GDP Proposal Main Page

SCVSDA General Dance Program

Proposed Standing Rule

The following is draft text to be added to the Standing Rules of the SCVSDA to provide guidelines for the General Dance Program, by defining the responsibilities and authority of the GDP Committee.

The General Dance Program (GDP) Committee shall organize and manage a series of dances intended to serve all dancers in the area who have learned to dance the GDP Level or higher. To accomplish this, the committee shall:
  1. Schedule these dances on an ongoing basis, year-round, at a rate of at least once per month, and to the extent possible
    • on Saturday evenings
    • avoiding conflict with events sponsored by SCVSDA clubs
    • minimizing overlap with other Mainstream, Plus, or newer-dancer dances in or near the SCVSDA geographic area.
  2. Identify and book appropriate halls for these dances, and provide the Insurance Chair with the information needed to obtain insurance certificates.
  3. Select callers for these dances who meet all of the following criteria:
    1. Significant experience calling hoedowns at a similar level (e.g., Mainstream, "newer dancer", "vanilla Plus").
    2. Willing to learn about and commit to making use of the GDP call list and calling guidelines.
    3. Popular among dancers in our area. For the purpose of meeting this criterion, the committee is authorized to select anyone on the most recent list of SCVSDA Top Ten Callers. The committee may make use of other callers with approval of the Board.
  4. Recruit volunteers to manage various aspects of the dances, including dancer check-in, food, solo rotation, decorations, and recognition of new dancers.
  5. Set the prices for these dances. The committee is authorized to establish, on an experimental or ongoing basis, alternative pricing policies, such as discounts or rebates, based on factors such as, but not limited to, youth, membership in an SCVSDA club, first-time attendance, recency of learning, and attendance at multiple dances. The committee shall record and report, for each dance, the number of attendees participating under each of these policies.
  6. Provide as minimum decorations an SCVSDA banner, and invite dancers to bring banners representing their clubs.
  7. Publicize these dances.
  8. Maintain documents defining and explaining the GDP Level, including the GDP call list and calling guidelines.
  9. Monitor use of the GDP Level, through such methods as surveying dancers, consulting with callers/instructors, and compiling statistics regarding usage of calls at GDP dances, and propose modifications as they may appear necessary.
  10. Prepare a budget for upcoming dances and report financial results for dances that have taken place.