I am a proud 2022 graduate of Being Tea’s Tea Teacher Training, an online program created and taught by Sooz Hammond. With the three year anniversary of my graduation approaching, I’ve been reflecting on the great experience and the unexpected (and wonderful) impact this program had on me.
Why I Signed Up
When I signed up, I never imagined myself actually teaching or running workshops with tea. I had taken many tea classes and workshop over the years, but never an eight-month comprehensive program about teaching with tea.
I joined because I admired Sooz, love tea, and enjoy thinking about teaching. I’m a tea-loving university professor, after all! In short, I thought the class would be fun and interesting.
I was right! But, it was that and so much more. (Nearby photo: Sooz Hammond wearing a Being Tea t-shirt and teaching online.)
Tea Teacher Inspiration Strikes
I did not expect how the training would inspire me to start teaching with tea! In fact, I was only a few months into the eight-month program when I could no longer resist offering a tea event. This training really inspired me and offered me tools to succeed.
I offered my first online tea-focused event, Story of a Teacup. Since then, I’ve offered many online and in-person tea events and workshops.
I still offer Story of a Teacup, too! This tea-and-empathy-building event has become an annual charity fundraiser. (My fourth annual Story of a Teacup online event will take place in November 2025.)
Tea Teacher Training Experience
Being Tea’s Tea Teacher Training was inclusive, informative, and fun. Sooz practices what she teaches, too! For example, payment for the program is on a sliding scale for accessibility. It’s also paid monthly over one year (not up front). Sooz’s example has inspired me to offer sliding-scale pricing for my tea offerings when I can.
Additionally, Sooz fostered a wonderful sense of community among class participants. Despite having taught, thought about, and taken many workshops about teaching in my decades working in Higher Ed, I learned so much about teaching!
Sooz designed and leads a dynamic and practical curriculum. Sooz drew on decades of a wide-range of tea experience to really help us understand what we needed to think about in terms of tea equipment, class pacing, group dynamics, and being inclusive. We also learned important and fascinating information about the physiology and psychology of stress and presence: a critical consideration for teachers and students!
More Unexpected Benefits
In addition to how I’ve applied what I learned to offer my own tea events, I’ve used the insights from Tea Teacher Training in my university teaching. It has helped me think more compassionately and creatively about my students’ range of personalities, stress- and comfort-levels. I do more to give students choices about how they participate in class, for example. I also regularly build small breaks into my longer classes largely thanks to thinking through accessibility with Sooz. (Long classes, I’ve found, are so rejuvenated by a break!) And, to my delight, I have even served tea to my university students and led a tea meditation on my campus. (I’m also trained as a meditation teacher.)
Don’t get the wrong idea! You don’t have to be a university professor to learn a great deal about teaching and teaching with tea. Sooz makes Tea Teacher Training accessible. My point is that despite having considerable background in “non-tea” teaching, I learned so much about teaching from the program.
Photo: set-up for tea meditation that I led on my campus
Tea Teacher Training Connections
What’s more, Sooz was a pleasure to work with–supporting everyone in the training with their trademark compassion, curiosity, and humor. The program encourages and fosters student interaction. The other students come from a wide-range of personal and professional backgrounds, enriching the the experience. Sooz and students give each other feedback and work through ideas and challenges together in the class.
I made new and deeper friends with folks in my cohort. I’ve also collaborated with a student in my cohort. (In the nearby photo: an image promoting an International Women’s Day event co-hosted by Taniya Gupta from Yoga, Tea, Poetry and me)
This class is practical, too! To graduate, students build on what they learned in Tea Teacher Training to create and teach a class. Sooz attends online. Other cohort members and previous graduates are invited, too. After the graduate finishes teaching their class, when the non-Tea Teacher folks leave the Zoom, Sooz offers feedback and invites the cohort and graduates to provide feedback, too.
Besides teaching my own class as part of my graduation, I’ve attended a number of these graduate sessions. Teaching feedback is always nurturing AND constructive. The graduate classes, like Sooz, continue to inspire and teach me. And, it’s another layer of community. Graduates can meet each other and see the newbies at these events. Sooz also offers online gatherings for all graduates from time-to-time as well.
Closing Thoughts about the Training
I looked forward to every meeting and every assignment of Being Tea’s Tea Teacher Training! I’m nostalgic about the entire experience. I’m grateful for what I learned there, the mentoring Sooz continues to provide, and how the experience enlarged my community.
I never imaged offering tea-related events, but now I can’t imagine my life without them. This program really set me on a path to do something I love with skill and confidence. For that, and everything else, I will be forever grateful.
As I type this in early July 2025, Sooz told me there are a few spots left for the 2025-2026 cohort. I wholeheartedly recommend this training.
Interested in more about me? I’ve also written about My Experience with Meditation Teacher Training.