If the budget cut axe falls as planned next year, the Albert Lea High School Dance Team is high kicking its way through one final season.

Tuesday, January 08, 2002

If the budget cut axe falls as planned next year, the Albert Lea High School Dance Team is high kicking its way through one final season. The team is one of the cuts announced at the Dec. 17 school board meeting.

It was a cut that may have been hard to see for some, because it was listed as the elimination of a coach. But without a coach, there will be no team for the more than 23 girls involved.

The day after the cuts were announced was a hard day for all involved – parents, coaches and team members.

&uot;It was a big disappointment for me, and then I dreaded having to tell the girls,&uot; said Charla Kleinbeck, the dance team coach.

But they aren’t giving up just yet. Team members, Kleinbeck, parents and the dance team boosters are trying to come up with a way to keep the team alive, said Becky Boyd, president of the dance team boosters and Kim Danner, a parent of a dance team member.

The mood is one of determination to keep things going. They have had conversations with Ross Williams, district sports and activities director and Heidi Cunningham, community education director. And last night, the Dance Team Boosters spent part of their regular monthly meeting exploring options that would allow the team to continue as a competitive sport at Albert Lea High School.

They know it won’t be easy. Turning the program over to community education or taking it completely private would mean changes. And being a school-sanctioned sport is a requirement for some of the things they want to do, said Williams.

&uot;We would like to still compete, still be a part of the Big Nine,&uot; said Kleinbeck

&uot;But community ed is based on participation, not competition. Merging the two philosophies may be difficult,&uot; added Danner.

Whether the team comes back as a private effort or is offered as a community ed activity, there is no precedent right now that would provide a model for how to structure a team – either locally or statewide, said Danner.

&uot;Ross (Williams) has been very helpful, assisting with cost estimates for the program and briefing us on rules and regulations and the state high school sports league. The key is the team needs to be under the umbrella of District 241 to compete,&uot; said Danner.

Raising money to pay for the program may not be the biggest problem. In the past the dance team has gotten substantial support from the community. Last year alone they raised $8,000 to help pay for new uniforms, said Boyd. She’s hoping they can raise more now.

Behind the planning and discussions, however, there is still uncertainty. Kleinbeck and team members worry about whether the opportunities they’ve had will be gone for others once this year is over.

&uot;Each girl on the team is dedicated to what they do. They give a lot of time to this – six days of practice and competition each week. It teaches them so much and gives those who want to learn more about dance an opportunity to keep getting better at it,&uot; said Kleinbeck, who was a member of the team when she was in high school.

Although there are tryouts and team members are expected to demonstrate continued excellence in order to compete, there is a lot of support and team members treat each other like family, said Kleinbeck. The co-captains carry a lot of responsibility for teaching and leading practices, just as with other sports at the high school.

Kelsey Boyd and Candy Gulbrandson, who are co-captains of this year’s team along with Nikki See-Rockers, worry about the younger girls they know who are active in dance already and were expecting to be a part of the team once they got to high school.

&uot;We want the younger girls to be able to do what are doing, to have the same opportunities we did,&uot; said Boyd.

&uot;We want people to come see us, to see how competitive we’ve become. And most of all we don’t want to put the uniforms back in the bag for good,&uot; said Gulbrandson.