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What qualifies you as a member of a corps?


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I ask this question because i was wondering at what point are you a member of a corps and can wear that jacket. Do you consider someone a member of a corps as soon as they get a contract? but what if they get hurt in move-ins and never march a show? Or what if they are an alternate? or what if someone only marches one show? Your thoughts?

Edited by TubaJon
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As a Colt, you don't earn a triangle without marching Finals Week with the corps in most situations.

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Some random stranger once told me that the policy for Scouts wasn't set in stone -- contracts happened in the preceding winter, member jackets happened during the middle of move-ins, nails happened within a week of Champs, and that whether or not someone is your valued brother isn't changed by whether or not he irreversibly injured his knee or had a family crisis.

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**This is my own personal opinion and does not reflect the policies of the corps I marched with**

I have always felt that you are a full fledged member and eligible for alumni status once you have completed a full season with the corps. The obvious exceptions (obvious for me anyway) are having to leave during the season because of illness or a family emergency. Alternates would be included in this IMHO because they participate in the whole season and are ready to step in at a moment's notice.

Since the ultimate goal in every season is DCI and leaving a corps during the summer can cause huge issues with its placement and practice etc, someone who wimps out halfway thru because they just don't want to do it any more or it was more involved than they thought (insert other lame excuse here), I don't believe that the average person is considered a true member with alumni status until they complete DCI finals.

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When you buy a Tshirt from their souvie wagon and make up a good enough story to lie about your experiences. :ph34r:

No way - you have to at least talk to a few members, so when someone asks, you can say "oh yea...i marched with so-and-so"!

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my corps (which i try not to affiliate with on this board while I am still a marching member) has something we get during finals week. when you get that, and are able to wear your member jacket, it is obvious you are a member of the corps. however, i feel there is a shift around late july, where the distinction between rookie and vet has blurred and you are just family. so, i think a member is somebody who makes it to that time, where you no longer feel like a rookie to the staff and veteran members.

it gets harder to define when you have somebody who left because of an injury. they would still be marching if they didn't need to go home, so why shouldn't they be considered a member? and yet, they might not have participated in one show, let alone finals week.

also, those who have left by their own free will (as opposed to illness or injury), to me, are generally not thought of as a part of that family. a few of these people are still my friends, but some of these people I don't talk to because of the fact that they just gave up and walked out.

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I would say if you're one of those people that got a jacket and then left or quit during spring training or early in tour, then you shouldn't wear the jacket. If you get sick or injured and have to drop out then some people might not like you wearing the jacket, but it's up to you. The best thing you can do is to come back to prove that you want to earn the status of "member".

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