Team FAQ
Here’s a little more information about our team. If you have any questions that you don’t see answered here, feel free to email any of our officers! You can find their contact information on the Officers page.
Should I join the team?
Team membership is not for everyone, but we definitely welcome you to consider it!
must-haves:
1) you want to be part of a community that likes to dance
2) you plan to practice regularly and want to get better at dance
3) you’re willing to put some effort into helping to make the team run, through volunteering
optional:
4) if you want to compete, like to perform, or want to teach people to dance, our team is a GREAT place for you. But you don’t have to do any of those things if you join.
If you fulfill 1-3 above (and DEFINITELY if you fulfill #4), you should try joining our team! But if you don’t, you can still be involved with our team by taking our group classes and attending our social events. To receive notices about those things, subscribe to our sbdt_announce email list. And like our Facebook Page!
That’s the short answer. For a longer description on all of the benefits and requirements that come with joining the team, please see our description of membership.
Should I join as a Social Member or a Competitive Member?
The short answer:
If you want to compete in dancesport, you should join as a Competitive Member.
If you want to learn to dance and get to know lots of people who like to dance, you should join as a Social Member.
The long answer:
See our membership details.
Do you accept non-students on the team?
We do! Some of our favorite members are non-students. However, we are a Stanford team, and we take that to heart. We want non-students who join the team to be truly dedicated to being part of the community. We especially welcome non-students who have some ballroom experience and may be able help the team by teaching, performing, or generally inspiring new dancers.
There is a bit of extra paperwork that goes with allowing non-students on the team, so we require that non-students apply for membership by a certain date each quarter, whereas students may join at any time. You’ll also find that we give priority to students in some team activities and perks, because we think it’s only fair. We hope you understand!
How do I find a partner?
We’ll be the first to admit that finding a partner can be hard. But joining the team is the best way to start! Once you join, here are steps you should take:
1) Contact our Rookie Coordinator and let her know that you’re looking for a partner. The Rookie Coordinator is our team’s partner match-maker. She can’t guarantee anything, but she’ll try!
2) Post your information on our team-only Partner Search page.
3) Attend group classes, team practice, and team socials. Get to know people! Dance with lots of different partners, and when you meet someone you like, don’t be afraid to ask whether he or she is looking for partner too. Ask friends if they know about anyone who’s looking.
4) If you take private lessons, ask your coach for help. Coaches have connections, and great perspective.
5) Some people try DancePartner.com.
What kind of dances do you do?
We’re fundamentally a competitive team, so we provide classes and coaching in dances that are considered Dancesport styles: International Standard and Latin, and American Smooth and Rhythm. (See our Classes FAQ for a description of the difference). We don’t teach Lindy Hop, Argentine Tango, or West Coast Swing, Blues, and only once in a while do we give classes in Salsa. But a lot of our members do all of those dances for fun! If you want to find out where to learn those dances at Stanford, see our Classes FAQ.
Are you affiliated with the Dance Department? Or the PE Department? Are you a Varsity sport?
None of the above! Stanford Ballroom is a Voluntary Student Organization (VSO). Basically, a club, run by Stanford students.
We use the money we earn from group classes and membership dues to pay for coaching and competition fees. We receive funding from the ASSU, GSC, and The Stanford Fund to run our annual ballroom competition, Cardinal Classic.
For a little more information on how we compare to the PE class and the Dance Division classes, see our Classes FAQ.