MUSICAL EXPERIENCES Parent Handbook

Transcription

1 Outstanding MUSICAL EXPERIENCES for all ages Parent Handbook First Academy of Music First Presbyterian Church 9751 Bonita Beach Road Bonita Springs, Phone:

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Mission Statement, Values and Vision... 4 Office Hours, Location and Contact Information... 5 Map... 5 Tuition... 6 Registration and Payment Policy... 7 Financial Assistance & Scholarships Yearly Calendar... 8 Child Protection Admission... 9 Absence and Make-up Policy... 9 Student Delivery and Pick-up Babysitting Policy... 9 Communication with Parents History of First Academy of Music Faculty and Staff

3 Dear Music Student and Family Member: Welcome to First Academy of Music. We are honored to be in service to you as a student of music. Our aim is to provide you with high quality musical instruction in a Christian environment. First Academy of Music is a hybrid ministry of music and mission at First Presbyterian Church of Bonita Springs. Our desire is to nurture musical talent, which we believe is a gift from God. This booklet details the history of our academy, as well as policies and procedures that will be important for you to know over the course of the school year. Should you have further questions that are not answered herein, please contact us and we d be delighted to assist you. Sincerely, Peter Lewis, director Bonita Beach Road Bonita Springs, FL fax

4 MISSION STATEMENT The mission of the First Academy of Music of First Presbyterian Church is to provide high-quality musical instruction in a Christian environment for students of all ages and levels of skill, for the purposes of personal enrichment and for providing opportunities to serve God and His church. VISION First Presbyterian of Bonita Springs is uniquely positioned to offer to the Southwest Florida area a community music academy that develops God s gift of music for future generations of the church. Music has always been a primary means of spiritual worship. Additional benefits of a music academy are building a community of fellowship among participants in music programs and reaching music-oriented individuals to welcome them into the church. The First Academy of Music and all arts programs of the church have both an outreach and a service component. VALUES The First Academy of Music of First Presbyterian Church holds in high value these three components relating to the Church mission statement: Upward/Outward: Recognizing music as a gift from our Creator, to be used for His glory and for the enrichment of personal life and society. Inward: Teaching within the context of Christian love and the Gospel, upholding biblical principles in all policies and practices. Upward/Outward: Providing opportunities for the use of musical talent within the life of the Church. Page - 4

5 OFFICE HOURS, LOCATION AND CONTACT INFORMATION The First Academy of Music is housed on the campus of the First Presbyterian Church: 9751 Bonita Beach Road Bonita Springs, FL Telephone (239) On the web: (east of 41 and west of interstate 75 (exit 116), adjacent to Spanish Wells Country Club) The music office is open from 9 am -5 pm Monday through Thursday and from 9 am -1 pm on Friday. Music office direct line: (239) Map EXIT EXIT BONITA BEACH ROAD (TO I-75) S A N C T U A R Y WALKWAY WALKWAY EXIT MUSIC OFFICE ENTRANCE PARK HERE (GRASSY AREA) MUSIC OFFICE Pick up tickets here Enter Here Page - 5

6 TUITION INDIVIDUAL PRIVATE LESSONS Private lessons are given each week for a 16-week semester. Students may elect 30, 45, or 60-minute lessons. The basic rate is $25.00 per half hour or $28.00 per half hour if the instructor holds a doctoral degree. Registration Fee (per semester) $10.00 Lessons with an instructor with no doctorate 30 Minutes/16 Weeks $ Minutes/16 Weeks $ Minutes/16 Weeks $ Lessons with an instructor with a doctorate 30 Minutes/16 Weeks $ Minutes/16 Weeks $ Minutes/ 16 weeks $ GROUP INSTRUCTION Groups run in 7 week segments. Price listed is per 7-week session. All group classes require minimum enrollment in order to run. Session I: August 20-October 6 Session II: October 8-November 23 Session III: January 7-February 23 Session IV: February 25-April 12 Music, Mommy & Me ($65) Children s Choir ($90) Music Makers ($70) Ensemble Class ($90) My First Music Class ($75) Beginning Guitar ($90) World Drumming ($90) Bagpipes for Beginners ($50) Handbells ($90) New Horizons Band ($65)* *New Horizons Senior Band Session II is 10 weeks at $95. All other sessions are 7 weeks. Page - 6

7 REGISTRATION and PAYMENT POLICY Students must register in person at the music office. For private lessons, the registration fee and at least one half of the tuition must be paid at the time of registration. Make checks payable to First Presbyterian Church. The memo line should read First Academy of Music. If one half of the tuition is paid at the time of registration, the balance will be due Oct. 1st for the fall semester and March 1st for the spring semester. Group instruction payment must be received in full prior to the first class of each session. FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE & SCHOLARSHIPS Financial assistance is available to new or continuing students aged 18 years and younger enrolled in private lessons. Financial aid awards will be based upon the availability of funds and will not exceed 50% of tuition. In order to be considered, applications for financial assistance may be picked up in the music office and must be returned to the music office by the third week of the semester. All financial aid information is confidential. Applications will be reviewed by music school staff. Music staff will notify students/families before mid-semester of the status of their application. The registration fee and at least 50% of tuition must be paid at registration. Families will be notified by mail by mid semester of any assistance they have been awarded. One annual merit scholarship, the Johnston Scholarship will cover the total cost of a 30 minute private lessons for one academic school year. Students in grades 9 12 are eligible. Invitations to apply will be sent to families of all 8-11 grade students in the spring semester. Interested families/students must complete the application and contact their teacher for his/her input. Teachers will evaluate students on such qualities as effort, progress, preparation, commitment, attendance, punctuality, etc. The winner Page - 7

8 of the Johnston Scholarship will be announced at the spring recital. Recipients of the Johnston Scholarship will be expected to perform in music school programs. Financial assistance awards are made possible by the support of First Presbyterian Church and generous patrons of the First Academy of Music. Donations to the scholarship fund are gratefully accepted at any time. Please make check payable to First Presbyterian Church and mark FAM scholarship fund in the memo line. YEARLY CALENDAR For private lessons, the school year is divided into two 16-week semesters. The fall semester runs from mid August through early December followed by a makeup week and a hurricane makeup week if needed. The spring semester runs form early January to early May with a week off for spring break. One makeup week follows the final week of the Spring semester. Annual recitals are held in December and May. Additional performance opportunities announced as they arise. For private lessons, a prorated semester is available for seasonal residents or students who register after the beginning of the term. Group instruction is divided into four 7-week sessions. For students who enter group instruction after the first class, prorated tuition for group programs will be granted at the halfway point of any of the four sessions. Sorry, no refunds are given for incomplete sessions where the student misses or drops classes. CHILD PROTECTION First Presbyterian Church has a child protection policy; all music faculty are required to abide by the policies and procedures set forth Page - 8

9 in the church s child protection policy. All faculty have undergone a background check to the satisfaction of this policy. ADMISSION The First Academy of Music operates under the 501 (c)(3) status of First Presbyterian Church and is open to all students regardless of race, sex. religion, age or national origin. Individual faculty members determine the student age at which they will begin private instruction. ABSENCE and MAKE-UP POLICY For private lessons, students are allowed one absence per semester that will be made up during the make-up week. Additional absences beyond this one allowance will be forfeited by the student. All teacher cancellations will be made up. Please provide your teacher or the office 24 hours advance notice for an absence. An additional hurricane make-up session is offered in the fall, if necessary. Less than 24 hours notice or lessons cancelled beyond the standard allowance stated above will not be made up. For group instruction, no refunds are offered for absences or dropped classes. No prorated balance from a prior class will be carried forward for application to any other class or program. STUDENT DELIVERY AND PICKUP Please do not park in handicapped spaces. Music students enter through the doors beside the preschool on the east side of the building, adjacent to the playground. Parents are encouraged to observe their child s lesson or wait outside the room in the adjacent Page -9

10 hallway. If a parent is not staying for the lesson, we recommend the parent walk the child to the teacher and pick the child up from the teacher at the conclusion of the lesson. This policy is for the protection of our children. BABYSITTING POLICY First Academy of Music does not offer babysitting services for other siblings or younger children during a student s lesson time. Parents must supervise younger children and siblings at all times so that the student taking a lesson is not disturbed. COMMUNICATION WITH PARENTS This document has been supplied in an effort to answer many of your questions. Please contact the director or administrative assistant if you have additional questions. The music office phone number is (239) and the music office is open from 9:00 am to 4:30 pm Monday through Thursday and from 9:00 1:00 pm on Friday. Voice mail is always available. HISTORY OF FIRST ACADEMY OF MUSIC James W. Johnston, former executive director of the Southwest Florida Symphony, and director of sacred arts at First Presbyterian Church from , founded the Community Music School in The school was renamed First Academy of Music in 2007 to more accurately reflect the relationship of the school to the ministries of First Presbyterian Church. Page - 10

11 FACULTY AND STAFF Peter Lewis, director Cheryl Bauer, administrative assistant PIANO THERESA MILLER: BMed and Music Therapy degree from the College of Mt. St. Joseph on the Ohio and MAPC from the Athenaeum of Ohio in Cincinnati, Ohio. Works with all levels and all ages, 4 to 94, and with children who are learning disabled and educationally challenged. Thirty years experience as a piano teacher. PETER LEWIS: BM University of Rochester, Eastman School of Music. Over 26 years experience as organist, pianist, accompanist, and conductor. Currently associate director of sacred arts at First Presbyterian Church of Bonita Springs. BETH CLARKE: AA Stephens College, Columbia MO. BME Piano concentration, some graduate work towards MM at Indiana University, Bloomington. 4 years teaching experience in the Indiana public school system. Professional pianist, organist and vocalist in Midwest, Atlanta, and Fort Myers. 25 years experience in private organ and piano instruction. Member of the National Music Teacher s Association. JOANNE HUFFMAN (see violin) VIOLIN RENATA ROZMUS: MM Conservatory of Music, Katovice, Poland. Strings Coach for the Cypress Lake High School Center for the Arts and the Palm Coast Youth Symphony. Page - 11

12 JOANNE HUFFMAN: BM DePauw University. Has played in symphonies in Ohio, Indiana and Arkansas. Also instructor in piano. VOICE DR. RONALD DOIRON: BM Chapman University. MM and DMA University of Southern California. Conductor/Artistic Director of the Bach Ensemble and Orchestra in Naples. Director of Music at St. Mark s Episcopal Church, Marco Island. Active performer. JEAN SEIDL: BA in music education, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. Former drama and music teacher. 15 years professional performing experience in German opera houses, touring throughout South America and Europe, and with the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Since 1988, she has acted as artist agent for classicallytrained singers. FRENCH HORN MARY BERRY: BM Western Michigan University. MA and MED Saginaw Valley University. Member of the Florida Orchestra Association, the International Horn Society, Florida Music Educators Association, and the Music Educators National Conference. Has 35 years teaching experience in the public school systems of Florida and Michigan. Principal horn with the Naples Concert Band. GUITAR ANTHONY HERRERA: BM University of New Mexico. Majored in classical, jazz and chord styles; theory and composition. Active concert performer and wedding musician. JANE GALLER: Graduate of Northern Illinois University. Director of children s music at Temple Shalom of Naples since Has Page - 12

13 taught classical guitar for many years. Regular performer with Naples Klezmer Revival Band and as a wedding musician. T.C. DOLGIN: BS Berklee College of Music & Musicians Institute. Composer, arranger, teacher, has performed in the States and abroad. Philosophy of teaching; Music is fun! If it isn t, you are doing something wrong. LOW BRASS BERNARD SCHNEIDER: BM University of Miami, MA St Louis Institute. Principal trombonist with the St. Louis Symphony for thirty-two years. Faculty member at Edison College in Fort Myers teaching low brass. Extensive range of performances on and off Broadway. WOODWINDS MARJORIE HUELSMAN: BM Mansfield University. Attended Boston University Tanglewood Institute. Has taught at the Cape Cod Conservatory and was a member of the Cape Cod Symphony. DOUG MCINTOSH: BS in Music Education, Lowell University; MA in Education, Cambridge College. Former band and jazz ensemble teacher in Poughkeepsie, NY and Burlington, MA school systems. Director of music for Burlington, MA school system. Professional arranger and owner of Strive Records recording studio. PERCUSSION DR. JAMES L. MOORE: BM and MM in music education from the University of Michigan. PhD in music theory from Ohio State University. Percussionist with Naples Concert Band, timpanist with Opera Naples Orchestra and Charlotte Symphony Orchestra, and active in numerous church and theater music performances. Percussion teacher in the School of Music at Ohio State University Page - 13

14 ( ) and percussion instructor with Ohio State University Marching Band ( ). Principal percussionist with the Columbus Symphony Orchestra and percussionist with the Brass Band of Columbus. Owner and editor, Per-Mus Publications, a company that specializes in the publication of percussion music. CLARINET & SAXOPHONE JACK BERRY: BA Rowan University. Affiliations include the International Clarinet Association, the Association of Concert Bands, the Naples Concert Band (section leader and principal), Gulf Coast Orchestra, Edison Community College Band and Orchestra. Personnel director for Charlotte Symphony Orchestra. Board member of the Naples Music Club. FLUTE CHERYL BAUER: BM Ashland College. MA in Flute Performance, Western Carolina University. Over 25 years experience as flute instructor. Performs with the Charlotte Symphony and in concert with the ensemble Quintus. EARLY & ELEMENTARY CHILDHOOD MARILYN CARSON: BS and MS in Music Education from the University of Illinois. Certified through Level III in Orff methodology. Completed workshops through Level III in World Music Drumming, a cross-cultural curriculum. Over 30 years of teaching general music and directing children s choruses, grades K-8 in the Illinois Public Schools. TRUDY KELLUM: Page - 14

15 HANDBELLS Jeffrey Faux: BM Westminster Choir College majoring in music education and church music. Toured and performed with the Wesminster Concert Bell Choir. Taught public school in New Jersey for 8 years and has worked in church music ministry for over 25 years. Currently director of sacred arts at First Presbyterian Church, assistant director of the Ft. Myers Symphonic Mastersingers, and chorus master for Opera Naples. BAGPIPES DON GOLLER: Pipe Major, Harp and Thistle Pipe Band of Naples. Former Pipe Major, Nassau Police Emerald Society New York. Former Pipe Major, Celtic Cross Competition. Grade 1 gold medalist in Eastern United States Bag Pipe Association. Over 25 years experience teaching pipe bands and soloists. Page - 15

16 Bonita Beach Road Bonita Springs, FL fax