All-Star What Are You Responsible For When You Leave?

[lolsmileyface_backAGAIN]

If you think gym owners are in it for the money, then you are definitely wrong. Owning a cheer gym isn't a terribly profitable business for most gyms. People do this because they love it. If you don't understand that, then maybe it's YOU that can't read.

and maybe you need an economics class

 

[HaterAide]

Sorry I'm posting 2 times in a row but I wrote my last post without reading anything prior. I always try to compare cheerleading to any other business. I read some previous posts that say gyms make you pay for everything no matter what. That makes no sense to me. Like, if I went to a retail store, I'd pay for what I wanted to buy. Cheerleading is a type of service. If I have a child that I bring to a gym, I'm paying that gym to give me a service. If I pay a lawn care service to come cut my grass each month, and then someone gets me a brand new lawnmower that I can cut my own grass with and I cancel that service, I do not have to continue to pay to get my grass cut. Now if there were a contract in place to continue to get my money if I'm no longer receiving the service, I would pay but I'd never sign anything like that in the first place. There's no way I'm going to pay for something that I don't want or that I am no longer receiving. Now like I said in my previous post, if I was there for it and it was due, I'm going to pay it, but if it's some sort of monthly fee for a place that I'm no longer at why would I still have to pay. Especially if, and this is highly likely in today's economy, I had to stop because of money issues.

 

[nhgurlnh]

In my ideal gym, if an athlete quit at any time during a season, they would be responsible for the fee for that month, the next month, and competition fees that they would have had if they had stayed on the team, and a dropout fee of $100 that goes to boosters. The future competition fees would be for the athlete that replaces them and I wouldn't make that athlete pay for a second team's tuiton. Also, I would only do this all if an athlete quit unexpectedly, was asked to leave because of a behavior problem or missing a comp, ect, but not for injuries or any big changes (family member dies, moving, ect).

Also, when I was in high school, my high school team made us pay for our $200 uniforms during both years, even though I used the same one both years, but then we couldn't keep them. When I didn't come back junior year, the head coach charged my mom's credit card for new uniforms, athletic fee, ect, even though I had said at the end of my sophomore season that I wasn't coming back. I was unjustly charged about $850 dollars in total. My mom freaked when she found out about my coach stealing money, and got a lawyer. She didn't end up suing because my coach payed us back all the money for my freshman and sophomore uniform, and the stuff from my nonexistent junior year. Also, she had to pay back all the cheerleaders that ended up paying for uniforms any year, when we learned later that she had taken all the money because boosters paid for uniforms. It was unbelievable, and she was quickly fired.

 

[hopskipandjump]

If you think gym owners are in it for the money, then you are definitely wrong. Owning a cheer gym isn't a terribly profitable business for most gyms. People do this because they love it. If you don't understand that, then maybe it's YOU that can't read.

can i gazillion shimmy this????

 

[krissycole44]

Our gym has it in this contract that if you leave you will have to pay tuition for the rest of the year. All our travel and entry fee's are 100% paid for by december for the athlete. If you leave after that, you do not get that money back since it goes into the booster club which is a 501c3. That money will then be applied to whoever needs to fill in for the person that left.

one way to look at it is like this, if you sign a contract with a cell phone company you have to pay that money every month, unless you want to pay the early term fee. If you pay rent and your lease isnt up till next year you cant just stop paying it because you moved out...its a gym membership fee.

and on another note, I know a gym that makes their athletes "rent" their uniforms every year at a cost of $250...every year. Some teams have had the same uniforms for 5-6+ years. I think they have more then paid for themselves at this point. ouch.

 

[newcheerdad]

At our gym, we have monthly payment for tuition and a monthly payment for travel/comp fees. If you leave during the year you have to pay for the current month's tuition, and a percentage of future travel/comp fees depending on when you leave. You also forfeit any money in your booster account.

 

[rockymountainthigh]

What happens if someone gets seriously injured and is out for the season? Is the gym really going to make them still pay tuition and comp fees if they can't even practice? What if someone's parent gets relocated for a job and they can't cheer at that program anymore? It seems like the whole "you have to pay all years' fees no matter what" thing just isn't logical at all.

 

[newcheerdad]

What happens if someone gets seriously injured and is out for the season? Is the gym really going to make them still pay tuition and comp fees if they can't even practice? What if someone's parent gets relocated for a job and they can't cheer at that program anymore? It seems like the whole "you have to pay all years' fees no matter what" thing just isn't logical at all.

I can see the argument for tuition. But for competition fees and travel in some cases, that stuff is paid in advance and isn't always refundable. There's no clear-cut answer here - I'd like to think that in the situations you mention above that the gym would work with the individual.

 

[JulieP]

and maybe you need an economics class

Right. Whatevs.

 

[dawgshow]

At our gym, no money paid is refunded, including what is in the booster account. Comp fees are paid throughout the summer, so if you leave before Sept, you only lose what you have already paid. If you leave after September, you get nothing refunded. They may even buy back (a portion) the uniform if it's early enough in the season.

 

[justpeachy]

The reason I ask is I've recently seen a gym's contract which states that all fees for the entire season are owed if you leave at any point.

This is the case at our gym.