Jester - Settling Rumors with fact

[Eddie]

The flying J.... oh the memories from high school.... and what do you have against the 1980 Bridgemen Drumline

okay, all kidding aside here. It's seems that the folks at both Renegades and Dream are doing a lot to help this group, even if it is just cheering them on at competitions and buying out their souvie stand 3 times over. But that's what you have to do, show these kids who were able to stick it out that that they are making a difference.

It really does look bad to come on and complain about an organization when you yourselve are no longer a part of it, regardless of what your reason was for no longer being a part of it... and especially when there's a kid on here posting that he's having the time of his life, regardless of scores or whatever issues the organization is facing. The workings here are much like politics, so you have to be careful, yes?

There's a corps marching, competing, giving kids an opportunity to travel, and the only ones saying anything negative about it are the ones who quit. But I'm not going against the decission your parents made on not letting you march... stuff like that is never easy. So hey, maybe next year, yeah?

If you want to help, then give your congrats and help do what needs to be done to make next year even better. If you truely feel that this is an organization not capable of fielding a corps safely, then send a letter to Dan Acheson at the DCI offices and explain why.

and yeah, GO JESTER!!!

Edited July 19, 2006 by bari_benzo

[dmarg]

I agree, but how was that productive? They rock, but they shouldn't have to go through all the crap they do. Don't you want to help at all?

And Jester does rock, more than you know since you won't acknowledge the stuff they've had to go through year after year.

[dmarg]

And i posted before I saw the post above me, and it's funny you should mention safety, because another thing the staff told me in an email was that they felt we could not tour safely, adding to the reasons they resigned. Here is one email sent by the staff

Hi Margo. We know what a tricky position you are in as the leader of this group. In answer to your questions:

We do not like the direction this organization is heading. We’ve seen it coming and have been trying to change things for months, but without success. Our requests and concerns have been overlooked and/or pushed aside.

We are not comfortable with the administration of this group. We do not agree with the decisions that are made, for reasons that range from unhelpful to unsafe.

As educators, we feel that we can no longer promote this organization, and that is why we have been driven to withdraw from this group.

As professionals we cannot go into detail because that would not be appropriate, so you’ll need to trust us on this one. We are not telling you what decision to make for yourself regarding the remainder of this year. We have to do what we believe is best, and sadly this is the outcome.

Let us reiterate from before…we love you kids and we believe in you! You are NOT the reason we are leaving; in fact you are all the reasons we’ve stayed and fought for so long. We can no longer be part of this organization because we are not willing to lower our personal standards to work for an administration that does not support us, but we DO admire you all, and we hope to have opportunities to work with you in the future.

Please continue to keep communicating with us. We can still be here for you, even from afar!

Sincerely,

Steve, Lara, and Aaron

And I'm sure it's easy to dismiss my opinion, and ktowns opinion since we are no longer part of the activity, but deciding to believe everything otherktown says isn't safe either. That's not the point here though. The only reason I've said anything is to make the dci public forum aware of things happening in arizona, good or bad, and now I have to leave it up to them to do whatever it is they do, which seems to be not much. I have contacted dci, but I've gotten the runaround a few to many times. I've just about given up the good fight. And it's not like I have anything to gain from any of this, so that's not why I came on here. I fight for the rights of people, that's what I do, and I felt as though I was obligated to share this, since I felt there have been many wrong doings against kids of arizona. Let me say one more time that I support the Jester memebers completely, and am glad that they could go out and show everyone they're still here. I wish I lived in Phoenix, and didn't need half a day of transportation because that would have made the whole thing very different for me. I'm done

[dmarg]

and so as to not leave anything out, here's the original staff letter sent to all the members.

Dear Students,

It is with great sadness that we send this e-mail. Please understand that

the issues stated here are in no way a reflection of your excellence. There

are two significant areas of this organization that have driven us to end

our affiliation with Jester Corps.

It is important that you understand that it is because of your hard work and

dedication that we have prolonged this extremely difficult decision. Our

goal has always been to provide you with an opportunity for success and

quality. We simply do not have enough members yet, and it is unfair to

suggest that a student come in at this late date and be expected to perform

at the high level you have already achieved over the last several months.

We needed to have the minimum DCI numbers at the Memorial Day Camp in order

to have the time necessary to work together and present a quality show that

you could be proud of on June 21. The teaching staff does not think a

quality show can be put on the field with so many new members joining at

this late date. Each and every one of you is an amazing musician and

performer, and you deserve to perform with others who have the same ideals

for high quality.

It is our understanding that the administration plans to continue the season

regardless of the concerns of the teaching staff. An educational

organization cannot be successful if the administration does not support the

teaching staff. After several months of conversations it is clear that the

Jester administration is either unable or unwilling to provide the necessary

support on this and several other key issues. Promises continue to go

unfulfilled and we have done all that we can to jump these hurdles and

provide an appropriate and exciting learning environment. We are not

comfortable with the operations of this organization and therefore cannot

continue to remain involved.

We can't stress enough that these issues do not reflect our feelings about

you. You are all champions to us, and it has been extremely difficult to

make this final decision. We are very sad that we have to leave our

students. You each have a special place in our hearts, and we truly hope to

see you in years to come. No matter what happens for the 2006 season, we

will be with you in spirit, and sincerely wish you great success. It has

been an honor to work with you. We will miss you greatly.

Sincerely,

Steve, Lara, and Aaron

PS - Please contact us via email if you still have unanswered questions.

[Eddie]

wow, you really are out to destroy this group arn't you? If these letters are authentic, then I'm assuming that they were not written for the public to address, but rather for the members it concerns. There has got to be a legal matter regarding this.

Again, if you truely feel that this is an organization not capable of fielding a corps safely, then send a letter to Dan Acheson at the DCI offices and explain why. Posting on a public forum will do you no good and will only bring negative emotions towards yourself.

[Blackstar]

I've been reading this thread for what seems like forever. Every story has two sides and we have heard from both. They are each compelling in thier own right.

Where promises made. Possibly

Where promises broken, Possibly

Staff left for no reason, Unkowen because they didn't explain why they left but I'm sure it affects a newer smaller corps then a larger corps. It shows instablilty.

Are members unhappy, By the one post no they are happier then pigs in slop

Are former emebers unhappy- By the one post they are and I can understand the reasons if they are true.

so what have we gotten from all of this....................NOTHING really. Jesters on the field this year and maybe next. Only time will tell.

[Sayre Kulp]

The theme here is that actions speak louder than words. If you have a dilemma, try to come up with a positive solution and help resolve the problem. Don't add to the negativity. Then you ARE the problem.

GO JESTER!

[dmarg]

That's exactly what I've been saying in the last 5 billion posts. I don't have the understanding to provide ideas or answers, so if anyone could tell me what a corps should do in this situation, please tell me! I would love to know your opinions on what actions should take place, not your opinions about me being curious. I emailed dci, and they gave me no answers besides "talk to the corps director." I tried that, and that doesn't work either. What would make a corps stable and capable of holding staff members? Why did the academy turn out to be such a machine in the same amount of years as Jester? At this point I simply would like to know your opinions. I'm not trying to take down anybody. I just don't have anyone I personally know with drum corps knowledge that I could take this too. I thought you guys would be more receptive but I guess I was wrong. Sorry if I ofended anyone, but that was surely not my intention in bringing this up

[audiodb]

I don't get it. First, they say:

We are not comfortable with the administration of this group. We do not agree with the decisions that are made, for reasons that range from unhelpful to unsafe.

Then they go on to say:

We are not telling you what decision to make for yourself regarding the remainder of this year.

It's unsafe, but go ahead and march anyway? Anyone else finding this message to be unclear?

[musicdesign]

Easy answer! Academy one has great management and also fundraises and goes after sponsors and recruits. So DCI told you to talk to the corps director. Just shows you that DCI is part of the problem also. Keep bugging DCI and have your write also. The only way things at Jester will get better is if the Administration changes how they operate which sounds like they won't. you would be best off finding another corps to march with next year!

That's exactly what I've been saying in the last 5 billion posts. I don't have the understanding to provide ideas or answers, so if anyone could tell me what a corps should do in this situation, please tell me! I would love to know your opinions on what actions should take place, not your opinions about me being curious. I emailed dci, and they gave me no answers besides "talk to the corps director." I tried that, and that doesn't work either. What would make a corps stable and capable of holding staff members? Why did the academy turn out to be such a machine in the same amount of years as Jester? At this point I simply would like to know your opinions. I'm not trying to take down anybody. I just don't have anyone I personally know with drum corps knowledge that I could take this too. I thought you guys would be more receptive but I guess I was wrong. Sorry if I ofended anyone, but that was surely not my intention in bringing this up