Portland Swing Dance Club

Here is a summary of the PSDC member survey earlier this year written by our Promotions Director, Susan Eliot. Thanks to everyone who participated in the member survey. We value your input. Thank you Susan Eliot and Monica Gration for organizing and conducting the survey.

Of the 170 current members (as of April 2007), 79 (46%) completed the survey; 33 men, 43 women. 90% are social dancers, and 55% attend dances often.

Most members who responded to the survey think our club dances have a friendly atmosphere, good music, and quality dancers. They also feel well informed about club activities and say PSDC dances are priced right.

Of course, there’s always room for improvement. In the most frequently cited remark on the survey, respondents told us they would like to see more of the advanced dancers and instructors dancing with novice and intermediate level dancers. A typical comment offered was one like this: “Can you get good dancers to mingle with the new ones? We can learn a lot from them, but they’re intimidating.”

At the same time, several members told us they want to improve their dancing with more intermediate level instruction. They want pre-dance lessons consistently provided by highly qualified dance teachers. One member suggested we, “go over the list of instructors used by the club, and re-evaluate whether these folks are keeping their west coast swing up to date by attending conventions and continuing their own training under high level pros.”

Although the music at club dances received high marks, a number of members want more variety. Acknowledging that “this IS a swing club,” someone said, “it would be great to occasionally hear some alternate dance music: Cha Cha, Waltz, East Coast.” Another person requested more Bluesy music; still another recommended “throwing in a few more Night Club Two-Steps.”

Last but not least, members prefer Norse Hall over Sunnyside 2 to 1. Sunnyside is too far out for some people. Others described it as having little or no atmosphere.

On June 9th, the PSDC Board met to review the survey results and propose a plan of action for addressing the memberships’ most pressing concerns. Look for short progress reports in upcoming issues of the newsletter as the Board tackles each of these matters.

Susan Eliot
Director of Promotions
Portland Swing Dance Club