Studio Policies

ENROLLMENT/TUITION:
Welcome to Voice in the Valley Music Studio! We are glad you are here! A student is not enrolled until a student profile is created, tuition payment method has been secured via TeacherZone, and we receive a signed copy of this policy document. Payment is due in advance and must be submitted to Voice in the Valley Music Studio before the first scheduled lesson.

Should you enroll in the middle of the month we are happy to prorate your tuition for the first month of lessons. Tuition is non-refundable and must be paid via electronic automatic payment each month via TeacherZone. Voice in the Valley Music Studio will process payments on the 1st of each month for the following month.

• If a student's payment is not successfully processed, Voice in the Valley Music Studio reserves the right to suspend and/or cancel lessons for the student, which may result in the student's lesson time being assigned to another student.
• Our tuition is based on an annual calendar. Tuition is the same every month—regardless of how many weeks/lessons are in that month. There will be 48-49 total lessons offered throughout the year, depending on the day of the week. Some months may have 3 weeks of lessons, but most are 4-5 lessons per month.
• Payment is required at the beginning of the month, whether students will attend lessons or not. We have a specific lesson time reserved for each student, thus payment must be made regardless of attendance. This includes sickness, holidays, vacations, rehearsals, etc. Should you need to miss a lesson for any reason, we offer two, free, 2-hour Musicianship Masterclasses to any student who has missed a lesson. (Please see our studio calendar for dates)

ANNUAL STUDIO FEE: $50/student 

This fee helps off-set the cost of credit card processes fees, as well as overhead costs of the studio (phone/internet, insurance, TeacherZone, etc.).

• This fee also helps cover the cost of our recitals. We do not charge to attend or participate in our recitals.
• The annual studio fee will be assessed at the beginning of each school year. Should you join from March-August, the studio fee will be discounted at $25.
• We accept Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express auto-processed every month via TeacherZone. We can also process automatic bank drafts through ACH via TeacherZone.

MISSED/CANCELLED/TARDY LESSONS: 
No credits, “banked lessons” or refunds will be issued for missed lessons for any reason. 

• This includes sickness, holidays, vacations, rehearsals, performances, etc. Should you need to miss a lesson from time-to-time, we offer three, 2-hour Musicianship Masterclasses throughout the year in lieu of make up lessons or refunds. (Please see our studio calendar for dates)
• One of the reasons we have high caliber instructors is because we greatly value their time and pay them regardless of student attendance and do not offer "banked lessons" or refunds for student absences. Our business model is structured in a way that gives our teachers a consistent schedule and pay allowing them the ability to budget for their monthly expenses, plan ahead for other gigs, etc.
• If you know in advanced you will be absent, you are welcome to reach out to your instructor or another student to see if you may be able to switch lesson times that week.

In the event that a student anticipates an absence, you may notify the studio any of the following ways:
1) Our online student management system
2) By phone
3) By Email

If a student is tardy to a lesson, he or she will only receive a lesson for the remainder of the time available during their regularly scheduled lesson time.*

*Instructors are required to wait 10 minutes for a 30-minute lesson and 15 minutes for a 60-minute lesson.

Our instructors may need to miss a lesson from time to time. If an instructor needs to miss a lesson and is unable to coordinate a make-up lesson, we will do our best to secure a substitute instructor. If a substitute is acquired, student attendance is required and no refunds will be issued. If we are unable to acquire a substitute and unable to offer a make up lesson a refund will be issued.

ONLINE LESSONS: 

We are proud to offer both online and in-person weekly lessons. Online lessons are conducted via Zoom.

• If an in-person student would like to have a lesson online from time-to-time due to illness or other logistical obligations, we are happy to accommodate only if we receive the request a minimum of 3-hours prior to the in-person lesson. We will do our best to notify the instructor and email all Zoom links in a timely manner, however, switching from an in-person lesson to an online lesson within the same day is not a guarantee.

WITHDRAWING FROM LESSONS:
We require two weeks written notice, when needing to withdraw from lessons.

• This notice must be provided by email to i[email protected]. If two weeks written notice is not provided, a fee equivalent to two weeks tuition will be assessed and applied to your account. Please also remember that Group Voice Class tuition is not refundable.

INCLEMENT WEATHER CLOSURES:
Because the weather can change drastically throughout the day and because our hours are opposite of most school hours, we do not follow the local schools for weather-related closures.

• We make an independent decision regarding whether or not to close in cases where the weather and/or the roads pose a threat to our instructors and students.
• If we need to close the studio due to severe weather or power outages, we will do our best to offer an online lesson whenever possible.

ILLNESS AND EXPOSURE:

• PLEASE DO NOT COME TO YOUR LESSON IF YOU ARE FEELING ILL!
• I​f you or anyone in your household are feeling ill we ask that you please stay home and notify the studio immediately via email or phone call.
  • If symptoms are mild and a lesson is manageable, we are happy to offer an online lesson for 1-2 weeks or until the student/teacher is healthy.
    • Requests for an online lesson must be made a minimum of 3-hours prior to the lesson.
    • We will do our best to notify the instructor and email all Zoom links in a timely manner, however, switching from an in-person lesson to an online lesson within the same day is not a guarantee.
  • For the safety of our teachers and students, if you/your child come to a lesson visibly ill or you have been exposed to a household member who is ill, your instructor reserves the right to cancel the lesson and no refund or make up lesson will be offered.
  • Should your instructor get sick, we will make every effort to secure a substitute teacher.
    • Should a substitute teacher not be available, we will offer a refund or a make up lesson for the teacher absence.
• Please Note: We do not offer refunds or make up lessons for student absences/cancellations. 

Steps to Minimize Sickness: 

Students, parents/caregivers, and instructors agree to take certain precautions which will help keep everyone healthy and safe from exposure to sickness.

• • Students and instructors are encouraged to wash hands or use sanitizer before each lesson.
  • Our instructors will collectively take steps between lessons to ensure a clean and sanitized space for lessons
    • Music stands, chairs, handles, keyboards and any touched surfaces will be wiped down and cleaned frequently

PHOTOS & VIDEO:
From time-to-time, we take photos of our students at recitals, performances, in lessons, etc. for promotional material on our website and social media advertising. If you prefer that we not use your (or your student’s) photo please email us at [email protected], and we will be happy to honor your request.

SUBJECT TO CHANGE:
All of the policies herein are subject to change at our discretion.

MOST IMPORTANT:

Making music should be fun and enlightening. Embracing and refining the musical gift that lies within the heart of each individual is our top priority. It is a blessing to share our passion with you! We value your relationship and hope that you will let us know if there is anything we can do to ensure you have an exceptional lesson experience with us!