Matt Burk Music Studio Policies

ENROLLMENT/TUITION:
A student is not enrolled until the initial tuition payment has been made. Payment is due in advance and a completed Payment Authorization Form must be submitted to the Studio before the first scheduled lesson. 

There is a one-time enrollment fee of $50 per student.
Tuition for half-hour weekly private lessons: $150/month
Tuition for full-hour weekly private lessons: $280/month

Tuition must be paid before a student is admitted to lessons. A student is not considered enrolled at Matt Burk Music Studio until payment has been made. Tuition is non-refundable and must be paid via electronic automatic payment each month. The Studio will process these payments at the beginning of each month for that month's lessons. If a student's payment is not successfully processed, the 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.

Upon enrolling, a $50 enrollment fee will be charged, as well as prorated tuition for the first month of lessons – based on how many lessons are scheduled for that month. This proration is based on an average of 4 lessons per month. Afterward, tuition is the same every month—regardless of how many weeks/lessons are in that month. Tuition is based on a rate of $70 per lesson for hour lessons and $37.50 per lesson for half hour lessons. There are 52 weeks in a year, but there will only be 48 lessons each calendar year (each instructor takes 4 weeks off per year). Therefore, we take the 48 lessons and divide them by the 12 months in the year, so we charge for an even 4 lessons every month. This is how we have developed the tuition structure listed above. Because these 4 weeks off each calendar year are built into the monthly tuition, the lessons these weeks will not be credited or rescheduled.

Payment is expected for all students enrolled at the beginning of the month, whether they attend lessons or not. We have a specific lesson time reserved for each student, thus payment must be made regardless of attendance. This includes illness, holidays, vacations, etc. Two weeks notice is required for withdrawal from lessons; this notice must be provided by email to info@mattburk.com.

We accept Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express. We also process automatic bank drafts through ACH.

STUDENT PROGRESS:
We are often asked how quickly a student will be able to progress in lessons, and become proficient in his or her instrument. The answer is largely determined by four factors: 1) communication, 2) attendance, 3) practice, and 4) support.

Communication
At Matt Burk Music Studio we dream of every student experiencing the joy and passion that comes with expressing themselves in music, learning their craft proficiently and becoming a success in their own right. So we need to know what success in your musical studies means to you! For some students music lessons are simply a part of a well-rounded education, for other students they provide a creative outlet, and for others they may be a fun activity or a way to build self-esteem, and yet for others they provide the foundation for professional musical pursuits. We are profoundly interested in what each student wants to accomplish through lessons, so that we can tailor lessons specifically for that student!

This is possibly the biggest key to success in lessons at our studio. Keeping communication open between students and instructors allows instructors to be able to continue engaging the student in the learning process.

Attendance
Consistency is very important in the study of music. We certainly understand that there are schedule conflicts from time to time, and that some rescheduling of lessons is to be expected - we're happy to accommodate this. However, it is also important to understand that regular attendance is crucial to a student' engagement in the learning process and development as a musician and an artist.

Practice
It is important to understand that the amount of time that a student practices between lessons is a large factor in determining his or her growth. The bulk of a student's progress is not typically made during the weekly lessons - rather during the days following as the student puts into practice what he or she has learned in lessons.

Because all students have varying musical goals and other commitments, we work with our students based on the amount of practice they feel is realistic for them - given their personal goals and schedules. With this in mind, we do not have a pre-determined amount of practice time that we encourage; rather, we ask students how much time they can commit to practicing each week, and we tailor lessons accordingly.

Support
Another important piece of a student's progress is the support he or she receives at home. We want to partner with you to support the success of your music lessons. We do so by having instructors who are encouraging, patient, and positive in their approach. We also do so by proving fun, unique opportunities to learn, create and perform.

The remaining crucial piece of this support structure happens at home. It is important for parents (of non-adult students) to understand that practice time should be scheduled into a student's routine. Otherwise, it often will not happen. It is also important to present this practicing in a positive light, as opposed to that of a chore.

Our instructors also actively look for ways to encourage students to practice, by working with them on things that they are inspired or motivated by. As always, we encourage your communication with us in this matter - if you know of something that we can do to better engage your student, please let us know!

MISSED/CANCELLED/TARDY LESSONS: 
No credits or refunds are issued for missed lessons for any reason. Permitted we receive at least 24 hours advance notice of a student's absence, and permitted the instructor's schedule will allow, we will do our best to schedule a make-up lesson. All make-up lessons must occur no more than 3 months from the original lesson date and are only eligible for currently enrolled students. If you withdraw from lessons or take a break, the lessons are no longer eligible for reschedule. Please keep in mind that we have a specific time reserved for each student each week, and depending on an instructor's schedule it may not always be possible to schedule a make-up lesson.

In the event that a student anticipates an absence, he or she may notify the studio any of the following ways (whichever is most convenient for you!):
1) Our online scheduling system,
2) By phone,
3) By email, or
4) In person with our receptionist (NOT the instructor) during studio hours.

It is important to note that we manage the schedules for all of the instructors, and while it is nice that a student makes the instructor aware of an upcoming absence, it is also imperative that the student inform the studio as described above. Please understand that all cancellations and make-up lessons must be done with the studio receptionist or office – not with the instructors themselves.

If a student is tardy to a lesson, he or she will not receive a full session. The student will only receive a lesson for the remainder of the time available during his or her regularly scheduled lesson time.

WITHDRAWING FROM LESSONS:
We require two weeks written notice, when discontinuing lessons. This notice must be provided by email to accounting@mattburk.com. 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 tuition is not refundable.

SUPPLIES:
Students will be advised of the supplies/materials (method books, accompaniment tracks, sheet music, etc.) required for their lessons, and where they may purchase them. Students are responsible for purchasing these materials and for bringing the appropriate materials to each lesson.

CONTACT INFORMATION & E-MAIL USE:
We use email as our primary way of communicating with students/parents. If a student changes his or her e-mail address, it is important to notify the studio as soon as possible. If the studio does not have a correct email address on file, students may miss important notices regarding recitals, studio closings, etc. So it is very important that the studio has the best email address for students on file. Students should also advise the studio if other contact information (phone number(s), address, etc.) changes.

Students may need to add our email address as an allowed sender to his or her email, so that a spam filter does not catch the studio's emails. If you do not receive regular emails from us regarding studio events (performance opportunities, studio closures, etc.), please let us know!

HOLIDAYS AND INSTRUCTOR VACATION:
The studio is closed Christmas week and Thanksgiving week. In addition, the studio is closed on each of the following holidays:

New Year's Day • Memorial Day • Independence Day • Labor Day

Lessons that fall on scheduled holidays (as listed above) will be rescheduled upon request. Many schools and businesses observe additional holidays (e.g., MLK, Jr. Day, Presidents Day, etc.). Please do not assume Matt Burk Music Studio is closed because public schools or other businesses are.

We do NOT follow the public school schedules. Please do not assume Matt Burk Music Studio is closed because public schools or other businesses are.

In addition to our closures for Christmas week and Thanksgiving week, each instructor receives two additional weeks (of his or her choice) of vacation time each year. These two additional weeks are built into the tuition, and tuition will not be credited or prorated due to these vacation weeks. The lessons that fall during these weeks will not be rescheduled. There is a full explanation of this under the “Enrollment/Tuition” section above. 

INCLEMENT WEATHER CLOSURES:
Because the weather can change significantly from morning to evening, and because we keep hours that are generally opposite of school hours, we do not follow the closing schedules of local schools.

We make an independent decision regarding whether to close in cases where the weather and/or the roads pose a threat to our staff and students. If we close the studio due to weather, we will notify affected students via email, and we will happily reschedule cancelled lessons upon request. 

OUR INSTRUCTORS:
Matt Burk Music Studio reserves the right to substitute and/or change an instructor at any time. All of the instructors on staff at Matt Burk Music Studio work as employees for the studio (they do not work as independent contractors and/or rent a space from us). Therefore, the studio takes care of all of the administrative aspects of the lessons, including payment, scheduling, etc. We ask students to keep this in mind when working with the instructors. If a student has any question about his or her account, about scheduling or anything administrative in nature, we ask that the student contact the studio at by phone or email, or to talk with our receptionist in person concerning any questions. This allows instructors to focus on what they do best – teaching!

SECURITY/PRIVACY NOTICE:
Our primary concern at Matt Burk Music Studio is the welfare and safety of our students, as well as that of our teachers and studio. For this reason, as well as for coaching and training purposes, we use visible, closed circuit security cameras and microphones in the studio. We encourage any questions regarding this; we have found that our students and parents appreciate this extra security measure.

PHOTOS & VIDEO:
From time-to-time, we take photos and video of students at performances or in lessons, for use in our online or print marketing. If you prefer that we not use your (or your student’s) likeness, please email us at info@mattburk.com, and we will happily honor your request.

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

MOST IMPORTANTLY:
Have fun learning your instrument(s)! We are really excited about every student who joins Matt Burk Music Studio. We value every relationship, and hope that you will let us know if there is anything we can do to ensure you have a great experience with us!

QUESTIONS?
We always welcome any questions you have. Simply call or email us and we'll be happy to help!