CORNERSTONE MUSIC CAFE’S POLICIES

Lesson fees, cancelations & make-ups: When you enrol in lessons at Cornerstone Music Café, you are reserving a weekly, dedicated lesson time with a specific instructor. That time is held exclusively for you. Because of this, lesson fees are not pay-per-class. They function as a monthly enrolment fee that secures: a guaranteed weekly time slot in the instructor’s schedule, ongoing lesson planning and preparation, consistency and continuity in instruction and a stable teaching schedule that allows us to retain high-quality instructors.                                        For this reason, we do not offer refunds or make-up lessons for student-cancelled absences. When a lesson is missed, the instructor is still present, prepared, and unable to rebook that time on short notice. We encourage families to think of lessons similarly to other scheduled commitments such as sports teams, tutoring, or school programs: attendance is expected, and the spot remains reserved whether or not a session is attended. On rare occasions, an instructor may choose to offer a make-up lesson at their discretion. These are considered a courtesy and not an expectation or entitlement.This policy allows us to: Maintain consistency for students, support our instructors with reliable schedules and income & keep our programs sustainable and fair for all families. We appreciate your understanding and partnership in making music education a positive and reliable experience.

Online Lessons: In the event that a student is sick, unable to get a ride, or unable to travel due to weather, lessons will be conducted online. Teachers and students should establish the best video call platform (FaceTime, Skype, Zoom, Google Hangouts etc) when lessons begin so that both parties are prepared to move lessons online at any time. For tips on how to plan for a successful online lesson, please talk to your teacher or refer to the Student Manual. Online lessons take place at the regularly scheduled time.

Teacher cancellations: In the event that a teacher may need to cancel a lesson, a suitable substitute teacher may be brought in to teach OR the lesson will be made up. In the unlikely event that a teacher cancellation cannot be made up, a refund may be issued.

Lesson Communication: It is very important that communication between the instructor and parent be consistent: If the instructors need to talk to you about your child’s progress they will do so at the beginning or the end of your child’s lesson.

Quitting Lessons: Lessons run from September to June, and we require 1 month’s written notice in order to terminate lessons at any point throughout the year. You will be billed for 4 weeks from the day we receive written notice, whether you choose to take those lessons or not. No refunds will be issued for lessons cancelled after May 1 for the remainder of the school year. The notice must be given to lessons@cornerstonemusic.ca.
 

Payment is due on the last day of the month for the coming month. For example, September’s payment is due August 31. Payment can be set up on automatic withdrawals on the credit card. Please Note: Invoices not paid within 30 days will incur a 10% late fee. If payment falls behind for more than 45 days, we can no longer guarantee a reserved spot.

Please avoid being a no-show! Even a call 2 minutes before a lesson is to start, is better than no call at all, although the sooner the better! We will charge directly through MyMusicStaff so that your billing is directly linked to the lesson calendar.  Your monthly fee reserves your spot with your teacher every week. If you miss a lesson, you will not be refunded, and you may forfeit that time. Please review the Cancellation Policy above.

Studio Communication: We text and email for school notifications and updates. Please ensure that lessons@cornerstonemusic.ca is on your contact list to receive our emails. You may alter your notifications settings,  but please do not unsubscribe, you will miss important information regarding your lessons and more.