Socialsport Dance Club

May 16, 2016Dear [redacted] ,Attending a ballroom competition is a two-part processFirst a student must enroll lessons above and beyond their standard social programThe lessons are used to learn additional steps and choreography [redacted] enrolled and paid for an additional private lessons The majority of the lessons were taught to her and she received the service she contracted forThe second part is to attend the competition for which there is a charge to cover various expenses such as food, ballroom rental, judging and performance fees etcThis is also how instructors get paid for performing with the student [redacted] was not charged this fee as she did not attend.I cannot refund lessons that were already taken and used, [redacted] was given a refund immediately, without delay and in full in the amount of $on the lessons she had remainingIn response to the group lessons, it is clearly indicated on each enrollment that group lessons are free and no charge is attached to them.As far as why [redacted] was asked to voluntarily leave in the interest of all parties is a matter of public recordWithout going into great detail, it's simply a matter of [redacted] harassing her teacher on Social mediaIt falls on me to provide a safe and comfortable environment to exist in for both my staff and studentsIn the years of being in this industry have never been confronted with this situation beforeIt's unfortunate but based on the position [redacted] put me in, I had no recourse but to take the action that I did.Sincerely,James J

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the responseIf no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]
Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because:I did not recieve the service I contracted for which was for a routine *performance*The lessons for a choreographed routine are not taken out of our regular contracted lessonsEverytime a student has to do a routine, regardless of whether they have lessons left or on their contract, they are made to purchase 25 routine lessons *separately* and not allowed to use out of the regular lesson poolIt is a separate purchase that is made specifically for a choreographed routineOf course it is implicit that a performance of that routine is done, unlike other lessons which revolve around technique + choreography, this is pure choreographyThe lessons are completely worthless without actually being able to perform that routineI had also purchased an entire outfit for the performance.As for my "harrassment" of aforementioned instructor: The instructor was getting progressively unprofessional in his conduct with me. I was the one who felt harrassed by him from the disrespectful words/demeanor in which he spoke to me in and out of lessonsHe made comments to me about my personal life during lessons, stared me down and stompped his foot repeated times after he *thought* I messed up a performance, got upset about an issue that he heard *second hand* about from another student and instead of letting me tell him the truth, literally hovered over me to initmidate me and then outright yelled at me because I pointed and a chair and asked him to "please sit down"The last lesson I had with this instructor, I informed him that I started taking lessons with another instructorHe literally stepped on my foot four times after the revelation, with full weight where I teared up from the pain (and I have good tolerance)dance instructors know how to keep their weight off of a student in these kinds of situations, the fact that he didnt indicates it was intentional (and petty!)A few days after this, there were exchanges between Ross and IAlong the way I demanded an apology and posted that on social mediaWhen he deleted that, and ignored everything else I said, I got frustrated and posted the truth about his abusive behaviour and also warned his friend about him (the latter is what Ross did to me as well)I have e-mail exchanges, videos, and people involved in the situation who can corroborate what I have saidIt was shortly after this that I made to leave the studioI was not allowed to even take group lessons which I felt I was owed considering how much I paid ($390/week) because I would create "anomosity"I had gone to Jim and other instructors about Ross's behavior- this was not an unknown factJim chose to blow it off and make excuses for RossHe repeatedly said that we perform well together, so that makes the 10% bad worth the 90% goodThe time period was mostly between october and march, but I did stop lessons for a month or so when I couldn't take ending lessons in tears on a regular basis, and I had told him this was happeningAnyhow when Jim terminated my contract, he told me Ross is here for a long time and he has to do what is right for the studioIt was clearly a business decision to let go of one student rather than lose an instructor who brings a lot of money to the studio, no matter what his character isOther students have complained about Ross's behavior (and if I was completely classless I would share those emails to further prove my case), but as a student told me, won't speak up about it because they'd rather have "Jeckyll than Hyde"Anyhow, there is much more to what is going on there than this (including the infamous "miscounting" of lessons), but the point is that this business is engaged in bad practices and people should be made aware of this before they have to deal with what I have dealt withIf there is any doubt as to my character, I am a well respected physician in the area and you can google me or talk to my peers and patients to see how I behave with peopleAnyone with common sense should have realized that I wouldn't have gone "social media" with my accusations unless there was truth to it, I had nothing to gain from itJim should have realized that too, and likely does, but obviously has more to gain by making me out to be the harassing party rather than his own employeeRegards,
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May 16, 2016Dear [redacted],Attending a ballroom competition is a two-part process. First a student must enroll lessons above and beyond their standard social program. The lessons are used to learn additional steps and choreography. [redacted] enrolled and paid for an additional 25 private lessons....

The majority of the lessons were taught to her and she received the service she contracted for. The second part is to attend the competition for which there is a charge to cover various expenses such as food, ballroom rental, judging and performance fees etc. This is also how instructors get paid for performing with the student. [redacted] was not charged this fee as she did not attend.I cannot refund lessons that were already taken and used, [redacted] was given a refund immediately, without delay and in full in the amount of $972 on the 8 lessons she had remaining. In response to the group lessons, it is clearly indicated on each enrollment that group lessons are free and no charge is attached to them.As far as why [redacted] was asked to voluntarily leave in the interest of all parties is a matter of public record. Without going into great detail, it's simply a matter of [redacted]harassing her teacher on Social media. It falls on me to provide a safe and comfortable environment to exist in for both my staff and students. In the 35 years of being in this industry have never been confronted with this situation before. It's unfortunate but based on the position [redacted] put me in, I had no recourse but to take the action that I did.Sincerely,James J