Calendar.

Bonham Conservatory’s regular academic year is ten months long, August through May, and consists of 35 teaching weeks.  Students are expected to continue lessons for the full academic year.  The calendar is available as a handout and posted on the website.

Tuition.

The value of the full academic year’s tuition is divided into ten (10) equal monthly installments.  (Although the number of lessons varies from month to month, the monthly tuition remains unchanged.)

All payments are due on the 1st of the month, and may be made by cash, check, ACH draft, or credit card.  Make all payments payable to Bonham Conservatory.

Credit card payments.  All credit card payments are subject to a 5% processing fee for each transaction.

Bank billpay.  If you want to set up monthly automatic payments through your bank’s billpay application—which would send us a paper check in the mail automatically each month—that is a great option.  Just be sure to select a date around the 20th of the month before, to make sure that if those 5–7 business days happen to include 2 weekends, it will still arrive on time (by the 1st of the month).

ACH drafts.  ACH drafts can be set up with your bank to recur monthly, with no bank fees.  If you would like to use this option, request an AFT form from us, and return it with a voided check attached.

Payments.

Monthly tuition is due on the 1st of the month.  If tuition is not paid by the first lesson of each month, lessons will be suspended until tuition payments are resumed.

INSF or declined payments will be assessed a $25+1% re-processing fee.

Registration Fee.

A nonrefundable yearly fee of $25 for registration is due at time of enrollment. For returning students who have not discontinued lessons/classes, the registration fee is $10.

Make-up Lessons.

We offer TWO options for make-up lessons during the Fall and Spring Semesters if a student is feeling under the weather, has transportation issues, there are weather-related travel concerns, or other reasons.  The make-up lessons will be conducted by the teacher virtually at your assigned lesson time rather than in person.

1. The student may attend his lesson by video conference at his regularly scheduled lesson time.  Please notify the office at least one hour prior to lesson time to request a virtual lesson.
2. The student may submit a video of his assigned pieces and any technique work prior to the lesson, in place of attending in person.  During the regularly scheduled lesson time, the teacher will watch, listen, and analyze the progress in the video and submit written or video feedback to the student.

Faculty Conflicts.

If your teacher has to miss a lesson due to illness or professional commitments, he will contact you either to schedule a make-up lesson by video conference or in-person, or to prorate the monthly tuition.

Attendance.

Students are expected to arrive for lessons in a timely manner, with all required materials and music.

Practice.

Students are expected to develop consistent practice habits—practicing a minimum of 5 days a week—to enjoy the benefits of musical instruction.  Parents are encouraged to help their students incorporate practice into their daily schedules.

Younger Students.

Parents do not need to know anything about music to give their child all of the help he needs to succeed.  There are two things you (parents!) need to plan on:

First, a parent should plan to sit with his student during the lesson.  Then, at home, that parent should plan to sit with the student for about 20 minutes during his practice time, and help him remember to do all of the things his teacher told him to do.

Note from Mrs. van Eck.

When you practice, do not turn to an easy piece you already know how to play, and play it.  That is enjoyable; that is fun music; but it is not practice.

Sit down (or stand up, as the case may be) and focus on the things your teacher told you to work on, and put in focused effort toward making those changes.

(And parents, I’m looking at you.  Even with the best of intentions, your child almost certainly will not do this every day, without you helping him, by making him do it.  He’ll thank you for it when he grows up!)

Recital.

All students are required to perform in two recitals each year, near the ends of the Fall and Spring semesters.

You wouldn’t go to all of the practices, and not go to the game, would you?

Summer Term.

Bonham Conservatory offers summer lessons and classes for students who wish to continue their studies over the summer (June and July).  Participation in the Summer Term is optional, and may depend on teacher availability.

Listening Assignment.

Each week, there is a Listening Assignment posted on the Conservatory bulletin boards and on our facebook page (with a link to a free recording).  Students should listen to the assigned piece sometime during the week.

Students may listen in the car while driving, at home while doing homework, at night while going to bed… there are lots of options!  Ideally, students will listen to the assigned pieces several times during the week.  But the minimum assignment is to listen to the selection at least once.

One Additional Event.

Additionally, each student will attend at least one Conservatory event in which they are not participants during the year.  This could include a recital, chamber music concert, masterclass for another instrument, etc.

One of the most important benefits of the music school environment is being part of a community of students striving to become better at music together.

Schedule Changes.

If additions or revisions must be made to the Bonham Conservatory schedule during the year due to weather or some other unforeseeable event, they will be prominently displayed on the bulletin board in the foyer and on the Bonham Conservatory website, and/or additional handouts and mailings will be made.

Instruments & Metronomes.

Please keep your instruments in good playing condition.  Each student is expected to have a working metronome and to use it as the teacher requests.

Cell Phones or other Screen Devices.

Students should not bring cell phones or other screen devices into their lessons or classes, except for an emergency.

If parents wish for students to keep a device on hand for communication or any reason, the student may keep the device tucked away in a bag, and not bring it out during the lesson or class.

Of the Two Sexes.

Thus God created the man in his image: in the image of God created he him: he created them male and female. —Genesis 1:27

Bonham Conservatory affirms that there are only two sexes, male and female, determined by a person’s immutable biological or genetic (XY or XX) sex.  (Explanation here.)

Waiting Areas.

The waiting areas are provided as a courtesy to the students; it is expected that everyone wait quietly and not disturb ongoing lessons.  Please drop off students no more than 5 minutes before the scheduled lesson time, and pick them up promptly.  Parents are required to pick up their children within 5 minutes after the end of their lessons.  Food, drinks, and roughhousing are not permitted in the waiting areas or in any area of the Conservatory.  Please advise your child not to go outside the Conservatory and to remain seated in the foyer until a parent comes for him.  Bonham Conservatory is not responsible for ensuring that any child remains on the premises.  Parents agree to hold harmless, defend, and indemnify Bonham Conservatory, its owners, and all its staff and instructors for any damages and injuries caused by their child to himself/herself and/or to other persons.

Facilities.

Please keep the beautiful Bonham Conservatory facilities in the same lovely condition in which you found them.

Security.

All of the studios and classrooms at Bonham Conservatory have security cameras installed for the safety of our students and teachers.  Recordings are being made at all times, both as a deterrent against impropriety and as a sure witness to be used against anyone who would wrong another.  These recordings are securely stored locally (not in the cloud).  In the event of serious allegations of impropriety, the videos will be reviewed and made immediately available to the teacher, parents of any involved student, law enforcement, and/or any other appropriate body.  The recordings are not used for commercial purposes, data collection, monetary gain, or any purpose other than the protection of our students and teachers.

Photography.

Pictures taken during lessons, classes, recitals, or other events may be used in promotional materials.  If you wish to opt your student out, notify Bonham Conservatory.

Special Accomodations.

If a student needs any special accomodations, his teacher will work with the student (or the student’s parents) to modify the Conservatory Policies for the best success and well-being of the student.

Mid-Year Enrollment.

If a student is accepted into the Conservatory mid-year, his tuition will be prorated accordingly.

Withdrawal.

If a student must withdraw, a 30-day written notice is required.  If a 30-day written notice is not provided, the student is still responsible for the tuition to cover the 30-day period.

Under certain conditions a student may be asked to discontinue music study at the Conservatory.  Those conditions include but are not limited to the following: 1) nonpayment of tuition, 2) excessive absenteeism or tardiness, 3) nonparticipation in required events, 4) continued non-preparation of assignments, 5) consistent disruptive and/or inappropriate behavior.  Parents will be advised, and the student will be placed on probation for 30 days.  If at the end of that period the condition persists, lessons will be discontinued.

Agreement.

When you register for lessons, you will be asked to sign a document acknowledging that you have read and that you agree to abide by the policies of Bonham Conservatory as outlined above.  This document will remain in effect as long as the student is enrolled at Bonham Conservatory.