[jimwick]

For what it's worth, the idea of going independent can be a good one.

We have always been an independent team because we draw kids from a half-dozen schools.

On the downside it means we have to raise 100% of our funds, find space, and so on. Sometimes this has been a struggle but overall we have succeeded. We have been lucky about space; we share a large workshop at a local college.

On the upside, we have MUCH more independence. We don't need a janitor to be open. We can work on snow days if people can get there. We don't need to answer to a school administration or school board. You can also have homeschoolers, kids from other schools, etc. on the team if you want. Sometimes we have even gotten some $ from some of the schools.

We know of one very successful independent team that has very little core workspace. Every year they are able to find practice space/workspace in the local community for no or little $ in buildings that happen to be vacant for a short time.

So, something to think about. We'd be happy to answer any questions you might have about this.