Thread: Tell me about MECDA...

Anybody here a member? Is it worth it? I had never heard of it before, and looked at another dancers page, where she proudly proclaimed her membership :)
I read a little about it, and wonder if it's worth the membership fee of $40...

Originally Posted by harmoney76

Anybody here a member? Is it worth it? I had never heard of it before, and looked at another dancers page, where she proudly proclaimed her membership :)
I read a little about it, and wonder if it's worth the membership fee of $40...

i know how it makes one feel when you see the # of reads, but no reply..i might get shot, so i am keeping this from what happened here in fresno
fresno is the center of the central valley....on the other hand, bakersfield is 2 hours south of here and concidered "socal" to a map maker..but that is where the "central valley " chapter is based.
i was a member untill the situation was denied to be looked at..then there was a voteing thing that happened..i was out fast. i never felt or saw a result of being a member...and the same goes for not being a member. like what i feel about IMED , it NEVER did a damn thing for here !
but it most likely would not work here anyway due to other issues.

Originally Posted by harmoney76

Anybody here a member? Is it worth it? I had never heard of it before, and looked at another dancers page, where she proudly proclaimed her membership :)
I read a little about it, and wonder if it's worth the membership fee of $40...

no, it is not..your $40.00 would be better spent of promoting YOU!

It depends on what you are trying to do. If you are a member and an active part of a chapter, and you want to produce events, then yes, the $40 is worth it. Because you have access to things such as their not-for-profit status and insurance for the event as well as low cost advertising.

The issue currently is that MECDA has gone through a significant shake up and is trying to restructure. I'm not sure how successful they have been at this point, but it may bare watching.

{{{HUGS}}}

I agree with Tahira. MECDA has gone through a lot. But their new President, Blume Bauer, has a great attitude and a lot of great ideas. I'm a member because I get discount on advertising and I want to support them. We are getting a new chapter here in Las Vegas, although I'm not involved in that.

Anyway, I think it depends on your reason for joining.

I read but didn't reply because I don't know the answer any more. I've never been a member, but I used to know more about MECDA. Then a couple of years ago there was a LOT of drama and strife among the leadership, IIRC. I didn't pay close attention, since I wasn't a member, but some of the top leadership left, there were lots of accusations & public airing of laundry.

Since then I hadn't heard anyone even mention the orgainzation, and it's literally been years! If it's still around, I assume it's been through some serious reorganization and might not even resemble the group I used to be semi-familiar with.

So if, like Cory says, it's off-putting to note that lots of people are looking at your thread but no one is answering, it's probably just because lots of us have these dim confusing memories and no answers for you. I was watching to see what people would say because I'm curious how the organization has been rebuilt.

My dream professional association would:

A) Actively promote Middle Eastern Culture and Dance and actively mythbust on a national or worldwide basis

B) Offer a 'professional' level of membership that would offer information and assistance with business-building for dancers & instructors (help with music licensing, getting health & liability insurance, a sharing of 'best practices' regarding marketing, etc)

C) Perhaps offer a 'student' level as well, with an informative newsletter, a network of discounts, and assistance with producing student events.

The main reason I considered MECDA at one time, though, was to be able to use their non-profit status when producing events. It makes a HUGE difference when renting some theaters. That alone could save me hundreds of dollars per year!