Workshop: July 23-27, 2012, Kittitas
From the Workshop Chair
The holidays are over, and soon you will be receiving the lineup of classes and instructors for the 2012 Kittitas Workshop, which will be held July 23-27, 2012. After reading through all of the evaluations from the 2011 Workshop, I have decided that a few topics need to be clarified for everyone. These are the result of the last 3 years of reading your evaluations, not just from 2011.
Instructors and Classes
I get many requests to add different classes, or to bring in certain instructors. What you may or may not know about that, is that it costs the organization a minimum of $1500 for each class that is added. Beyond that, there are other factors that prevent that from happening. First and foremost is that we CANNOT add more participants because we have completely maxed out the facility. We have no more classroom space available. And even if we did, adding more classes without the capacity to add more people would amount to spending more money without generating any income.
Regarding instructors – when I continue to get strong, positive evaluations about instructors, my tendency is to continue to ask them to teach. We have a very strong tradition of having very fine instructors at our Workshop. That said, I also think it is healthy to rotate instructors occasionally, in order to provide our participants with a variety of teaching styles and personalities. I also will not hesitate to make a change when it is necessary to do so. The feedback you provide on your evaluations is a valuable tool, which I do pay attention to.
Feedback
The goal of the Workshop Committee is to provide you with the best experience possible. We work very hard to that end. We welcome your feedback; but—there are some things that are not helpful. It doesn’t help anyone to say things like “the gym was hot”, or “it was too windy” – things of that nature, which are obviously beyond our control. So, please – keep your feedback relative to things that we can use to improve your Workshop experience.
Often I get evaluations back with no name or instructor on them, so I can’t even count them. It is most helpful if you could take 15 minutes and actually seriously consider your answers carefully – and then write them legibly. When I can’t even read what you’ve written, that is useless as well. For the last few years, a recurring theme is the fact that the chairs are uncomfortable. The Kittitas School District graciously provides us with well over 400 chairs – plus they gather them up and deliver them to us from another building – and pick them up again and deliver them back to where they came from when we are finished. If your chair does not suit you, rather than to complain about it, the best solution is for you to bring your own. What we are provided is what is available to us. Everyone needs to take care of their own health. To expect the district to cater to each individual’s comfort is completely unreasonable.
I’m looking forward to another great Workshop, and hope to see you all in Kittitas! If you have questions or concerns, please call me at 360-427-1703 or e-mail me at wlzfarr@msn.com.
How to Get Priority For Enrollment
What you all need to know before enrollment begins for the 2012 Workshop is that your membership must be renewed by February 28, 2012. There are two factors that will affect your eligibility for your first choice class this year:
- Your membership must be renewed by February 28, 2012. This is a
new development this year due to the fact that many people do not renew
their membership until it’s time to enroll in the Workshop. That creates a
nightmare for me. Now it will be your responsibility to renew your
membership well in advance of Workshop enrollment; then all I need to do
is put you into the Workshop without any other headaches.
- Your enrollment form must be postmarked ON April 2, 2012. The information always reads “cannot be postmarked before the first Monday of April or it will be returned.” While that is true, if it is not postmarked ON that first Monday of April, you lose that priority status for consideration of your first choice class, and will only be placed there if space is still available after those whose enrollment forms were postmarked on the first Monday have been assigned. Every year I have to return several forms because they were mailed prior to the first Monday. This rule was put into effect several years ago when there were such a large number of participants, that there needed to be a level playing field for everyone to have a fair chance at getting the class they requested. This year, that date falls on April 2, 2012. If you have any question at all about whether or not your enrollment form will be postmarked on that date, I would strongly suggest that you hand carry it into the post office and watch them date stamp it. Just dropping it into a mail receptacle does not ensure that it will actually be postmarked on that date. You take your chances if you don’t take it inside, and there were a number of folks in that very spot this year…just giving you a heads up about that.d
In addition to these two factors, there are a couple other things that may affect whether or not you get your first choice class.
- If a class that you want is full, and you had that class last year, you will be
assigned to your 2nd choice class. It is always advisable to put a 2nd choice
on your form.
- Priority is given to first time attendees. In an effort to make their experience the very best we can, I feel we need to put them in the class they feel will make them the most successful. All subsequent years, they will then be subject to the same conditions as all other participants.
I apologize in advance if this seems like a lot of “rules." But, as you may imagine, it is no small job to accommodate everyone who wants to be in the Workshop, and in order to make it fair for everyone, it has become necessary to tweak some of the conditions. Thank you for your understanding. I am looking forward to the 2012 Workshop, and to seeing all of you again.
Happy New Year,
Laura Farr, 2012 Workshop Chair
What is the Kittitas Workshop?
Each summer, the Washington Old Time Fiddlers Association sponsors a 5-day Fiddle, Guitar and Mandolin Workshop in Kittitas, Washington, taught by nationally recognized artists. All classes are held in the air-conditioned Kittitas Elementary/Middle School, which is just outside Ellensburg.
People start arriving as early as Friday or Saturday to park their RV's on the grounds of the school. Folks with tents tend to arrive on Sunday and camp either on the edges of the sports fields or on the grassy areas near the buildings. Camping is free on the school grounds - more details about this will be available soon. If camping isn't your thing, there are motels in Ellensburg; motels are not included in the workshop price!
On Monday morning, we kick things off with an all-workshop meeting in the gym. On Friday afternoon, classes end early to make room for a show with each class and each instructor performing a tune.
Workshop attendees sign up for one class that meets either half days (the beginner classes) or full days for the week. Half day classes end at lunch time and full day classes go until 3 pm. There is a mid-morning and a mid-afternoon break in each class with basic snacks provided in the cafeteria. Sometimes candy, pop and other treats are also sold in the cafeteria. Class breaks are staggered so we don't all hit the food at once.
One can sign up to buy meals in the cafeteria, which is run as a fundraiser by and for the rising senior class of Kittitas High School. Or, some folks return to their camps to cook. There's also good eating in Ellensburg and a great breakfast place in Kittitas. Ice is available for a nominal charge in the cafeteria. The school is a walkable two blocks from the Main Street of Kittitas.
Each day, for another hour after the main class, there is a great assortment of mini-workshops offered; people tend to sign up for these when they arrive (instructors like to know how many are coming so they can have adequate handouts). The sign-up sheets are posted outside one of the classrooms. Classes in the past have included, to name a few: bowing, clogging, dance band, Celtic tunes, swing mandolin, finger-style guitar, ukelele, banjo, spoons, dulcimer, Contra dance tunes, two-step, and much more. Click here for a list of the mini-workshops at the 2010 workshop as an example of what it's all about.
Some nights there are square dances with a live caller and a band comprised of anyone who wants to play. On every night, there is jamming galore, both inside the building and all over the school grounds. We hope you join us!
Registration forms and the list of instructors will be posted above in early February, (and will also be in your February Evergreen Fiddler newsletter if you are already a paid member). Be sure to renew your membership before the deadline (stated elsewhere) so that you can be eligible to register when registration opens at the beginning of April. Registrations must be postmarked no earlier than the first Monday in April (April 2nd, 2012). They must be postmarked on April 2, 2012, to get priority for the class that you want this year.
Laura Farr ~~ 2012 Workshop Chair
Email: wlzfarr@msn.com
Updated 1/11/2012