Planning for the next MTNA conference: make a commitment to your professional growth

[...] travel to new cities, exploration of new restaurants and renewal of old friendships can be enjoyable fringe benefits of attending conferences, but usually those perks are not the primary reasons justifying a teacher's decision to spend valuable time and money for a few days away from the studio. [...] parents usually respect teachers even more when they realize that the decision to block out several days for professional development reflects the teacher's strong commitment to her own professional growth and demonstrates a desire to become an even better musician and teacher.