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 Ask Rhee Gold
Dance educators seek advice about teaching
issues
Q:
I know you have had a lot of experience in the competition
field and I am hoping that you can help with me with some
advice on how to become a judge. For the past couple of years
I have been sending my resume to many of the national
competitions inquiring about a judging position, yet no one
ever contacts me.
My credentials include dancing on Broadway, on tour, and in
videos with Janet Jackson, Madonna, and others. I have
appeared in soap operas, movies, and almost every other
professional venue out there. Last week I went to observe a
competition and discovered that the judges had very little
professional experience and most of them were from small-town
dance schools with no professional performance credentials.
How do the directors of competitions skip over my experience
in favor of a local dance teacher with no experience? What do
I have to do to get on a judging panel? I would think my
experience would put me at the top of the list, especially
above the rinky-dink dance teacher. Please help. Thanks.
—Gordon
A:
I am so glad you wrote, because I feel like you’re not alone
in your thinking. As a former competition director, I
appreciate the opportunity to express my views on this
subject— although I have a feeling you might not like my
answer.
First and foremost, the professional credentials you have do
not make you a qualified judge for dance competitions. The
most important credential is experience in the classroom,
which gives judges the professional know-how of what it takes
to get a group of 10-year-olds to dance on the same foot on
the same beat in the music. These “rinky-dink” teachers, as
you call them, do understand what it takes to make a group of
children look good because they work with them on a daily
basis, year in and year out. You do not.
In your email you do not mention any experience teaching or
choreographing for children. That’s the professional
experience that these teachers have that you do not. In my
opinion the best judges are those who teach or are studio
owners. You should be proud of your accomplishments, but they
do not make you more qualified to judge a dance competition
than the average dance teacher.
If you really want to be a judge, get rid of the attitude that
you are better than those who are judging now and get yourself
into one of these “rinky-dink” dance studios to see what it
takes to be a professional dance teacher. Try your hand at
choreography for a group of 7-year-olds or beginner teenagers
so that you can sit in a judge’s chair with a true
understanding of what you are watching and what it takes to
make it happen.
I apologize if this response seems harsh, but I have heard
your story many times and I’ve never had the opportunity to
express my feelings on the subject. Add to that the fact that
I am proud of the “rinky-dink” blood that flows through my
veins and I relish the opportunity to defend the thousands of
dance teachers who are working in the trenches every day.
Thank you. —Rhee
Q:
Dear Rhee,
Today I feel like I want to close shop. I just received a call
at home from an irate mom who is questioning the class
placement of her child. It’s the same old story of the mom who
believes that her child is better than everyone else in the
class, but this situation is more than that because this woman
is beginning to scare me.
I asked her to stop calling me at home, and she has called me
three times since then. She always tells me that she is sorry
to bother me at home, but then she goes on a rant for anywhere
from a half-hour to two hours. She cries and cusses me out
every time and today, before she hung up on me, she told me
that I should watch my back because she wasn’t going to take
it anymore.
I can’t take another call or another
rip-the-dance-teacher-apart session. I am confident that her
child is in the right class and I know the child knows that
too. She is always happy in class and I can tell that she is
embarrassed by her mom’s actions. How do I get this to stop?
Do I throw the kid out? And if I do that, will this mom be
lurking in my driveway one morning, ready for a fight or
worse? I think I’m dealing with a very unstable person. Any
ideas for dealing with her would be appreciated. —Gina
A:
Dear Gina,
This is serious and not the typical disgruntled-parent
scenario that so many of us deal with. As far as I am
concerned, you are being harassed and when she told you to
watch your back, she threatened you.
In my opinion, the child and the mom have to go, and that’s
too bad for the child because she has to live with her
unstable mother every day. Before you do anything, you need to
go to your attorney to discuss what has transpired so far. If
I were in your place, I would ask the attorney to contact this
parent to let her know that she and her child are not welcome
at your school and that she should refrain from contacting you
again. If she persists, then it may be time for a restraining
order, which your attorney can help make happen.
In the meantime, you have the power to refuse to listen to
this parent when she calls you at home. Screen your calls or
at the least, when she calls, tell her you’d be happy to
discuss her concerns at the studio and that she should call
the school’s office manager or secretary if she’d like to make
an appointment. Then politely say goodbye and hang up. Another
option is to change your home phone number and do not list it
in the phone book. If she obtains it anyway, then continue to
politely refuse her calls.
It is too bad that there are parents who act like this; I can
only imagine the influence that her actions have on her child.
However, you don’t deserve to be harassed or threatened one
second longer. Go to your attorney right away and get this
behind you. Good luck! —Rhee
Q:
Dear Rhee,
Your magazine is such an inspiration for me and I love to read
about dance teachers who are dealing with the same issues I
am. When I read your advice column, I feel like you are right
on. So I have decided to throw a question your way.
When I was growing up in a dance school, I had a very loving
teacher who had a passion that rubbed off on me. However, I
learned early in my teaching career that my training was not
all that good. Since I opened my school, I make it a point to
learn as much as I can by spending my summers studying in New
York and Los Angeles, training and observing classes in every
style and level that I teach. I know that I’ve become a strong
teacher because of my consistent continuing education and my
desire to learn.
Today my school has seven faculty members from a variety of
backgrounds and experience. Some of them come from the same
kind of training that I did. They all love what they do, but I
know they need more knowledge in order to offer the kind of
dance education that I want for my students. I hear that there
are teacher-training programs out there, but I have never been
to one. Are they something that will help my teachers become
better, and where do I find them? Any information you can
offer is appreciated. —Shelby
A:
Hello Shelby,
I appreciate your drive to learn and be the best teacher you
can be—you should be proud of yourself for taking the
initiative to always improve your knowledge. That’s what makes
a good teacher!
Throughout my dance life, I have been involved in many of the
teacher-training programs, especially those associated with
the dance teacher organizations. Actually, I am a proud
graduate of the Dance Teachers Club of Boston Teacher Training
School, and as a past president of Dance Masters of America, I
was involved in their program at the University of Buffalo.
And there are others that I have been a guest speaker for,
including the Chicago National Association of Dance Masters,
Cecchetti Council of America, and Dance Educators of America,
among others.
I am an advocate for these programs because, for the most
part, they are developed by organizations that represent the
private-sector dance educator. They know the classrooms that
we come from and they understand the knowledge and tools we
need to handle the variety of styles and skill levels that are
unique to the private-sector dance educator. Some programs are
offered over a series of years, concluding with a certificate
of completion. Others are more intense and last a shorter
period of time. Many are now offering post-graduate programs
for teachers who complete the program but still want to
continue their study.
You can find ads for these programs in many of the national
dance publications, including Dance Studio Life at
times, and if you type “dance-teacher training schools” in
your browser, you’ll discover a ton of options. I wish you and
your faculty the best in your pursuit to be the best dance
educators you can be. —Rhee
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