BACDS American Week: 2020 and Beyond
Hello! After 38 years, BACDS American Week is on hiatus while we take stock of what our community wants. Over the past several years, attendance has been declining and especially this past summer, our enrollment was too low to make camp financially viable. So, we are not programming for Summer 2020. However, we are seeking your input on what you've loved about American Week, what aspects might be changed to make it a stronger draw for dancers and musicians, and--if it is time to allow space for something new to fulfill an evolving interest--what might that event look like?
Recently we tried to uncover and remove some barriers by offering partial-week attendance, a sliding scale camp fee, and gender neutral calling. More significant changes such as time of year, length of camp, location, and/or activity focus might be the necessary change, or perhaps it is simply time to allow something brand new to emerge. We'd like to gather your ideas in the following survey (anonymously, if you wish), and if you are motivated to take more action, we invite you to join a conversation early this fall to brainstorm together what will come next. There's no obligation to commit beyond that, though it will take a team of eager and fervent visionaries to revitalize and breathe life into AmWeek 2021 in whatever shape it takes.
All questions are optional; you do not need to respond to all of them. Section 1 is for general topics (some with short answers), and Section 2 is more about how you prefer to spend your time at camp. (If you attended camp this year and already responded to the AmWeek 2019 Camper Survey, that will suffice as this is based on that form, but you can respond to this "Beyond" survey.) Thanks for your time and effort. Your input is greatly appreciated!
David Buesch and Jen Bamesberger, co-managers 2018 & 2019