Policies

MacPhail Policies

Individual & Suzuki Instruction

Fall and Spring Withdrawal

Summer Withdrawal

Classes, Ensembles, Prelude, & Sing Play Learn with MacPhail®

Fall and Spring Withdrawal
A 100% refund will be given for Classes, Ensembles or Sing Play Learn with MacPhail® if written (or email) notice is received in the Student Service Center within two business days following the first class. A 75% refund will be given if written notice is received within two business days following the second class. The registration fee and payment plan fee are non-refundable. 

Summer Withdrawal
Written (or email) withdrawal requests must be received within two business days following the first class for a 100% refund. Summer camp withdrawals should be received no later than two business days before the start of the camp. After this time, there will be no refunds. 

Missed Lessons, Classes & Ensembles

(See MacPhail Online, Music Therapy and Sing Play Learn with MacPhail® Policies below) 

As a courtesy, please call or email your instructor in advance of any absence. Prior notification does not exempt students from payment. Students are charged for all the lessons for which they register, including those missed through student absence. Consider requesting an online lesson in the event of mild illness, inclement weather, or last-minute conflicts. In the event the instructor cancels a lesson, a makeup lesson will be offered at a mutually convenient time. The make-up lesson may be an online lesson.

MacPhail Online

Make-up Lessons
In the rare case that MacPhail’s server or hardware fails, preventing video calling for more than 20 percent of the scheduled lesson, the lesson will be made up by the MacPhail instructor at a later date with no additional cost to the student! Unfortunately, due to the nature of our lesson schedules, if the technical issue is generated from the student side, the lesson will not be able to be made up. 

Music Therapy Attendance Policy 

Missed Private Music Therapy Sessions 
Music Therapy has a 24-hour in advance notice cancellation policy. In the event of an unforeseen emergency you may discuss this with your Music Therapist. However, due to our therapists’ full schedules, it may not be possible to provide a make-up session. If the Music Therapist is absent due to illness or another critical reason, the Music Therapist will provide a make-up date for the missed session. If a make-up session is provided, the session must take place within the semester the absence occurred. To schedule a make-up session, contact your music therapist. 

Missed Music Therapy Classes 
There are no refunds for Music Therapy classes missed due to vacations or illness. 

Sing Play Learn with MacPhail® Policies 

Multiple Siblings in Sing Play Learn with MacPhail® Class  
If you are registering more than one child in the same adult-child Sing Play Learn with MacPhail® class we encourage you to keep a ratio of one adult per child. One-on-one interaction in the class makes the experience more rewarding for both the adults and children involved. The only exception is the Family Music Class. 

Sibling Discount Policy– Sing Play Learn with MacPhail® 
When you register one child for Sing Play Learn with MacPhail® classes at MacPhail for full tuition, each additional child in your immediate family will receive a 10% discount for Sing Play Learn with MacPhail® classes for the same semester. This discount does not apply to the Family Music Class. 

Waiting Lists– Sing Play Learn with MacPhail® 
Students may request to be placed on a waiting list for a full Sing Play Learn with MacPhail® class if complete registration and payment information is received, (payments will not be processed unless the student is placed in a class). You will be contacted by phone only if space becomes available. Students can be put on the Sing Play Learn with MacPhail® wait list with only a payment of $25 instead of complete payment.  That payment will be processed, but refunded if the student is not placed in a class. 

Make Up Classes– Sing Play Learn with MacPhail® 
Makeup classes are available for most Sing Play Learn with MacPhail® classes. Please limit the number of makeup requests to one-fourth of the total semester classes to maintain continuity for your child and others in the class. Classes must be made up during the semester in which you are registered. Contact the Student Service Center to schedule your makeup class at 612.321.0100

Program Cancellation

MacPhail reserves the right to cancel classes or ensembles with insufficient enrollment. Classes or ensembles that do not meet minimum enrollment 24 hours before the first meeting may be cancelled. In the event a class is cancelled, you will be notified and given the opportunity to transfer to another class. If you do not enroll in another class you will receive a full refund, including any registration or payment plan fees. 

Emergency School Closings 

The decision to close MacPhail due to weather is determined by safety conditions and is based on state advisories. MacPhail does not guarantee make up lessons or classes for dates closed due to an emergency. Online lessons may be offered by your teacher in the event of a building closing. On-site classes will be cancelled. MacPhail is committed to remaining open whenever possible. To check for a closing, call 612.321.0100 for a recorded message or check MacPhail’s website. Students in Austin, MN, please call 507.396.6718 to check for closing information. NOTE: Any MacPhail program that takes place in a host-site will be cancelled if the site is closed due to weather.

Religious Holidays 

With at least one week’s notice to the teacher, a regularly scheduled lesson that is missed because of a religious holiday will be rescheduled. This policy does not apply to classes and ensembles. 

Mobile Phones

Parents and students who use cellular phones are asked to turn them off during classes or lessons unless they are waiting for an emergency call. 

Photography and Publicity

MacPhail reserves the right to use photos taken during lessons, classes and events. These photos may be used in brochures, advertising or for public relations purposes. Photographs featuring registered students are considered eligible for publication or public use unless the students (or parent/guardian of students under 18) submit a request for non-use in writing to the Student Services Center prior to the date when the photograph appears. Every effort will be made to accommodate students’ requests. 

Security

MacPhail is an easily accessed building in downtown Minneapolis. Occasionally, theft of unattended personal items occurs. Keep your possessions with you at all times. MacPhail does not take responsibility for items that are lost due to theft. 

Service Animals

Only service animals are allowed in the building. 

Policy Against Discrimination, Harassment, and Assault

MacPhail is a community of persons from diverse backgrounds which values, respects, and affirms the dignity of all people. Behavior inconsistent with MacPhail’s values, including discrimination, harassment, and assault, are prohibited at MacPhail. MacPhail staff and faculty are also subject to separate policies prohibiting harassment and discrimination in the workplace.  

MacPhail does not tolerate harassment or discrimination based on race, color, religion, creed, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, status regarding public assistance, familial status, membership or activity in a local commission, disability, genetic information, or other status protected by applicable law (collectively, “protected group status”). This policy sets forth MacPhail’s commitment to students to promote equal opportunities in music education.

Discrimination & Harassment 

Discrimination means treating someone less favorably because of their protected group status. Discrimination is not tolerated at MacPhail. Harassment consists of unwelcome or offensive conduct whether it be physical, verbal, or visual, that is based on a protected group status.

MacPhail will not tolerate conduct that (a) affects academic benefits; (b) interferes unreasonably with a student’s progress or success; or (c) creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive environment for any student. 

Harassment may include but may not be limited to: 

  1. Epithets, slurs or similar stereotyped language, or acts; 
  2. Intimidating or hostile acts including touching or a request for sexual favors based on protected classification; and written or graphic material that denigrates or shows hostility or aversion to persons of a protected classification. 

Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors and other physical, verbal or visual conduct based on sex constitute sexual harassment when submission to the conduct is explicit or is an explicit term or condition of academic progress; when submission to or a rejection of the conduct is a basis for an academic decision; when the conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with a student’s performance or progress; or when it creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive academic environment. 

Considering the power differential inherent in the relationship between MacPhail faculty and MacPhail students and the potential for either intentional or unintentional misuse of that power differential, MacPhail prohibits romantic or sexual relationships between faculty and vulnerable students and students under the age 18. Because concerns about actual or perceived conflicts of interest, favoritism, and power differentials still exist when there are personal relationships between faculty employees and students who they teach over the age of 18 as well, personal (romantic or sexual) relationships are also prohibited between faculty employees and students over the age of 18 when the employee is in a position of authority. For purposes of this policy, being in a “position of authority” means the faculty employee has any type of responsibility for assessing, supervising, tutoring, teaching, or coaching the student (directly or indirectly). In any event, consent will not be a defense, to such an allegation of such behavior. Any member of the MacPhail community who believes that he or she has experienced or witnessed harassment should contact the Student Services Center immediately. MacPhail will take prompt and appropriate action to investigate complaints and make any decisions that are

deemed necessary in the judgment of MacPhail up to and including the termination of faculty members as appropriate. 

Complaints of harassment or offensive behavior will be treated with discretion and will be discussed only with those who have a need to know to carry out an investigation and take prompt and appropriate action. No individual who reports harassment will be retaliated against although participation in an investigation by an accused party will not protect that person from discipline as MacPhail deems appropriate. 

Assault 

Assault is broadly defined to include infliction of bodily harm on another person. Sexual assault is one type of assault and includes any physical conduct of a sexual nature that occurs by force or coercion. Any MacPhail student who believes that he or she has been assaulted by anyone on the MacPhail campus, by a MacPhail employee, or via a connection with MacPhail should immediately get to a safe place and call either 911, a parent or friend, or the Student Services Center immediately. 

A victim of assault may file a complaint with MacPhail. MacPhail will investigate and take prompt and appropriate action. Assault victims may also, of course, contact the appropriate police department. MacPhail will assist victims of assault at the direction of law enforcement authorities in obtaining, securing, and maintaining evidence in connection with incident consistent with applicable law. MacPhail will respect the confidentiality of victims and the alleged offenders as much as possible consistent with its legal obligations. MacPhail strongly encourages victims of assault to seek professional help and MacPhail will assist in locating resources as appropriate. 

Procedure for Making Complaints Under the Policy

MacPhail is unable to respond to an employee or student’s concern about this policy, or physical boundaries between students and teachers, if the organization is not made aware that such conduct has occurred or is occurring. If any employee, student, or family member believes that this policy has been violated, they should promptly bring the matter to the attention of the organization, which can be done through several avenues:

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