Rules

Rules of Discipline (updated 09/2022)

Krakusy Polish Folk Dance Ensemble is the non-for-profit organization to which the subscriptions are voluntary. However, the memebers needs to adapt to meet the following conditions:

Membership

Krakusy is a group founded for interested adults and children who respect for Polish traditions. Membership is considered a privilege. Team goal is to cultivate Polish culture, traditions and to build social and friendly bonds among Polish youth origin or interested in Polish culture. The obligation and the condition are the annual contributions to be collected by the end October, or on the date set at the annual program meeting (eg First Annual Reporting Meeting). The amount of the contributions is specified in the application for the year 2022/23.

Behavior

The dancer is required to follow the basic principles of personal culture. Discipline and learning progress will be respected. The management board has the right to remove or suspend from the activities of a member a person who, by their behavior, clothing or violates generally accepted social norms with its vocabulary. Scores / comments behavior will be used by the Instructor and by designated persons at rehearsals and performances.

Rehearsals

The rehearsals are to take place regularly according to the program for the current year.

• Regular attendance is compulsory. Folk dances require presence both partners in a dance pair. The absence of one of the partners works destructively on the other person, the work of the entire team and creates difficulties for Instructor.
• Krakusy have the right to remove or suspend a member of the Ensemble who will not regularly attend dance rehearsals and performances of the Ensemble. When there is a problem with attending (more than (3) times), Group they must first familiarize themselves with the situation by notifying thereafter Management board that is to make a decision on the penalty / action. After three (3) absences during the year, there will be for each absence also one (1) additional hour of community service has been added. Absence must be reported to the Group and Instructor.
• Excused absences (i.e. other professional competitions / performances / trips members in force in other organizations / schools / to Poland, or sudden health matters) will not be subject to the above regime, provided that will be reported to the Group with two to one week’s notice a rehearsal or two weeks before the show. A maximum of four (4) absences will be allowed for a year.
• Additional tests, apart from the statutory ones, will also not be subject to the above the rules. Every absence must be, however reported to the Group with two (2) to one (1) days notice.
• Punctuality is required. Parents, Instructor and Board require that rehearsals started and ended on time. Trials must start on time for the Instructor to complete his work plan. After three (3) delayed rehearsals during the year for every three (3) subsequent failures one (1) additional hour of community service will also be added.
• The rehearsals are obligatory once a week on the following days and hours (unless the change of day and time will be agreed in the group):Younger Group – Saturday, 2:30-3:30 pm; Middle Group – Friday, 7-9 pm; Older Group – Wednesday, 8-10 pm; and Adult Group rehearsals will be arranged according to the needs of the performance.
• Dancers are required to purchase: black “ballet shoes” or “jazz shoes”, ‘Skirts’ and red ‘Krakusy’ T-shirts (Sweatshirts optional) for girls, and black “ballet shoes” or “jazz shoes”, dark “pants” to knees and blue “Krakusy” T-shirts (Sweatshirts optional) for boys, which will be used during the rehearsals.
• Skirts, pants and Krakusy-branded t-shirts and sweatshirts can be ordered from the Board.
• Please bring drinking water and a small towel for rehearsals.
• Celebrating dancer’s birthday is welcomed by bringing a cake on one of the rehersals.
• All attempts (except those that will happen in exceptional circumstances had to take place in a different area), will take place in the premises of the Polish Parish on Adams Blvd, or in the area of “Szarotka.” The parish priest kindly informs that the gates will be closed at 10:00 in the evening and the area should be abandoned after this hour.
• Absolute maintenance of order during and after rehearsals is required. Parents are required to keep all the practice rooms clean after the rehearsals. Also, one of the parents will be designated to ensure that children behave correctly during the rehearsal. It is also his/her responsibility to make sure that all of them are the rooms used are in good order.

Performances

The performances are organized several times a year according to the Annual Program and attendance is mandatory. The Board has the right to remove, suspend or disagree with a member who does not attend rehearsals regularly and performances.

Outfits / Costumes

• The costumes are the property of Krakusy. Krakusy have costumes from 17 regions Polish ie: Kashubian, Krakowski, Silesian, as well as costumes for Mietlorz, Polish women, Wale-Swing, Klog, Polka Tramblanka, Dances of Old Warsaw and Dances Mexico, in sizes adapted to the repertoire of individual groups dancing.
• The duty of the team is to equip Krakusy members with costumes and accessories. In as all the costumes are very expensive and hard to come by parents and their children are asked for extreme care and attention to costumes, the more that some of them are already in a very bad condition. As established in ‘1968 by laws’ taking care of the costumes is also the responsibility of each team member. Please also inform the Board about the need for repair the outfit or its accessories, if required by the outfit.
• Every year, each member will have their own outfit, fitted and intended only for him, with the name and surname on the cover. A heartfelt thanks goes to the Costume Managers for diligence, effort and dedication in caring for the costumes.
• Costumes for the shows are compulsory and will be issued during rehearsals by the Costumes Supervisor, or by the person designated to help, in “Dragon Jamie” at the Polish Parish on Adams Blvd. for two weeks and one week before the show. Please be on time reporting for pickup and writing (in a notebook in “Dragon’s Lair”, or online as agreed with the Costumes Guardian) costumes. Dancers are also required to wear costumes for the Holy Mass. during the holidays, i.e. for Resurrection, Midnight Mass and Corpus Christi (as listed in the annual program).
• We also ask you to wash and iron only the ‘white’ parts of the outfit, i.e. shirts and petticoats for girls, and shirts for boys (except for costumes white embroidered) and cleaning shoes.
• Accessories, i.e. beads, bows, ribbons, hats and wreaths for girls, shoes, boys hats and belts will be handed out by the Costume Guardian, or a designated help person, just before the band’s performance. Parents girls are asked to purchase a “bag / ziplock bag” for each girl, signed with the name and surname in which the beads will be placed, ribbons and other accessories and ‘jellies’. Every dancer / member should also have a bag / box with extras like eg. safety pins, rubber bands and hairpins, mirror, brush, hairspray. In a situation where the Parent would like to use your own accessories, e.g. beads, please inform the Babysitter about it Costumes at the beginning of the year to avoid any confusion about ownership.
• The girls’ parents are also required to buy black low boots heels, bow, braid (1) and white tights. Bows and shoes can be ordered at the Costumes Babysitter.
• All extras should be returned to the Costume Handler immediately after the performance. Outfits please refer to the Costume Manager, Group or other person appointed to assist, before or during the first rehearsal after the performance. Very please keep this return date. Every member is there responsible for the costume / attire he has in his possession until the performance, from the moment issue until return. The costume is to be returned as issued member / Parent. For lost or damaged costumes or accessories we will ask for a monetary compensation.
• In costumes, it is forbidden to: run to play, sit on the ground (unless allowed in certain situations by the Instructor), eating and drinking (especially Coca Cola / Pepsi).
• After the performances and undressing, members / children are obligated wear a Krakusy branded t-shirt/sweatshirt for maintenance general appearance and advertising of Krakusy.

Krakusy

This year Krakusy are divided into three (3) groups. The division of groups is as follows:

1. Adult Group
2. Older Group – young adults (growth/skills may be the basis for changes to this rule)
3. Middle Group – from 8 years to above (height/skill may be essential to change this rule)
4. Younger Group – from 5 years old to 7-8 years old (growth/skills may be the basis to change this rule)

The list of members of each group is provided in a separate appendix. At the end of the year, in June, the dancers will be assessed by the Instructor. The board will be informed about the classification of all children together with a recommendation as for group membership for the next year. This classification will be finalized by the Instructor together with the Management Board at the end of October.

Recruitment

The record of the new member should be placed in the youngest selected group age, or in special situations, through a decision made by the Instructor together with the Management Board, to another group, taking into account the skills and growth of the new one member and the needs of individual groups. To warm up or to check skills, the Instructor and the Board may also decide to be temporary placing a member in a different group.

Repertoire

• Every year (end of October), Repertoire of Dances and Songs, and “Plan Pracy (Work Plan) ”will be proposed by the Instructor and approved by the Management Board for the current year. The repertoire will consist of Polish folk dances and songs. In special situations, after approval by the Management Board, members / parents, dances other than Polish (jnp. Mexican, Hungarian, USA-swing) can also be included in the repertoire.
• At the same time, the Instructor (ka) will develop a ‘Work Plan’ and the composition of pairs dancing with a rotation plan in all pairs (male and female pairs preferred female, in the absence of dancers, couples are allowed unmixed occurring in mixed costumes) to ensure equal learning opportunities and the opportunity to participate in shows for everyone members in the set repertoire for the current year.
• The schedule of classes and the rotation plan in the dance pairs is up to the decision Instructor (s).
• During the year, the Instructor (s) also has the right to make a decision as to choice of dance patterns, repertoire and dancers for each individual performances, and membership / child affiliation transfers / changes to individual groups after consultation and approval by the Management Board. The responsibility of the Krakusy Board and the Instructor is also to ensure that everyone the member of the dance team had a partner of the opposite sex (requires dances folk).In a situation where it is temporarily impossible, full implementation of the plan rotational will be of particular importance to ensure equal opportunities for all children to participate in performances.

Social work

The functioning and maintenance of Krakusy is possible only thanks to cooperation of the Board with Parents.

• Community Work is compulsory for a minimum of ten (10) hours per year. For each uncompleted hour, the cost is $20.00. List of social work activities for the current year are listed below. On this form, the groups are obliged to make a list of what they have done hours of each member. For the hours to be counted up, see end of specific work, please fill in the form “KRAKUSY-SOCIAL HOURS”, get the signature of the responsible person responsible and forward it to the secretary of group.

Instructor

The Instructor / Choreographer is elected and approved once a year by the Board and hired full-time under the conditions specified in her (his) Contract / Agreement. At the end of the year, the former instructor is required to notify the board willing to renew the agreement. The board and parents are required to make a decision regarding the Instructor for the next year until the end May or early June this year. Where Instruktor / Instruktorka finish their job, the Management Board undertakes to notify the Parents and members of the Team about the choice made, indicating the Instructor (ke) by name for the next year in by the end of June this year.

Meetings

• Reporting Meetings, open to all members and Parents, will be held two (2) times a year according to the program set for the current one year. The presence of the parents is obligatory.
• Board meetings, limited only to members of the board, they will are held every two (2) months. Presence is compulsory.

By completing the application, parents and instructor consent to fulfillment of the terms and conditions of the Krakusy organization.

Krakusy Polish Folk Dance Ensemble is a non-profit organization.

• Contributions ensure financial stability and the source of income for Krakusy parents, income from organized events, performances, and grants from organizations such as PNA (Polish National Alliance), which annually co-finance Krakusy. Annual contributions depend on whether or not you are a member of PNA. Contributions are listed in the application for the current year.

Providing the names of the sponsors who would like to make a donation for Krakusy by parents / members is welcomed and encouraged. Subsidies are ‘tax deductible’.

• Krakusy is not a profit-making institution, it is a charity organization. Income Krakusów are used for the education of folk dances and songs. One of them is intended for organizing meetings with other groups dancing trips, performance trips, training trips in the USA and Poland, trips abroad etc.

Changes to the regulations 

The board has the right to make changes to the regulations, as it turns out it’s necessary.

The board of Krakusy

• The board includes people with experience who have demonstrated in practice their ability to cooperate willingly and in concert, and they are trusted by their parents.
• The Board also has ‘associates’.
• The board of directors is elected for a term of two years under the By-Laws established in 1996.
• Members of ‘associates’ will be selected in free elections and elected every year by parents, members of the board and the Krakusy team, at the first reporting meeting.
• List of board members and associates and its functions / obligations is included in a separate appendix.

More info about the organization

Krakusy Polish Folk Dance Ensemble as an organization that exists since 1956, she is very active and has a lot in its scope of achievements.

Outside of reporting meetings to avoid frequent contacts telephone calls, the information will be provided mainly by e-mail.

Notebook for the costumes

The notebook for the costumes – for entries to collect the costumes / accessories is the property Costumes Caregiver. We kindly ask you to report in person and sign up when collecting the outfit and its extras, which can be found in Dragon’s Den and in the locker room in Szarotka or online.

1. Program for the current year (google Calendar )
2. List of Krakusy Groups (google docs)
3. Management list (google docs)
4. List and hours of the volunteer work form (google docs).