cycle System also
offers new dancers the opportunity to repeat a program quickly if they are
having problem. As the caller/teacher, I can now recommend to a dancer or a
couple that they repeat a phase rather than move on. No dancers are left behind
this way. We keep more dancers, I have more control over dancing quality and
the result is stronger, happier dancers. Going on to Plus becomes a caller
decision not a dancer decision unless they want to go elsewhere. Troubled
dancers can relax knowing that they will not fall behind or out and that they
can choose a comfort level based on ability or need. Several times I have used
this discretion and I find that it works.
We have learned that many of our
newest dancers have only one night per week to dance. Wednesday is their night
to dance and they rarely dance on weekends even when we mention and encourage
weekend dances. This once-a-week dancing seems to yield more family
involvement. The group now includes children, teenagers, parents and
grandparents. This has been absolutely wonderful and just plain fun.
In December of our second year,
prior to our fourth season we held a New Years Party/Pot Luck and Dance. New
dancers from September and clubbers invited friends and family to join us for
an intro-to-dance night with tips for non dancers and dancers alike. Potential
January Phase I dancers got an opportunity for some fun. Some joined us a few
weeks later and became square dancers.
Seasons three and four (the
second year) we were dancing 4 to 7 sets on Wednesday nights. The excitement
was great and we were growing and happy. September of 2002 began our fifth
season with more new dancers. Eighteen have stayed on for Phase II. January '03
began season six with twenty more dancers for Phase I. We have 6 to 9 sets
dancing at the 7 o'clock hour. There is noise, enthusiasm and dancing and we
could outgrow our hall in a couple of seasons.
In three years the Multi Cycle
Program has taken hold. Riverside Squares is one of the healthiest clubs in
North Eastern Massachusetts. We are achieving real continuous growth. The face
of dancing is changing within the club and, despite the fact that our goal is
still to bring dancers to the Plus level, two more results have emerged: 1.
Some dancers do not wish move on for a variety of reasons, and 2. The Plus
training has been extended and now takes two or three years.
As a caller,
this has been a rewarding, emotional and hardworking experience. I have more control
over the process and we are no longer rushing dancers through the programs. I'm
more relaxed because I am not trying to hurry dancers along to attend a
convention or festival or even to become members of a Plus club. I'm working
harder but having more fun. Enthusiasm is rampant. The Multi Cycle plan is like
a time machine turning back the clock to when we were all square dancers, not
Plus, Advanced or Challenge dancers. We still present a familiar form of dance
but I am not preparing dancers to be siphoned off into upper level programs.
The bottom line is that we are slowing things down without dumbing down the
dance. We are making our activity more available, more often to more people.
With a forecast of growth, not decline on the horizon, I'm one happy camper
with a hall full of dancers.
Chris Pinkham Hillsboro NH.
News From The
TOWN HOWLERS
SQUARE DANCE CLUB
Portsmouth, Rhode
Island
(May 15,
2003)
The Town Howlers have gained a
lot of publicity for their club and square dancing through the use of their
local cable TV company and the efforts of club member Rick Williams.
All cable TV companies are
required to provide FREE PUBLIC ACCESS to community members for training,
studio, equipment and airtime as a requirement of keeping their license to
broadcast. However, a cable TV company may require training before they lend
out portable equipment.
In Rhode Island, once you
broadcast locally for 3 months, you can request broadcast time on an
Interconnect channel that all the cable companies in the state are required to
broadcast simultaneously: A: public, B: religious, C: Government. The Town
Howlers now broadcast their show I WANNA DANCE state wide on Interconnect A and
also on the local cable channels for nearby towns.
Club dances are recorded and then
edited down to a half-hour fast-paced production. The show begins with an
introduction from hosts Lynda and Rick Williams and seg-ways into alternating
square and round dance tips with elements of comedy and closure. Local
benefactors are helping underwrite the shows with charitable contributions.
They see it as a way for additional advertising with their name, location, and
contact number listed in the closing credits. Be sure to check your local cable
company regulations on this.
The Town Howlers dance the second
and forth Fridays from 8 - 10:30 pm in Portsmouth, RI. They have 100 members and
have recently started a new lesson group on Sunday evenings with 12 new dancers
that were a result of the show. Not only has the show helped promote square
dancing area wide, it has also increased their visitor attendance with dancers
hoping to get on the TV show. According to Rick, this shows that dancers,
cuers, and callers are not as shy as some may believe.
For additional information visit
the Town Howlers web site at www.townhowlers.com or Rick Williams at williams@wwpdesign.com
News From
The RICHMOND
DANCERS
Staten Island,
New York
(May 15, 2003)
The Richmond Dancers opened the
club classes to singles this year (2003). We got, a number of single women but
no men. They paired off, flipped coins and one became, "Leading
Lady." The "Leading Ladies" danced with party store leis around their
necks to easily identify them. At graduation they received a bar to put under
their club badge. It says "Leading Lady" They have already attended a
few dances in the NNJSDA area and the badges bring a welcoming smile.
Submitted by:
Barbara Kanter, Class Coordinator
News From The
AKRON AREA SQUARE
And
ROUND DANCE
FEDERATION
Akron, Ohio
(June 8, 2003)
In March 2003 the Akron Area
Square and Round Dance Federation sponsored a Saturday afternoon Leadership
Seminar for all member clubs and clubs from the neighboring Federations. All
area callers and cuers were extended an invitation. There were 96 in
attendance.
Larry Cole, Vice Chairman of
CALLERLAB, was the keynote speaker. In his talk Larry challenged everyone to
have a dream for our clubs and ourselves and develop ideas to fulfill those
dreams. He stressed we must have positive attitudes and search for ways to help
our clubs grow. We must look to the future and make the necessary changes.
Dance fees, caller/cuer fees, dress code, and program content is a few of the
things he suggested need to be revised. Everyone needs to look at the big picture,
think out side the box, and then take the necessary steps to make things
better. Quoting Winston Churchill he said we must never give up.
Following his talk the group was
divided into small discussion groups. Each group was given the same two
questions;
1) What can we do more of, better
or different to recruit new dancers and 2) What can we do more of. better or
different to retain our new and current dancers.
A summary of
answers from question one is: Advertise: laundromats, shopping center windows,
church bulletins, Y's, car windows, beauty shops, libraries,cash register
tapes; Put flyers in grocery bags, Websites; Newspapers, Community Service
Announcements on radio and cable TV; Fairs, School class reunions; Demos at
fairs, church picnics, service clubs, family reunions, and PTA's; Other:
Parades; Adult Education Classes; Offer Free Baby sitting; Use business cards;
Community Fair Booths.
Summary from question 2: Contact
past members; send reminder notes of upcoming events; Newsletter; Take new dancers
to dances; Non dance social events; Greeters before and after dances; Introduce
new dancers to all members;
Theme dances; avoid cliques.
Other comments were: Use the
multi-cycle program: be flexible on raids and retrievals as to number required;
Give out more than one banner to raiders; Recruit 'empty nesters" and
newly weds; hold 50/50 near the end of the dance; Be sure flyers have a
location address and phone contact.
The Fred
Cornell's, the Gene Henderson's and the Tom Rudebock's were the coordinating
committee. Judy LeGlise is the Federation president.