Summer Lessons Begin! - New policies and payments info - Please Read!

Wow!  Summer is here!  Despite all the rain and lovely, cool weather, I'm sure things will warm up soon.  We are in Texas, after all!

We have already started our summer schedule this week, and I'm so happy to see so many of my wonderful students!  I think I've reached out to all of my current students about scheduling summer lessons at this point.  It's never too late, though.  If you want lessons, even just a few, over the summer, feel free to reach out.  I will have room for everyone who wants a lesson.  As I have stated many times in the past, summer is a great time to take lessons as we can focus on each student's individual needs better that we can during the school-year when, understandably, band music and tests and contests take precedent.  And, don't forget, I give students who took summer lessons first choice on lesson times when I set up my schedule in the fall!

As promised, we have posted new lesson and payment policies.  I've never been one for formal policies or lessons contracts and the like.  But, as my studio has grown, and I have so many more students than I used to, and the differing information students and parents receive from their band directors, it seems like having all of my polices in one place would be helpful.  And, as I have needed to change how we are handling the invoices and payments going forward, now seemed to be the time to do it.

Below you will find links to my two new blog posts regarding general lesson information and policies, and updated "How to Pay" information.  I ask that everyone read both posts, please.  I know that they are long, and I apologize for that.  If you are new, you should definitely read them both, as many questions that inevitably come up are addressed.  If you have been with me for a while, you should at least read the new billing and payment policies, as you will be noticing those changes soon.  I hope they are helpful, and, as always, please reach out with any questions or concerns.

https://www.hudsonmusicstudio.com/2025/06/flute-lessons-with-lynne-hudson.html

https://www.hudsonmusicstudio.com/2025/06/how-to-pay-for-flute-lessons-with-lynne.html

I look forward to seeing all of you soon!

Flute Lessons with Lynne Hudson - Policies and General Information - 2025 Update

 Hello Parents and Students!

This post contains the most up-to-date general information about how flute lessons with me work.  In the past, I have shied away from having formal “policies,” but as my studio has grown and spread out over the last decade or so, I feel like I need to make some expectations a little clearer going forward.  I will be merging that information with the content of my previous post for new students, so that there is one spot with everything we need for reference.

And, with new students in mind:  If you are new – WELCOME! I’m so excited to start lessons with your child!  Learning flute and music can be such an exciting and fun adventure.  Thanks for letting me share this time with them!

The Team – My Husband and I

First, you should know that my husband, Paul, helps me with this blog and with my billing.  So, if you email or text me with a question about your invoice, he is probably the one who will respond.  He started helping me with this a few years ago so I could focus on managing my schedule, giving your child the best possible lesson experience, and giving you the feedback you want about your child's progress. He, like all of us, is a busy guy, and only volunteers a few hours a month to help, so if there is an issue with your account, please give us a few days to look at it.

Scheduling

Flexibility is one of my hallmarks when it comes to many aspects of scheduling and billing.  Over 20 years of experience teaching lessons in schools has taught me to expect the unexpected.  There are always unexpected interruptions in our schedule. It used to be fire drills and picture days, but we often have unexpected testing days and the like as well.  Of course, we still have doctor appointments and the usual life-happens type of stuff.  So, I plan with flexibility in my schedule, and will rearrange things to make sure your child gets a lesson every week to the best of my ability.  That means, occasionally, I will switch your child's lesson day to make that all work, and the reason for that might involve things that are happening at schools, other than your child’s, where I teach.  I do keep track of each lesson your child takes, and on the invoice the following month, you will see an accounting of the dates your child received lessons.  If, for some reason, your child receives more or less lessons than what you have paid for, you will see a credit or charge for that on the next invoice.

Cancelling, No-Shows, and Rescheduling

As I said above, I believe strongly in being flexible, and that goes with when you have to cancel  lessons for any reason.  I do try to keep a regular week-to-week schedule as much as possible, but as I make changes frequently to get everyone worked in every week, I have been in the habit of sending reminders the night before when there are changes.  So, if you know that your child will not be at their lesson, please try to let me know the day before if at all possible.  When I can, I will work another student at your school into that spot, and that may leave me a spot for a make-up lesson for your child on another day.  And, of something happens last minute, like your child wakes up sick that morning, just let me know as soon as you can, and I'll still do what I can to reschedule them.  In most of these cases, I will not charge you for a missed lesson.

That leads me to the next policy, and I want to be clear: this is a very rare occurrence, and almost never happens.  But it does sometimes, and I have enforced it when needed.  This is just the first time I felt I needed to have it here where we can all see it. So here it is:

If your child misses multiple lessons, and I have not received proper notice before the time of their lesson that they will not be there, I may charge you for that lesson.  I may try to reschedule that lesson for another day, at my convenience.

I hope that makes sense.  Remember: I'm very flexible, and try to be kind and understanding.  So, if there's an issue, please talk to me!

Billing (New Policies!!!)

We used to try to bill lessons for the month in advance.  Billing in advance is the common practice for lessons, and most school districts' private lesson guidelines expect that.  I understand the reasoning behind those guidelines, but over the years, I have found that billing in advance causes confusion in some circumstances, especially if we are not able to get the invoices out exactly on the first of the month, and is completely unworkable in the summer when most students don't take lessons on a regular weekly schedule.  Accordingly, I send invoices at the end of the month. 

However, this summer we need to adopt a pay-as-you-go policy.  I want to say at the outset that this policy isn’t because of anything any of you have done wrong.  It’s really an attempt for my husband and I to keep a better eye on who has paid and who hasn’t, and being able to remind those who have forgotten.  We understand: everyone forgets sometimes.  We just want to be helpful in sending friendly reminders so that no one ends up so far behind that it is an issue to get caught up. 

The expectation, therefore, is that you will send payment for each lesson as it happens, or will pay the full balance for each month’s lessons before the end of that month, just as if I had billed you in advance.  For example: if your child has two lessons in June, then you would have sent the payment for each lesson on the day that the lesson happened, or you would make sure to pay the full amount for those lessons by June 30.  That means when I send the invoice for June on or after the first of July, your invoice should indicate a $0 balance due.  I am still very flexible, however, in making payment arrangements with you if you need to because of unexpected circumstances.  In that case, please let me know what payment arrangements work for you, and we'll work it out. If, however, I have not heard from you in advance, and you don’t respond to my texts, emails, or calls when I’m giving you that friendly reminder, I may suspend lessons for your child until we have communicated and set up a payment arrangement.

This policy is going to be our year-round policy going forward. 

Payment

I accept various forms of payment, and I mention those on the invoices.  I have a blog post that covers all of the different payment options.  Please be sure to read this updated version here: https://www.hudsonmusicstudio.com/2025/06/how-to-pay-for-flute-lessons-with-lynne.html

 

I hope this helps with understanding how lessons work.  Please feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns.

And, as always, thanks for letting me share my love of music and flute with your child.

 

How to pay for Flute Lessons with Lynne Hudson - 2025 Update

Hello Parents and Students!

This post contains general information about how to pay for your child’s flute lessons.  Prior to COVID, lessons were mostly paid for through check, but now electronic payments represent over 90% of the payments I receive each month.  This is great in some respects, but has presented difficulties at times.  As I used to with my previous post about payments, I will update this post with the most recent information as needed.  Thankfully, we haven’t had any major changes for the last couple of years, so I hope that this will not need any revision for a long while.

As before, I am not including any payment usernames or email addresses here as this blog is visible to the whole world.  Please see your invoice for that information.

I am adding a section about gifts, so let’s start with that!

GIFTS

I’m just like everyone else: I LOVE getting gifts.  But with the ubiquity of electronic payments, getting gifts through those electronic payments makes things a little tricky for me and my husband, and our accounting of it.  While I don’t make a ton of money teaching lessons – its probably far less than you might think – it is enough money that the IRS does pay attention.  If you’re like me, and have been self-employed for almost 30 years, you probably know what I mean.  As these electronic payments are easily traceable, we make sure to include every penny of it in our business income.  And the same goes for bill-pay and paper checks.

So, if you want to send a gift by an electronic method, bill-pay, or a check, that is fine, but just know that I’m paying taxes on it.  And, unless you specify on the transaction or on the check that it is a gift, it will show up on your account balance, and that can get confusing later on.

I would ask, then, that if you want to send me money as a gift that you consider doing one of these:

• Send cash
• Send a gift card (any store card or a VISA gift card is fine!)
• Make sure you identify any check or electronic payments as a gift on the transaction itself if that is the only option for you. 

Personal Checks

This is still our preferred method of accepting payments, but it will require you to send the check to me with your child to the lesson, or in the mail.  Just let me know if you would like to mail a check to me, and I will send you my mailing address.

Bill Pay from your bank

Most banks offer a BillPay service that will withdraw the amount form your checking account, print the check, and send it postage free.  Most of the time, all you need is to give them my name and mailing address, which I will provide to you.  Recently I was asked to give a phone number and email address, and for those you can use the number and address from which you receive notifications from me.  If they ask for bank names or routing numbers, I'm going to have to pass, though.  I hope you understand.

Don't Send Cash in the Mail

I'm sure that doesn't need explanation.  Just don't do it.  If you are sending cash with your child for me, please put it in an envelope with their name and the amount enclosed written on the outside.

Venmo

You may send payments to me through Venmo using the “Friends and Family” option to my Venmo username which is on your monthly invoice.  Please be sure to include your child's full name on the payment info. 

I do not accept payments to my phone number.  If you attempt to send a payment to my phone number, it will not work, and you will have to resend it.

Also, please read the PayPal payment info below about using the “Friends and Family” option, and always paying with your account balance or a bank account to fund the transaction.  I DO NOT PAY VENMO/PAYPAL PROCESSING FEES, and will add those fees to your next invoice.  Venmo is a PayPal company, so it works the same way.

Zelle

You may send payments to my through Zelle by using the email address which is on your monthly invoice.  Please be sure to include your child's full name on the payment info. 

I do not accept payments to my phone number.  If you attempt to send a payment to my phone number, it will not work, and you will have to resend it.

PayPal

You may send payments to me through PayPal using the “Friends and Family” option to my email address which is on your monthly invoice.  Please be sure to include your child's full name on the payment info.  Please read the PayPal payment info below about using the “Friends and Family” option, and always paying with your account balance or a bank account to fund the transaction.  I DO NOT PAY VENMO/PAYPAL PROCESSING FEES, and will add those fees to your next invoice.

Below is information that I have sent in the past to those that were using PayPal at the time.  [EDIT 2025: When PayPal was the only electronic payment we accepted.] It's long, but it explains clearly my reasons for accepting PayPal the way I do.  The important points for using PayPal are:

• You can avoid fees by using the "Friends and Family/Pay a Person" option
• Use your PayPal balance or a bank account to fund the transaction if you can
• Using a credit card always carries a fee
• Any fees that we incur on our end of the transaction will be charged to you on your next invoice
• Include your child's full name on the transaction

 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Good Evening!

If you have not and do not plan on ever sending payments through PayPal, you may disregard this message.

I want to say up front how much I appreciate all of you, and love teaching your children.  It's hard for me to send an email like this, so know that I'm not at all upset or even worried, but I do have some important requests to make.  I'll give the short version first, and then explain more after for those who need it.

1. When you send money for lessons through PayPal, please use the Friends and Family (Personal) option.

2. Please be sure to put your child's full name in the "Notes" section.

I know that some of you who are making PayPal payments have done this right every time so far.  But, I have had some that did it right for a while, and then did it incorrectly all of the sudden and vice versa.  So that is why I'm sending this to everyone.  If you don't need further explanation, feel free to stop reading now. =)

Number 2 is the easy one, so let me start with that: If you don't put your child's name in the notes, it can be very difficult for my husband (who is helping me with my billing this year) to credit the payment properly on our spreadsheet, especially if the email address that you are paying from is different than the email address or phone number to which we send your invoice, or if the parent's name is different from the child's.  I have a lot of students this year.  I'm sure you can imagine his confusion since he doesn't know your child like I do, and doesn't always communicate directly with you like I do.

Now to Number 1: When you send the payment using the "Pay a Bill" (Business) option, I get charged a fee, and don't receive the full amount.  The fee is small, and I don't worry about it at all, but since I didn't receive the full amount from you, I am putting that amount on your balance forward for the next month.  So, if you are wondering, "Why did you only credit $X amount when I paid $Y?" this is probably why.  If you pay that to me the next time, I really appreciate it.  If not, I'm not going to make a big deal about it, but it will remain on your invoices.  

I can see where this may be confusing, because, yes, I am sending you a bill, and technically I am in business.  However, unlike other businesses, I do not set the rate at which I am paid for teaching lessons.  The school district or school where your child attends sets the private lesson payment rate, and when I teach lessons, that is the amount I should receive.  I'm sure you agree that it's not right if I teach Sally a lesson and receive $20, but only receive $18.80 from Billy, even though Billy paid the same.

Also, I only offer PayPal a payment option for your convenience in a world where electronic payments are the norm. Our bank is not compatible with Venmo Zelle or many of the other common payments services, so PayPal is our only real option do accommodate this.  It's not a choice that we are completely comfortable with as we have had some unfavorable experiences with PayPal in the past, and we did not do any business through PayPal for several years as a result.  We're not at a point of making any similar decisions right now, but I hope you can understand my reasoning.

If you have any questions or concerns about this at all, please email me back.  Either my husband or I will gladly answer.  We want you to feel comfortable with using PayPal for lesson payments just as much as we want to as well.

I apologize for the very long email.  I hope that it was helpful.

-Lynne and Paul