The story of Aalto Salsa Society

How it all started

Aalto Salsa Society was officially founded in the summer of 2023, but the real start of this story dates much further back. The first ever class was held nearly 2 years before, on September 20th, 2021. A week prior, I had been dancing swing at a student party when a couple of friends asked me to teach them some moves. I didn’t want to spend the evening giving lessons, so I offered to organize a proper class the following week.

That next week we found ourselves in the lobby of a student appartment building, on a sticky floor that smelled of beer from the beer pong tournament the day before. There were around 15 people that class. Despite the less-than-optimal location, we had a great time, and decided to have another class the next week, and one after that, and one after that... While it was far from a straight line up, slowly but surely that group started getting larger, to the point where we had to split the group into several groups as it was too big to handle. New volunteers offered to become teachers and help organise the classes.

As the classes became more serious and organised, a new question emerged: What happens to all this when we are no longer around to run it? At the time, most of us didn’t know how much longer we would stay in Finland, let manage an organisation long-term. We realised we needed two things:

1. Systematization and documentation: Processes had to be less dependent on individuals and easier to hand off. This included:
   • A clear class structure with content for each level that any teacher could follow.
   • A teacher handbook with tips on teaching and a system for training new teachers.
   • A code of conduct outlining expected behaviour and enforceable rules.
2. A structured way to pass on leadership: We needed a formal mechanism to ensure continuity.

The solution was clear: we had to become an association.

Making it official

On July 6, 2023, Aalto Salsa Society became an official AYY (Aalto University Student Union) association. With a board consisting of 12 nationalities spread amongst the same number of people, we might have been the most diverse founding board. It wasn’t without its challenges: we had to draft our official rules (In Finnish!), apply for a bank account and get used to the formality of it all. Thankfully, we received a lot of support, and I applaud AYY for assisting us along the way and making it possible for us to pursue this.

Now we were an official association, but how did we become the most active one?

Keys to success

While it is hard to pinpoint definitively what exactly made us successful, here’s my best guess:

1. We offer something people want, and we always put that first: Fun salsa and bachata classes with a low barrier to entry. I believe Latin dances are so successful here because they are the perfect antidote to Finnish winters by offering social contact, movement and a summery vibe. On top of that, professional classes are often expensive and out of reach for a student, especially if they’re not even sure yet whether they will like them or not.
   We keep our classes are extremely cheap, nearly free. People suggest we should charge more for the classes, but that’s not our goal. We want the classes to be accessible to everyone. We also teach in monthly cycles, so newcomers never have to wait more than a month to join. While this makes planning harder for teachers, it’s essential for accessibility.
2. We keep it fun and casual: As we grew and became more structured, there was a temptation to become more professional. But we remembered why people come to our classes: to have fun. If someone wants to become a professional dancer, they’ll go to a dance school. We focus on fun, not on perfection.
3. We have amazing people: My fellow board members are incredibly motivated, dedicating countless hours each week to running the association. Our teachers prepare and teach classes for free, every single week. Beyond that, we have countless volunteers helping at events and behind the scenes. Without these people, none of this would be possible.
4. We built strong systems: With AYY’s guidelines, we structured board meetings and kept minutes. We created a training system for new teachers, a handbook detailing class content for each level, and tips from experienced teachers on feedback, classroom management, and more. We systematized a lot of processes so they would function consistently and sustainably, even with teachers and volunteers rotating in and out constantly.