Repeated violations of these responsibilities and issues of professional conduct may be considered a breach of the instructor’s contract and may be considered cause for termination.

Staff Contacts

• Becky Ward, Academy Director

  • becky@artsmusicacademy.com

  • 323-447-3279

• Jon Dinerstein, Academy Director

  • jon@artsmusicacademy.com

  • 917-216-0982‬

• Alex Domingo, General Manager

  • alex@artsmusicacademy.com

  • 951-235-3334

• Nancy Crisostomo, Lead Administrator

  • nancy@artsmusicacademy.com

  • 213-249-3052‬

• Elizabeth Roberts, Administrator

  • elizabeth@artsmusicacademe.com

  • ‭614-458-8801‬

Facility

• Teaching room is yours for the day, you can come in early/stay late during business hours. If you are the first or last person at the school, opening and closing procedures can be found HERE.

• Wifi at SPAMA

  • Network: MySpectrumWifi-002G or MySpectrumWifi-005G

    • For Wifi-Extender, add EXT to network name

  • Password: heavywater504

• Printer

  • Brother MFC-L2690DW

  • You are always welcome to use the printer for any copying/printing of music. No personal use but you can use the printer/copier for anything you may need to teach your students.

  • Please take into consideration that photocopying of music for a student should, ideally, be done ahead of time if possible to avoid taking any time away from their lesson.

• Please keep your lesson room clean and tidy up after yourself.

• Feel free to use the kitchen, microwave, and fridge in the break area.

Pay

• You are paid based on your rate and the number of hours you teach.

  • Approving Payroll in Opus

    • You will receive TWO requests for payroll approval every month:

      • Due on the 11th: for the 24th through the 8th

        • paid on the 15th

      • Due on the 26th: for the 9th through the 23rd

        • paid on the 30th

    • Please click HERE to watch an instructional video for how to approve payroll in Opus moving forward.

  • Gusto

    • You do NOT need to log your hours in Gusto - the hours you approve on Opus are integrated into Gusto for each pay period.

    • To request paid time off, access your paystubs, keep track of your tax withholdings, etc. Log in to Gusto HERE.

• Instructors are paid for client no-shows or cancellations day-of.

  • Student Agreement

• All instructors are paid at the rate of $15.50 per hour for any required meetings and for recitals that you are required to attend.

• All instructors are paid at the rate of $20 per hour for student evaluations every Spring.

• Any questions regarding invoices or payment should be directed to Alex, Becky, or Jon.

Instructor Responsibilities

• You are a representative of our academy. We ask you to dress professionally, and to be mentally prepared.

• We have great staff rapport at the school, but we ask that you do not discuss personal or inappropriate topics in the lobby. If you are having a personal conversation, we ask that you bring it into the kitchen and close the door.

• Never speak negatively about any member of our community. If you have any issues/concerns, please speak to us first.

• Do not call/text during lessons.

• Keep track of start/end of lessons - reserve the last few minutes of class to discuss homework with the student or parent.

• CHECK EMAILS THOROUGHLY. Always check your schedule the night before you come in.

• PUNCTUALITY - DO NOT BE LATE. Frequent tardiness will not be tolerated!

  • If you are ever late, TEXT the front desk or CALL the school at 626-808-4031. Early notice is always appreciated, and we ask that you apologize to the students and caregivers when you arrive.

    • Alex, 951-235-3334 (every day)

    • Nancy, 213-249-3052‬ (Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday)

    • Elizabeth, ‭614-458-8801‬ (Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday)

Respecting the Office Staff and Their Duties

• Our front desk works hard to keep the academy running smoothly. While we like to have a friendly and fun atmosphere, do your best to avoid distracting the staff and hanging out at the front desk.

• If you need something from the front desk and they are handling clients, please send an email to staff@artsmusicacademy.com or a text message.

Greeting Students

• Always come to the lobby to greet your students and parents/caregivers.

• If a student is late, we ask that you wait in the lobby for 15 minutes before leaving. Let the front desk know if you are going to leave the school for a break.

• If your student is done with their lesson and their parent(s) are late, please inform the front desk so we can reach out to the parents to pick them up.

• If a student shows up late for their lesson, teach the remaining time.

Scheduling - All scheduling should be done at the front desk!

• If a student or parent tells you they will be absent for a lesson, please direct them to speak to the front desk (or self cancel in the online portal) so we can keep accurate records.

• Take daily attendance in the online portal.

  • Make sure to note no-shows!

  • If a student does not show up 2 weeks in a row, please inform the front desk so we can contact them to check in.

• Student’s lessons are held at the same day and time each week.

  • Please do not ask a student to come at a time other than their regular lesson time, even if you know that another of your students will be absent.

  • When appropriate, our front desk staff may consolidate your schedule.

LessonMate

• Please use LessonMate to send homework assignments to students.

• A LessonMate can be requested up to 5 minutes before a lesson begins, but many students request them ahead of time.

• For LessonMate requests made ahead of time OR for late notice requests, please use the lesson time to record audio or video and post to LessonMate. It does not have to be the entire length of the lesson, but should include a few short videos. Any sort of fun/interesting music education videos are also encouraged and helpful for filling up a LessonMate lesson.

• For more information on LessonMate click HERE.

Instructor Absences

• Please do your best to avoid absences. We ask that you only miss 2 days/teaching day/semester.

• Please give us at least 2 weeks notice for planned absences by emailing staff@artsmusicacademy.com

  • Do not mention that you will be out to the students as this can cause confusion and students may misinterpret this and miss their lesson with a sub. The front desk is responsible for communicating anything related to schedule with clients.

• We will do our best to provide a sub (always another instructor at the academy).

  • If we cannot find a sub, we will cancel the lessons and issue makeup credits for a future date.

• When you have a sub, we will request that you write notes for each student via LessonMate to ensure that both the student and the sub are prepared.

• If you are sick - please text and email us with as much notice as possible (even if you think you might need a standby sub the night before).

  • For same-day cancellation of lessons, please TEXT all staff members so we can manage rescheduling as quickly as possible.

Subbing for Other Instructors

• We always appreciate it if you can help cover for your fellow instructors.

• Always read over the notes left for you by the instructor and work from them.

• Please do not disagree with the pedagogy of the instructor in front of the student/parents. It looks poorly for the instructor and the school.

• You are able to write your own notes for the students you sub for in LessonMate. Otherwise, you can send your notes to staff@artsmusicacademy.com.

Communication with Parents/Caregivers and Students

• Please communicate clearly and regularly with parents regarding progress and homework.

• Any time a parent/student communicates concerns, issues, impending absences, changes to their lesson day/time/length or termination of lessons, direct them to speak with the front desk staff.

• Always let the front desk and administrators handle schedule and payment matters.

  • If a student cannot behave, if you are having an issue with a parent, if you have an issue with another teacher, or any other issue, please inform the staff. Do not take things into your own hands. Let us be the mediators.

Giving Out Your Contact Info

• We will never give out your info. You may choose to give your personal information to clients, but we do not recommend it.

• If you do not want to give your info out to a specific parent/student, tell them you’re not allowed to and direct them to the front desk or staff@artsmusicacademy.com.

Ethical Interactions with Students

• While we encourage a healthy relationship with your students they are here to learn an instrument. Please do your best to keep things professional and educational.

• Do not discuss your personal problems with a student, even if they share theirs with you.

• Do not use inappropriate language, gestures, or make inappropriate jokes with or around students. Be very careful of any physical contact with students that could be taken the wrong way.

Selling Materials to Clients

• We have a supply of lesson books available that parents and students may purchase. If they are purchasing please make sure to ALWAYS fill out a book order form located at the front desk.

• If there is a practice book that we do not have that you believe would benefit your students, you can ask the student/parent to purchase the book on their own, or we can place an order in the next book order.

• Avoid selling books to intros. Instead make copies at the front desk and let them know “if you decide to sign up, these are the books we would continue in.”

• You can find PDF versions of common piano books and our sheet music by title in our Music Library. This can come in handy for intro lessons before a student has decided to continue with ongoing lessons.

Parents in Lessons

• We normally discourage parents sitting in on lessons regularly. We allow and encourage them to sit in on the first lesson but please let them know that we do not recommend it ongoing.

• If there is an argument from the parent, please let the front desk know.

Bringing Friends to Lessons

• We do not discourage bringing friends as this can be a great marketing tool and can turn into potential new students. Simply conduct the lesson as you normally would and be welcoming to friends sitting in. If they become disruptive, you may ask them to sit in the lobby until the lesson is over.

Rewards for Students

• It is our policy to reward students for their dedication, practice, and effort.

• There are lollipop canisters in each room. You may offer a lollipop at the end of a lesson as a reward, but please check in with parents/caregivers first.

• There are stickers and prizes in the kitchen, but you are welcome to supply your own prize box.

Concerts and Recitals

• We have several concerts, a Spring Recital in June, and a Winter Recital in December.

• For recital days, please leave this day open, as you will be required to attend at least one recital if your students are performing.

• Always encourage students to participate, if and when they are ready, but leave the decision up to them.

Music is for Everyone

• We believe that great musical experiences are the right of every individual. We do not select our students based upon their potential for a musical career or even their potential to practice more than fifteen minutes per day. All we ask is that the students begin with a desire to learn and that they and their families show respect to the music, the instructors and staff and our approach to learning music. We believe that with these ingredients any student can play joyfully and musically given the right instruction and environment.

If you have any needs please let us know!

• This applies to any maintenance needs in your rooms (light fixtures, loose piano bench legs, wobbly chairs or stands, etc.) as well as any personal needs.

Every year, student evaluations are due by APRIL 15th.

Submit one evaluation for EVERY student you teach that has been with you one month or more.

Click HERE [link will change every year] for the student eval form. Your responses will be edited by our staff and converted into PDFs that will be emailed to students and families with their pre-registration information for the coming Fall.

We have found Student Evals to be one of the most effective ways to make our students feel important and encouraged. Based on our experience, this is the one activity, next to recitals, that offers a very personal experience to our students and greatly contributes to student retention year after year. So please put the necessary effort into providing valuable, motivating and inspiring feedback to your students (TLDR; evals = a tool to secure your fall income).

Filling Out the Evaluations

FILL OUT EVERY SECTION. Please find something valuable and thoughtful to say for EACH TOPIC on this year's forms. Please note that two sections have a 50 word minimum. If you need ideas about how to fill these out or what to write, please don't hesitate to ask! Newer instructors should also feel free to speak with more experienced instructors about how they complete their evaluations and what feedback they include.

ADDRESS THE PARENTS/STUDENT. Direct your comments to the parents of your young students (ANYONE under 18) and directly to the adult students you teach. For example - for an adult student: "Paul, you are a dedicated student whose practice is apparent in each lesson" And for a young student: "Jimmy is a joy to teach and I love his enthusiasm."

BE HONEST BUT BE NICE. Be objective and don’t be afraid to be respectfully honest in some tough cases. No matter what though, please make sure that you word this in a way that is gentle, kind, constructive and encouraging.

Invoicing

Please log your time spent on writing evaluations as this time will be added to your invoice. I will email you after the due date for your hours. If there is an excessive amount of invoicing, we will need to circle back and discuss.

How Pre-Registration Works for Clients

During pre-registration, current students will have one week to save their current lesson spot for the Fall. They must pre-register to save their spot. These evals will increase your chances of student retention!

Thank you

We appreciate the effort you put into these evaluations. Your students and their parents will appreciate the effort as well!

Approving Payroll in Opus:

video|Payroll|#

Requesting PTO in Gusto:

Via Phone:

video|PhonePTO|#

Via Computer:

video|ComputerPTO|#

If you’re looking for sheet music and commonly used method books, please click HERE.

Free fun printable primers.

Password: tpt4me