Nurtured by Love–for teachers
Suzuki Association of Utah Mentorship Program
Dr. Suzuki taught that we learn best when nurtured by love. This is a key principle of the Suzuki method that we focus on often for our students, but frequently overlook for teachers. Through mentorship, we hope to bridge the gap between teacher training and the application of that training. Our goal is to bring a sense of community to all SAU teachers by connecting them to one another through mentorship. Mentors can be a resource for questions, a guide to an often confusing culture of graduation concerts and play-in activities, and a cheerleader to motivate and encourage new and developing teachers and teacher trainers. We hope you will join us in developing a culture of mentorship and love among all our Suzuki Utah teachers!
Who can participate?
Anyone who would like to be paired with a mentor!
There are three main categories of mentorship: Teachers to teenagers, Experienced teachers to new teachers, Teacher trainers to potential teacher trainers. Teachers who are working toward the Certificate of Achievement are also welcome and encouraged to participate with a mentor to assist in the process.
Who can be a mentor?
Any SAU teacher with 5+ years of experience as a Suzuki teacher. Mentorship pairs will be based on years of experience, level of training, instrument and location.
What does participation look like?
Each mentorship pair is expected to have one point of connection per week with their mentorship partner. This time can be spent in many different ways, such as observations of teaching, participation in group classes or area events, or conversations about studio management or next steps in training. Some weeks will have more time and some will have less, depending on the needs of the mentee. Each mentorship pair will be provided with a list of potential activities to serve as a starting point for ideas, but the details will be worked out between each partnership. Goals for mentees will be set and evaluated together for each quarter of the year. All participants are required to check in quarterly with the mentorship specialist. This program is designed to be very open so each mentorship pair can work together to create something unique and useful to them.
How do I get started?
For participation in the SAU mentorship program, you can apply with your membership registration in August or reach out to Holly at mentorship@suzukimusicutah.org to get started.
All participants are required to attend an orientation meeting.
October 5, 8:00 pm Mentees
October 7, 8:00 pm Mentors