Active Athletes Network

[ACtenDance]

Interesting email from USA Dance DanceSport VP

CALLING ALL COMPETITIVE DANCERS!
Do you have thoughts about USA Dance?
Opinions about things we do now?
Ideas on how can we might do them better?
Suggestions on what other things can we do?

And, most important -
Do you have 1-2 hours a week to contribute and commit to USA Dance and the willingness to move things forward? If you answered yes to the questions above, we want to hear from you! USA Dance is kicking off the Active Athletes Network, the 'AAN', a select group of active DanceSport athletes of all age groups and dance styles to serve as the voice of all competitors to the leadership of USA Dance and eventually to the International Olympic Committee. The co-chairs, Eugene Katsevman and Borbala Bunnett will lead the group to meet once a month to discuss pertinent topics, have ongoing email conversations, and present suggestions to the DanceSport Council and other USA Dance governing bodies regularly. The first meeting of the AAN is planned to take place at the 2007 Nationals in Kentucky, Louisiana (exact details to be determined).
We are seeking applications from individuals wanting to contribute, and willing to spend 1-2 hours a week brainstorming, providing input, and moving projects forward. If you are interested in being a member of the AAN, please send an email with your:

> Name
> Age
> Competitive background (what style(s) do you compete in, how long have you been
dancing)
> And, a paragraph explaining why you would like to become a member of the AAN

Send this information via email to: aanmemberselection@yahoo.com (aanmemberselection@yahoo.com)

[NielsenE]

so the group aims to meet physically once a month? seems to be a much greater time commitment than the lead in states.....

[Me]

The yahoo address to reply to gives me strong pause. Is this legit? You're sure it's from USA Dance?

[avab]

This is legitimate and from USA Dance, but I think the monthly meetings will be teleconference, not face to face. That makes it less difficult to participate.

[RIdancer82]

The yahoo address to reply to gives me strong pause. Is this legit? You're sure it's from USA Dance?

I also received this email today.... it is legit...

wish I had enough time to commit to it....

[NielsenE]

Do we know where this group came from? Is a "grass roots" efforts or was it endorsed by the DanceSportCouncil? Has the DanceSportCouncil delegated any decision authority to the AAN or is it purely an advisory board?

[RIdancer82]

Don't know....I received the email from Ken Richards, VP of Dancesport for USA Dance. I could email him and ask him, but I'm sure someone else on here will know anyway...

If not, I can always ask Eugene about it tomorrow....

[avab]

This is part of the restructuring of the DanceSport Council, and an effort to make it more informed by and responsive to the competitive membership. The two delegates heading the AAN are voting members of the DanceSport Council.

[Borbala_Bunnett]

Hello All,

Thank you for starting the thread and all the inquiries.

As one of the co-chairs, I can attest that the AAN is totally legit. It is being set up as an avenue for the Dancesport Council to receive input from active competitors across a variety of levels, ages and styles.

We plan to have conference calls once a month, and the frequency may change as we get things moving - in order to get the momentum we need to be productive, we plan to start with frequent communications.

If you have time to commit and ideas to share and execute, we are looking to hear from you...

Thanks -

Borbala

[yaniv]

I cannot commit 1-2 hours a week, but I do have a lot of feedback to give, and have a lot of interest in the direction of DanceSport in USA Dance. Can I still come to the AAN meeting at Nationals, participate in some of the e-mail conversations, or phone conferences?

[Borbala_Bunnett]

Hi Yaniv,

Good to hear that you have thoughts to share and feedback to give. One of the things we are going to figure out at the first meeting (or second) is how to solicit input from competitive dancers outside the AAN. I imagine there will be an open forum where folks can provide feedback. The first meeting will be closed to AAN members only - we need to get the house in order before we can solicit input...

If you'd like to give feedback, feel free to send an email to aanmemberselection@yahoo.com and I'll be sure to share it with the AAN once it is formed.

Thanks!

Borbala

[yaniv]

Hi Yaniv,

Good to hear that you have thoughts to share and feedback to give. One of the things we are going to figure out at the first meeting (or second) is how to solicit input from competitive dancers outside the AAN. I imagine there will be an open forum where folks can provide feedback. The first meeting will be closed to AAN members only - we need to get the house in order before we can solicit input...

If you'd like to give feedback, feel free to send an email to aanmemberselection@yahoo.com and I'll be sure to share it with the AAN once it is formed.

Thanks!

Borbala


I have a suggestion: take good notes from the meeting and post them online on dance-forums (in a new thread for each meeting), so competitive dancers can post their comments to it.

[Borbala_Bunnett]

I have a suggestion: take good notes from the meeting and post them online on dance-forums (in a new thread for each meeting), so competitive dancers can post their comments to it.

Thanks Yaniv - good idea, will propose it to the AAN.

[Borbala_Bunnett]

Hi All,

Just to give you a quick update on how are things going with the AAN... We received over 25 applications to date. Eugene and I (the two co-chairs) are chatting with each of the applicants over the next couple of weeks, and will recommend a core AAN group to the Dancesport Council for approval. The folks we have spoken with thus far are enthusiastic, knowledgeable and looking forward to getting things done - you will be in good hands!

At this point we are a bit short on the youth / adult competitor / latin side of the balance... if you, or someone you know would like to apply, we are looking forward to hearing from you!

If you'd like, please post any ideas you may want to pass the AAN's way here - I'm collecting initial topics to kickstart the discussions. There will be an official 'request for ideas' forthcoming after we get started, this is just for conversation starters...

Thanks - let me know if you have any questions,

Borbala