Dance Teachers Alliance of Canada

The Dance Teachers Alliance of Canada is pleased to share some extraordinary news.  During a collegial meeting on January 13 with National Ballet School representatives Laurel Toto, Angie Seto and Jeff Melanson, all parties agreed to a cooperative vision for our two organizations.  It will see NBS reduce the Associate Program enrolment by one third over three years while DTAC collaborates to support other NBS activities including their adult classes, the Shoe Room and the Teacher Training Program.  NBS’s commitment to an average annual reduction of 10%, beginning September this year, will result in an enrolment of 350 to 380 students by 2013/14 from about 520 today.

Looking to the future, we agreed that collectively addressing such community issues as exempting dance classes from the HST, coordinating teacher training and simplifying SOCAN fee structures for dance schools is a worthy goal, and one that will strengthen our relationship.

DTAC Board members, Lauren Randolph, Sarah Lockett, Pia Bouman, Gilly Chaplin, Jane Davis-Munro, Martha Hicks, Sean Boutilier and Michael deConinck Smith, and Coordinator, Elizabeth Varty, would like to thank our many supporters for your contribution to this resolution.  We encourage you to continue your involvement as DTAC takes on other important issues.

We also would like to extend our appreciation to Mavis Staines, Laurel Toto, Angie Seto, Jeff Melanson and the Board members of the National Ballet School for their open-minded response to a very difficult issue. This decisive action by one of Canada’s principal arts institutions sets the highest standard for community engagement and reconciliation.

Since our initial meeting in January, we returned to discussions in June with NBS Executive Director, Jeff Melanson, who was joined in a September meeting by former AP Director Laurel Toto and her recent successor, Angie Seto.

We are pleased to report that these meetings were very constructive. Our concerns are being heard, they are taken seriously and they are beginning to be acted upon. NBS leadership has been reassessing its vision for the AP and the enrolment required to support any changes. In the meantime enrolment has been allowed to decrease this year by about 5%, reversing a trend of expansion.

Dtac and NBS have committed to exploring joint programs including teacher training and promoting dance in Toronto schools that are of mutual benefit, and to finding ways to reduce the economic impact of enrolment reductions.  We are particularly interested in uniting our voice to obtain equity with music lessons’ HST exemption.

We will meet again in January to learn details of plans for the AP and to pursue the potential for cooperative activities.  We welcome your comments.

For 17 years, DTAC has been working to alert the dance community to the threat of an expanded NBS Associates Program, and we thank you for providing the support to help us meet this threat. We represent every kind of dance enterprise, from not-for-profit organizations with charitable status to commercial schools. 2009 was a roller coaster of a year, but as we charge into 2010 it’s apparent that DTAC has emerged stronger than ever.

Already this year we finally achieved our goal of sitting down with Mavis Staines and Jeff Melanson of NBS in January to negotiate face to face rather than through our lawyers. The NBS has agreed to look into where their students are coming from and have committed to working with DTAC to find a solution to the problems faced by the dance community. They have agreed to look seriously at the issues we’ve raised concerning students from DTAC schools joining the NBS recreational program, and are planning further meetings.

Meanwhile we have begun dialogue with NBS’s principal funder, the Department of Canadian Heritage, making our case that their arts policy may be influencing NBS to expand commercial programs in order to increase their budgets and therefore their eligibility for proportionately increased support.

Your support is our strength and we need it now more than ever. Encourage your colleagues to find out more about DTAC by visiting our site. Make your own voice of support louder by becoming an official supporter and adding your name to the list of fellow dance community members here on our website. CLICK HERE to become an official supporter, or email council@dtac.ca. The DTAC Board is busy brainstorming new policies and procedures that will benefit all in the dance community. Your pledge of support will strengthen our campaign and ensure a bright future for community dance.

Dear DTAC Supporter,

We truly appreciate your ongoing support for our cause. Until recently, it was recommended that we not disclose our strategy. We have now begun the next step in our campaign and are happy to update you on our progress over recent months.

The DTAC board has:

• established a powerful supporter group of 435 dance professionals
• approached the NBS executive and board on 4 separate occasions offering to negotiate a settlement
• incorporated and insured our board against legal action
• retained legal counsel relevant to all aspects of our fight
• through the Access to Information Act, applied for and received the documents required by our case
• engaged a media and communications firm that is fully prepared to present our case to the public
• directly contacted government agencies relevant to reviewing the legitimacy of the NBS commercial expansion
• invested thousands of hours of time meeting bi-monthly for the last 2 years (several of our members can also trace their work on this issue back to 1993)
• invested $40,000 of their own money in the cause.

You have made an invaluable contribution to DTAC by publicly announcing your support. Your support is the key to our continuing success. We are currently working on the next step in our campaign and will be asking for your input. Please stay tuned for your chance to add your voice to the chorus of resistance to the NBS recreational program expansion, we will be looking to talk to you soon.

Together we will protect the future of independent dance schools in Canada!

Sincerely,

The DTAC Board

We are happy to report that our supporter list is growing in leaps and bounds! We now have 400 supporters affiliated with more than 125 dance organizations. Our support network extends far beyond our home base in the GTA, reaching both of Canada's coasts and around the world. Welcome to our new supporters from Greece, Italy, Chile, France, Israel, England, Argentina and Mexico!

If you are a Facebook friend but not an official supporter yet, make the jump! We value your support on Facebook, but our website list is where we (and the NBS) truly measure our strength. Adding your name and affiliation to our official supporter list is much like a signature of support on our petition to the NBS, and currently only half of our supporters have signed. Help us in voicing your concern about the NBS recreational program expansion by clicking the 'CONTACT' link above to add your name to our official supporters list.

While you're on the CONTACT page, why not complete our Supporter Survey? It takes only a minute, can be completed anonymously and will help DTAC get to know and serve you a little better. 

Our continued efforts to meet with the NBS board have yet to receive a response. We are working towards a solution and will keep you posted as things unfold. Check the 'UPDATES' page or read our Facebook notes for the latest DTAC news.

We are happy to announce that our supporter base is growing steadily and that our message is being heard worldwide!

DTAC currently has a total of 321 Supporters, dance professionals who are affiliated with over 110 dance schools, companies and organizations in Canada, the U.S. and Europe.

We are proud to have international supporters in Greece, Italy, Chile, France, Israel, England, Argentina.

Help spread the word. Tell your friends and associates about DTAC and encourage them to become a Facebook friend, or visit our website to become an official supporter!

February, 2009

We’ve decided to start the new year off by getting to know our family better and making new friends! The DTAC board is already a diverse group of dance school owners and administrators. Our President is Sean Boutilier, whose Dance Academy has locations in Etobicoke and Mississauga. Vice President Michael deConinck Smith is Co-Artistic Director of Canadian Children’s Dance Theatre. Sarah Lockett, Executive Director of Ontario School of Ballet, is our Secretary and Treasurer. You can click on the BOARD and SUPPORTERS tabs to read about our board members and view our list of supporters. While you’re here, click the CONTACT tab and take a minute to complete our first-ever Supporter Survey, and tell us a little more about you with just 5 easy questions.

We recently invited 14 dance and arts organizations to join us. If you are affiliated with any of them, please put in a good word for us! Visit the DTAC Facebook page to see who they are, and drop us a line about your favourite organization.

We are working hard with our consultants to research our concerns regarding the NBS. We feel that we are making great progress and will keep you informed of what we discover. Stand by for more info coming soon!

In December 2008, talks took place between Dance Ontario and SOCAN at Toronto’s Randolph Academy. It was proposed that teachers be made responsible for paying tariffs on the music they play in their dance classes. In order to benefit from the proposed agreement, dance teachers and schools must be members of a recognized dance organization such as Dance Ontario. Please contact Dance Ontario at contact@danceontario.ca for more information.

January, 2009

2008 Wrap-Up
DTAC has been working hard to prepare for some exciting surprises in 2009 while wrapping up our 2008 projects. Here are some bits and pieces to tie up the last year - we’ll be in touch very soon with details of our plans for the New Year!

Supporter Survey
How do you fit into the colourful mosaic of Canada’s dance community? Help DTAC learn a little more about you by answering just 5 easy questions! Click ‘here’ on our website to participate in our first-ever Supporter Survey.

SOCAN Agreement
In December 2008, talks took place between Dance Ontario and SOCAN at Toronto’s Randolph Academy. It was proposed that teachers be made responsible for paying tariffs on the music they play in their dance classes.

This is a win-win opportunity, and voicing your support is essential! Please visit http://www.danceontario.ca/newsletter/headlinesSOCAN2nd2008.html for more information and to contact Dance Ontario with your response to the proposal.

Best Wishes for 2009!

September 18, 2008

DTAC now has a Facebook group! Please visit the DTAC Board’s page and join the Dance Teachers Alliance of Canada Group

September 17, 2008

In March 2008, NBS administration initiated negotiations with DTAC to schedule a meeting in which we could discuss our respective concerns. Several attempts were made, but none were successful, and in June NBS abruptly broke off discussions and withdrew from negotiations before a meeting could be arranged.

In June DTAC sent a letter to every NBS board member listed on their website. The letter informed them of the current situation and asked them to meet with us to discuss the expansion of their Associates Program. After waiting almost 2 months for a response, on August 26th DTAC reached out once again, this time with a letter to the board chair, Mr. Charles Richards, requesting a meeting or at the very least, a response to confirm the letter was received. As of September 17th, no reply has been received by DTAC.