Minutes from 12-18-03 meeting.

The meeting was called to order at 8:15 PM by Mary Ellen Araujo. There were 21 members present. A motion was made to elect the nominees for new officers as follows:

President Jack Holter

Vice-President Ann Dahn

Secretary Helen Engle

Treasurer Linda Marble

Sergeant-at-Arms Kaci Berry

Voting was done by a show of hands and the motion carried unanimously. The newly elected board will take office January 1, 2004.

It was announced that there would be changes in class instructors. Michael Stephens will teach the Level 1 class, Bob Bowlby will teach the Level 2 class, and Gabriel Chancy will teach the Level 3 class. A new syllabus will be written to insure consistent and progressive class content.

Ann Dahn made a motion to consider changing the name of the Club to include the word Swing rather than Whip. It was seconded by Linda Marble. Michael Stephens gave a brief explanation of the difference between the Whip and West Coast Swing. The question was raised concerning the reason for the change. Is this a trend in the dance community? It was confirmed that the dance is moving in that direction, however we would be the first club in Houston to change the name. It is believed that the word swing in the name would help attract more members. A second question was asked concerning the reason for the change. If Whip has been around for over 50 years, why change the name now? It was answered that we need to keep up with the times. It was also suggested that we call it a Dance club rather than a Swing club. There was much discussion concerning the name change. It was finally passed by a show of hands to consider changing the name. The Board will discuss the name change and bring ideas to the next meeting.

Members were encouraged to bring friends to the classes to experience the new instructors.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:32 PM