The Adult Class That Refuses To Die. . . .For Now

KeVonte was getting on my nerves during the first half of the youth class at LaFollette.  First of all, the boy showed up several minutes late.  Then KeVonte was bouncing off of the ropes like a pro wrestler.  I caught him jumping into the ring off of the top rope when I happened to look around another time.  "If you want to take a wrestling class, find one, but that's not being taught in here," I snapped.  Dwayne stuck up for KeVonte stating, "He's got some good form."  "Yeah, when he listens," I replied sarcastically.

The younger kids have noticed two things:  that Jaymerson does not spar, and most of the other kids haven't been showing up to class.  "Jaymerson's mom doesn't want him to spar," is the truthful answer to their first question.  "Your guess is as good as mine," was my stock answer to their second question.  Donte and Devonte, the twins, have begun to not show up regularly.  Morgan, Jaymerson's sister, either doesn't come in, or she walks in late, like she did today (she showed up 15 minutes before class was to end).  KeVonte has been missing on and off, too.  Today was the first time in a couple of days that he was in the gym.  Tayjon has basically been a no-show.

As for brothers Kewan and Lamont, the former acts as if he's scared to return to the gym after not doing well in sparring.  Lamont appeared at the door with a basketball in his hand, then went back out.  It's only been two weeks into the fall session, and the same old attendance problems are happening.  The boys' grandma allegedly promised to give Kewan ten dollars if he would come back to the class.  Bribing the boy may get him back in the class for one day, but it's not going to keep him coming back.  Either Kewan wants to be there or he doesn't.  I'm not going to beg him, because I don't have that type of patience with kids.  All I know is that if I was eight years old, talking about not returning to a class, my mother would have whipped my behind.  That would have been my motivation to get back to the class and stay there.  But then, that's how I was raised.

Jahnaja was the only one to show up to the teen class.  Now that I know that Kody plays football for his school, there's no telling when he'll be in.  Maz, who promised to come in this week, has not, and I don't know what's going on with Ariel.

Recently, my supervisor and I were discussing dropping the adult class permanently when no one signed up for that.  Well, guess what?  Scott came in today, and so far, he's the only person in that class.  But then he told me that he's not going to be able to make it in every day.  Every time there is talk of discontinuing the class, someone signs up at the eleventh hour.  But if attendance doesn't pick up, I'm still going to suggest that the class is cut.  I'm at the end of the rope trying to figure out how to make that class attractive to the adult population.  I'm putting in too much effort into something that's just not happening.