I think some of the most important things are openness, honesty, willing to listen to others opinions and also the willingness of those at the top of the class to help those lower down.
I think most classes could learn from the Musto Performance Skiff class in the UK. They ran 6 (yes six) free training sessions at the same time all over the UK for anyone who wanted to attend.
If I ever wanted a single handed 1/2 boat, I would by an MPS !