ABOUT TECHNICAL/STANDARDS DEPARTMENT
ROLE
The role of the Technical Faculty is to provide technical direction for the systems and document
integration of various faculties from definition phase through implementation. We strive to
apply significant knowledge of industry trends and developments to improve service to our
members.
IMPLEMENTATION
This department reviews incoming documents; development plans etc. for consistency and
revises as appropriate to meet changing needs and requirements of the various Faculties. It
strives to ensure Faculty documents and goals are in compliance with SADF Articles of
Association. It keeps Board of Directors informed of status of Adjudicators and or other
professional personas, communicates and enforces SADF standards, performs reviews and
mentors Faculty Technical Committees. Keeps stakeholders well informed of technical changes
within the organisation pertaining to technique books and current tempi of dances, dress code
etc.
CURRENT PROJECTS
SCRUTINEERING
Proposals have been developed and presented for the implementation of training courses and
examination of new scrutineers. This will be discussed in the near future with the Head of
Development and the Board of Directors. Hopefully this will lead to a larger pool of qualified
Scrutineers in SA and alleviate the pressure on our current professionals in this area.
EXAMINATIONS
There has been a drive recently by members to qualify themselves in their appropriate styles.
This is a positive sign that dancing is once again on the rise. Professionals who care about their
qualifications, tend to care more about dancing in general as it takes a great deal of personal
effort to complete exams. Candidates need to please familiarise themselves with the correct
procedure to be taken when wishing to do exams, locally and internationally. An SADF exam /
South African qualification recognised by the SADF MUST be completed (by Candidates wishing
to do an exam at the level of Associate), before any International qualification can be
completed. International qualifications completed without a local SADF Exam, will not be
ratified by the SADF.
ADJUDICATION
Due to the SADF drive to incorporate all forms of dance, this department is currently working
on a data base of all existing adjudicators and their current qualifications. Once this is complete,
it will make it easy for any competition organisers to effectively and confidently select their
adjudication panels. This is however a very time consuming process, and care has to be taken to
ascertain the correctly documentation to enable us to publish a fully compliant list of
adjudicators.
PRO/AM SOCIAL DANCING
This department is currently investigating the possibilities of incorporating Medal Test and
Qualification criteria for Pro/Am dancing. We will be working closely with the Social Faculty in
the near future on this.
In conclusion: Although it seems we have a lot on our plate, I am confident that these projects
will be effected timeously and add greatly to the service offering of the SADF
Mark Engelbrecht
Technical/Standards, SADF
