Life at the Santa Fe School of Massage is a rich and diverse experience: fun, challenging, and rewarding.
School begins with a welcoming potluck for students, their friends, and families. We recognize the valuable role that a support team plays during the school term, and we want to let people know we appreciate them in advance! It is also the beginning of creating connections within the classes themselves, and of joining the larger SFSoM community of graduates and massage therapists.
Each class is unique and forms its own ways of relating with one another. We see the group dynamic as being an important part of the learning curve for developing therapists. Not only do fellow students provide support and encouragement, but working together within a diverse group of individuals brings greater compassion and understanding of all humanity.
Students receive and give massage in the bodywork classes in order to learn massage approaches and techniques. We create an aware environment for students to learn about disrobing and draping, appropriate pressure, and many other important ways to create student and client safety. We also create ways for students to share and process their experience, both in and outside of the classroom.
Not only are instructors sensitive to the need for integration, but the administrative staff also makes time for students to make their needs and suggestions known.
Students practice their massage skills three times a week at the school with supervision in the practice lab and student clinic. For the first part of the program, students bring in friends and family, or they can call from our extensive list of volunteers to practice the detailed techniques of Nurturing Therapeutic Massage.
The second half of the practicum is dedicated to the low-cost student clinic. It is here that students of massage transform into confident massage therapists.
The community outreach program gives students opportunities to hone their skills in specific community populations. Massage instructors accompany the students into various environments, such as triathlons, cancer clinics, and camps for children living with HIV or cancer.
Anatomy, Kinesiology, and Patho-physiology classes bring a combination of lecture and experiential learning to the flavor of school, stimulating the intellectual application of science in massage. We recognize the unique challenges of adult learners in these courses and encourage students to take advantage of the tools that are available to them. Individuals discover their unique learning styles, such as visual or kinesthetic, and are supported to learn with their strengths. Student study groups often form spontaneously. Tutoring and mentoring are available for anyone who needs additional academic support. Online and multi-media presentations are used to augment books and traditional materials.
Massage therapists tend to be highly diverse, creative, and motivated people. We encourage staff and students to bring their many talents to bear in other venues at the school. We have a yearly Halloween pumpkin carving contest and movie night, group yard sales, dances and impromptu music making. Yoga, dance, art, biking, meditation nights, all can be found throughout the year as ways people connect and enjoy each other’s company.
Finally, we come to graduation, our founder Dr. Scherer’s favorite night. It is a bittersweet time: dedication and hard work are celebrated; lasting friendships are honored. Everyone is excited and a little nervous to be leaving what has been such a nurturing and engaging place in their lives. And they are ready to expand into the larger world of being a massage therapist.
