My students need a durable (because they are teenagers, after all!), portable (because we travel to performances all over Southern California) speaker. It has to be LOUD!
I read this question and teared up. I don't know how to explain what makes them special. The co-ed dance teams are student run, with my guidance. They share facilities, which often means they practice outside, at the local park, where ever they can, in the heat or cold, without access to power. Even when they are in the school facility, there is no ventilation and as I type this, it's probably about 95 degrees with 80% humidity.
But they don't complain.
They show up early and stay late and are almost always laughing. The program receives no funding from the district or school, so any supplies we have are the result of fundraising. A competition year runs about $30,000 for a team this size. They deserve so much more than we can afford!
My Project
The MMHS Co Ed Dance Team is made up of 64 dancers, on seven competing teams. They travel to ten competitions a year, almost always on an hour plus bus ride. A lot of these days start in the dark hours of the morning and end in the late hours of the night, with up to three different groups rehearsing at the same time. They find space somewhere on campus and do their routine over and over until they perform.
A portable speaker would allow all of the teams the ability to rehearse until the last minute.
It has to be loud to be heard over the dozens of other groups also practicing their routines. It has to be durable, because it gets carried by the team (or me, as director). It also has to be small, because we have to fit 64 kids and their bags on a school bus. We have a smaller JBL speaker that does the job for small groups indoors, but the selected speaker will be ideal for competitions!
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