Archive for the ‘Education’ Category

Bioneers 2011

Tuesday, October 25th, 2011

Each year we offer massage services to the staff who put on Bioneers. Each year I am inspired and renewed with purpose by the amazing presentations and energy infused into the weekend. Our massage services were utilized more this year than any year prior! I think people are understanding how a little rejuvenation can permeate into all that they do!

I continue to appreciate the relevance of what we provide as massage education and how it is connected to the overall mission of the Bioneers. We graciously accept a position on the list of small organizations, as Paul Hawken has compiled, trying to create change within the community while maintaining an awareness of the environment and our ecological impact. Many people do not recognize that we, as small business owners, preserving a voice in our profession, maintaining a right to chose how we interact within the community, have a huge impact on the land we occupy, the people we serve, and the energy we create. Just by having an intention to honor each person as they begin a journey toward serving others through bodywork, we have a hugely different presence in the community than a company that is built on the ever so common and unsustainable model of growth. We measure success not by the Profit but by the way in which we see people reconnecting with themselves to offer service and healing to others.

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International Students

Friday, August 26th, 2011

WELCOME!!

We are now accepting international students at McKinnon. We have been approved to issue I-20 forms for M1 Visas for students wishing to study abroad for 3mo, 6mo, and 1 year. This was a long process and we are so excited to be able to say – yes, we can – when asked!

Already many graduates have given information helpful for resources to help travelers with housing and acclimating to the bay area!

Please tell your foreign friends and help enrich our community with diversity! For more information check out the link on our website which explains how to apply. www.mckinnonmassage.com

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Business, Regulations, Anatomy….. Not the fun stuff?

Tuesday, May 18th, 2010

business, ethics, hygiene, regulations, insurance, liability, taxes….

while many people build a practice with minimal understanding of massage regulations, business sense or anatomy and physiology, those days are numbered. by the time I have explained the acronyms CAMTC, CMT, CMP, ABMP, AMTA, MBOK, IMSAC, NCE, MBLEx, FSMTB, BPPE, STRF…..
our allotted time has ended.

as i begin the process of revising the curriculum within the well established programs, i find myself spinning around the constant and predictable feedback from students. prior to enrollment, most people show interest in many modalities, hands on skills and technique. great, that is why we are here. well, one of the reasons. we are also very committed to providing people with the essential knowledge of building a practice, navigating the industries regulatory bodies, and the anatomy and pathology that is required to allow safe practice.

inevitably the story is different after the classes.  students feel the a&p should be required before the hands on and that more time for business would allow for a better foundation in how to get started.

after teaching a basic business class this past weekend, it was the same, the felt like it was half of what we needed. yet, when scheduled in as a longer course, people balk at the idea of signing up for a course that is not ‘teaching massage’. business and anatomy and regulations are a part of massage. they are becoming even more relevant as the CAMTC takes hold and more of the public gets informed, and misinformed, about what the field has to offer and how to go about being a part of it.

beginning in 2011, we will be adding more a&p, business and rich theoretical discussion to the curriculum. we won’t be headed toward Accreditation – standardized assembly line massage factories – but we will be making small and meaningful additions and tweaks to our already fantastic massage training programs. if you are feeling uninformed on the new regulations, or have not looked at your anatomy book since class, or need guidance getting a job, maybe a little more education is in order.

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Sustainable Education

Monday, November 2nd, 2009

For those who are interested in green living and sustainability, those looking to spend money in wise and earth friendly ways, they often find themselves in a trap when it comes to education. Many educational pathways require a payment into the system, whether through financial dependency on the commercial banking industry, or teaching methods that are outdated and insufficient at breaking us out of the current paradigm of thinking. Our commitment to upholding green business values and maintaining certification through the Alameda Green Business program places us in a very unique position in being able to offer an education that is holistically green. Tuition is not going to pay CEO bonuses, financial assistance does not come from banking institutions, and the curriculum is not from a former paradigm of reinforcing domination over the natural world.

Massage and bodywork as a practice has inherent roots in a holistic, systems based understanding. People tend to explore bodywork as a profession out of a desire to help people, to be in a healing relationship. As people train in bodywork, they begin to understand how deep the work can be in transforming themselves, and their clients. That creating of space by an experienced practitioner/teacher for students to open and let themselves go into the experience of the work can take on much greater meaning and healing potential than can be gleaned from reading books about bodywork or being told about it by a non practicing teacher.

The art of teaching bodywork lies in the teachers’ connection to the work. Bell Hooks describes this engaged pedagogy: ‘The learning process comes easiest to those of us who teach who also believe that there is an aspect of our vocation that is sacred; who believe that our work is not merely to share information but to share in the intellectual and spiritual growth of our students. To teach in a manner that respects and cares for the souls of our students is essential if we are to provide the necessary conditions where learning can most deeply and intimately begin.” Much of what education has become is cookie cutter style curriculum fed to everyone in the same portions, and the depth and interconnectedness has been systematically distilled out in effort to quantify outcomes. Historically, learning has been the experience of living with elders, with masters of crafts, of hearing stories passed down from generation to generation, and spending time to understand the full scope of the implications of the craft and how it fits into a community, offering and developing a solid sense of place within the community by being able to have this craft to share. Since 1973 McKinnon has been committed to offering an education that is rooted in the philosophy of passing on the craft of bodywork by creating a space in which teachers and students can share that “intellectual and spiritual growth”, and in which we can “care for the souls of our students” so that they can, in turn, care for the souls of others. This is our commitment.

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Title Act or Practice Act – SB 731

Friday, July 17th, 2009

Title Acts control the names or titles massage therapists may use, but do not control who can do massage. Practice acts control both the names/titles for massage therapists, as well as controlling who can do massage. SB 731 is clearly a title act yet recent events show signs that local governments are turning to it as a mandate to practice. WIthout a definition of practice, this effort could prove to discredit all efforts thus far by various organizations to create a certification process that will elevate the profession. The intent of the law was to create a “voluntary certification for the massage therapy profession” as stated in SB 731. With the movement by local governments to require this standard it moves this from voluntary to mandated. Within the optional routes for certification, there remains many grey areas for currently practicing therapists and those practicing various modalities that without a definition cannot be exempted. It in no way benefits the profession to have SB 731 in its current form be the go to legislation for local governments. Particularly before the certification process has even begun. The Board of Directors of CAMTC and the staff they have hired may be prepared to handle a voluntary certification process for those who chose to become certified. What if they are not equipped with man power or finances to handle it moving to a requirement. Is this still in the best interest of the profession?

Posted in Business Practices, Education, Regulation | 1 Comment »

Choosing a Massage School

Monday, March 16th, 2009
Small Schools Vs. Large Schools
How to Choose a Massage School That’s Right for You
Many prospective students find themselves facing the difficult decision of choosing a massage school that fits their needs. The choice usually comes down to a large, corporately owned school, a public school like a community college, or a small, individually owned school. Bigger schools usually offer federal financial aid while small, individually owned schools traditionally require fewer hours to graduate, and offer a more flexible, modular schedule and payment plans instead of financial aid. For the uninitiated, it can be challenging to find out and weigh the advantages and disadvantages of these options against each other. The AMTA, the American Massage Therapy Association, has just published its annual Massage Industry Research Report, and with it a couple of interesting facts about massage schools. One of them is concerning hourly tuition. The prospect of federal financial aid is tempting many students, however, it is usually attached to longer programs offered by corporately owned or public schools, requiring students to attend school for at least a year, and leaving them with student loans to pay off for many years to come. In California, these long programs usually exceed the minimum state-required hours of massage training by a few hundred. On the other hand, small schools offer shorter programs, allowing students to enter the workforce much quicker, getting them started on making money, and encouraging continuing education classes as a means to  further skills. According to the AMTA report, hourly tuition is on average lower in smaller schools. The report also states that small school graduates face the least difficulties finding employment. Individually owned, small schools have lower drop-out rates than larger schools and colleges, better developed curricula, and better qualified teachers.
There are a multitude of reasons for choosing a specific school, and many of them are personal. It pays, however, to choose wisely, to do your research and to weigh your options. It is Your future, after all.
Susi Fluer, Instructor, McKinnon BTC

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