Hello dancers!
It’s October already and a ripe time to talk about what’s been happening behind the scenes at AMC. I’m excited about our work—focusing on why we come together has been a guiding theme for us in 2015. Specifically, we’ve been adapting our governance to favor people over process.
I can already hear your excitement—woo-hoo, Governance! Okay, maybe not. But, here’s why governance is important for AMC: when done well, it provides a sustainable container for transparent, participatory decision-making. That’s it, plain and simple.
And plain and simple is the direction we’re taking it. This summer, dancers, volunteers, room coordinators, and facilitators dialogued around what is working well and what no longer serves us. We brainstormed about how to gather more casually and connect our collective dance experience with community. We listened to your feedback regarding what you like about meetings and what you don’t like. And a plan emerged.governance
Transitioning Toward a Different Kind of Gathering
To bring us more into alignment with what we do—dance together—a Dancers’ Gathering will be held every three months in place of the Dance Leadership Circle meeting. This gathering is part of our governance structure and departs from our usual meeting format. Our hope is to offer a more meaningful, open forum to gather and talk about our experiences as dancers, support each other as a dance community, and just be with one another.
This is an experiment. We don’t know if it will work or what it will look like in the end. You’re invited to keep an open mind as our collective experiment continues to unfold.
Oh, and if governance is your thing, you can read the full transition proposal here.
This Sunday: Gathering Together
This Sunday, we’ll congregate for our Annual Community Meeting. We chose this Sunday because it coincides with our first Dancers’ Gathering. So, it’s really more of an Annual Community Gathering—an opportunity to gather as a community over a light meal in appreciation of each other and the experiences we share. This is intentional; we want to gather in a way that better reflects how we come together every week.
So, I hope you’ll come and share space together this Sunday after second wave for AMC’s 2015 Annual Community Meeting.
See you on the dance floor,
Gregory Bonin
Executive Director
P.S. What do you think? Share your ideas, hopes, and encouragement with .