Feature Summary: This article walks system users through the instructor lifecycle in CourtReserve, from initial setup through day-to-day lesson operations.

Use Cases:

Instructors in CourtReserve are system users with additional fields and permissions that connect them to lesson scheduling, pricing, and reporting. Before a club can offer lessons, a few foundational pieces need to be in place:

Once these are configured, a club can offer lessons through one or more of three methods: admin/instructor-booked lessons on the admin panel, member self-booking through Book a Pro, or lessons set up as events. Most clubs use a combination depending on the instructor and lesson type.

The sections below walk through tagging, setup, scheduling, and booking in the order most clubs will need them.

Before you assign an instructor a role, set up the Instructor Types you'll use to describe them.

Instructor Types can be organized:

These tags help players find the right fit when booking, and you'll select one as part of each instructor's profile setup. Create yours first in Create Instructor Types so they're ready to assign.

After setting up your instructor system users (outlined in the next step), each instructor is assigned to an Instructor Type:​
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A Lesson Type is a high-level tag you create to define and categorize the lessons your club offers, such as Tennis - Private or Pickleball - Semi-Private. It sets the framework for how each lesson is offered, including:

Set these up before creating your instructors, since you'll assign allowed lesson types as part of each instructor's profile. Walk through the full setup in Create Lesson Types.

Note: If you haven't read Overview: Lessons, it's a great place to start for a high-level review of how lessons work in CourtReserve.

Once your lesson types and instructors are set up, decide what members will pay. Rates can vary by instructor, lesson type, and membership type, so you have flexibility to match pricing to how your club actually operates:

Walk through the full setup in Set Instructor and Lesson Pricing, or watch the video tutorial for a guided walkthrough.

Next, create a system user login for your instructor(s) and check the Is Instructor? box on their profile. This unlocks the fields you'll need to complete setup:

Walk through the full setup in Add Instructors.

Decide how members will book lessons with your instructors. You have three options, and most clubs use a mix depending on the instructor or lesson format:

Start with Overview: Lessons to compare all three approaches and decide what fits each instructor or lesson type best. Once you've decided, the three sections below walk through what to set up next.

Every instructor needs bookable hours set on their profile before they can appear on any scheduler. From the instructor's User page under Settings > Instructor Settings > Instructors, you can set availability several ways:

Instructors can also view their own schedule and add unavailable time themselves from Schedulers > My Schedule, if you've given them that permission. Walk through the full setup in Manage Instructor Availability.
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Scheduling Restrictions control which lesson types each instructor is allowed to teach, which ensures the right instructors get assigned to the right lessons. You'll check boxes to assign specific lesson types to each instructor, so an instructor only shows up as bookable for the lesson formats they're qualified to teach.

Book a Pro is a custom scheduler that lets members book lessons directly online, without needing to go through an admin. Setting one up involves a few key decisions:

Walk through the full setup in Book a Pro Setup.

When a member calls or stops by asking to book a lesson, you (or a permissioned instructor) can handle the whole booking in one place:

This is your go-to when a member doesn't use, or doesn't have access to, self-booking.

To see all your instructors' schedules side by side before booking, go to Schedulers > Instructor(s). This view lays out each instructor's day or week in its own column, so you can quickly spot who's open at the time a member wants and click Schedule directly on their open slot.

See Book Lessons from the Admin Panel for the step-by-step.
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CourtReserve sends notifications to players at key points in the lesson lifecycle. Knowing what triggers each one helps you set expectations with your instructors and troubleshoot when a player says they didn't get an email they expected. Each notification can be turned on or off from the Notifications tab on a member's profile.

Setting up instructor operations in CourtReserve follows a natural order: tag your Instructor Types and Lesson Types first, then create each instructor's profile, decide how members will book their lessons, and configure availability, scheduling restrictions, and pricing to match. From there, day-to-day work centers on booking lessons for members who need assistance and understanding the automatic notifications players and staff receive.

For instructor-facing guidance, see the Instructor Quick Start.