Introducing THE WAD WAY, three simple principles to guide us as an Academy of Dance Community:

W | Work Hard
Come prepared, stay engaged, listen, and give your best effort.

A | Always Show Respect
Show respect for your teachers, fellow dancers, yourself, and our shared spaces.

D | Dance with Dedication
Dance full out! Bring your energy, personality, confidence, and expression to your movement.

We’ll talk about THE WAD WAY in classes throughout the year and, just as importantly, celebrate when we see it in action! Through our new Academy Shout-Outs, teachers and staff can recognize students who demonstrate these values. Shout-Outs will be displayed at the Academy, and recognized dancers will be entered into periodic prize drawings.

Working Together Around Shared Expectations

We’ve also updated our Academy Policies to make expectations clearer and more consistent for everyone. We ask families to review the full Policies with their dancer so we can start the year on the same page. A few areas we’ll be focusing on together include:

• Classroom Etiquette: Dancers should listen when others are speaking, participate fully, keep their hands to themselves, treat others kindly, respect the studio, and thank their teacher at the end of class.

• Attendance: Consistent attendance supports both individual progress and the class's success as a whole. Dancers are permitted up to six absences per class each season. After six absences, Academy staff will determine whether the dancer needs additional preparation to participate in the Spring Recital. This may include required private lesson(s), scheduled at the family’s expense, to ensure the dancer is comfortable and confident with the choreography and the class can rehearse and perform successfully as a group. If adequate preparation cannot be completed, the dancer may not be able to participate in the recital. No refunds will be issued. Excessive absences may also be considered when determining future class placement.

• Punctuality & Class Participation: Please arrive 5–10 minutes before class and encourage dancers to take care of bathroom and other personal needs beforehand. Arrivals 15+ minutes late will be recorded as tardy, and dancers may be asked to observe when joining late would be unsafe or disruptive. Because regularly leaving the studio can also affect a dancer’s learning and the flow of the class, excessive time or repeated breaks outside of class may be recorded as tardiness. We understand that some dancers may need more frequent breaks for medical, developmental, or other individual needs. Please communicate these needs with the Academy in advance so teachers and staff can appropriately support your dancer without unnecessarily limiting their participation.

• Dress Code: Please view our full dress code here.

Helping Dancers Meet Our Shared Expectations

Learning to be part of a classroom and community is a process, and we know dancers will sometimes need reminders! Our teachers will use the same supportive, progressive approach across the Academy, giving dancers opportunities to reset, make a different choice, and return successfully to class:

Teacher reminder → Teacher warning → Sit and observe for 3 minutes → Conversation with the office → Parent notified → Family and leadership conversation

Most everyday classroom issues should be resolved within the first few steps. The goal is not punishment. It’s to help a dancer understand what’s expected, take responsibility when needed, and get back to doing what they came to WAD to do: dance!

For more serious situations involving safety, bullying or harassment, significant disrespect, property damage, or other major violations of Academy expectations, we may need to skip steps and contact a parent immediately. We will always consider a dancer's age, the circumstances, and the seriousness of the situation in determining the appropriate response.

Above all, we want WAD to be a place where dancers love coming to class. Clear, consistent expectations help teachers spend more time teaching, dancers spend more time dancing, and all of us contribute to a community where students feel safe, supported, challenged, and excited to learn.