Faculty and Staff

“I love the teachers at SFSOM.  They are SO knowledgeable and supportive.  They gave me the skills and insight to confidently open my massage practice right out of school.”
Luna Jordan, graduate 2012

Our courses are taught by dedicated and expert instructors who are passionate about their work. Both staff and faculty support the learning process of our students on all levels. You will experience their commitment to your personal and professional growth. We have created a highly structured program with clear guidelines, within which there is flexibility to honor the personal process of each student. Our academic and bodywork hands-on finals are held to the highest standards by all faculty members, and we continuously evaluate and refine the curriculum to meet the growing needs of the profession.

Our highly qualified staff and instructors combine diverse interdisciplinary backgrounds and education, weaving a wide spectrum of beliefs and practices into the curriculum. At the same time, the faculty is unified in its embrace of the school’s vision and principles, both in theory and practice.

Lonnie Howard, MA
Director
Lonnie has been the director of the school since 1985. She is a 1982 graduate of the Scherer Institute [SFSOM] and has her Master’s degree in Psychology from Antioch University. In 1983 she began working in the administration of the then named Dr. Jay Victor Scherer Academy of Natural Healing [SFSOM.] She was privileged to know and work with Dr. Jay Scherer until his death in 1990, and is committed to the legacy the Scherer/Santa Fe School of Massage has created over all these years. It is a great joy for her to participate in the co-creation of the massage programs at Santa Fe School of Massage, and she continues to delight in helping to nurture the blossoming of the students on all levels. Lonnie is also an avid birder and a poet.

Cathy Black, MA, Minister
Owner, Subtle Body,  Intuitive Presence
Cathy began practicing massage in 1980 and completed her Master’s Degree in 2005 from Lesley University in Intuitive Healing and Facilitation. She was connected with the Scherer Institute [SFSOM]  from 1991- 1998 when she created and taught the Healing Quality of Touch massage course. She has come back full circle to Santa Fe School of Massage as co-owner with her husband Keith, because she loves the school and knows the potential of massage training to positively change people’s lives. In addition to her function as an owner, Cathy brings a renewed inspiration to the field of healing touch through her work with intuition and consciousness. She shares her expertise with intuitive healing modalities in the Subtle Body course and through Healing Presence Intuitive Studies Advanced Trainings.

Keith Spear, BA
Owner
Keith brings his fresh perspectives from both the East and West Coasts to the Santa Fe School of Massage family. His expertise in cognitive therapies and brain development give him a unique approach to learning whether it is in the healing arts or teaching young people how to process information and read more effectively. Keith recognizes the importance of the right/left brain balance from the educational programs he administers with young people in his private practice. He also knows the value of massage and the healing arts from his own experience and because he’s married to Cathy! By combining his understanding of the learning process with his respect for healing and intuition, he provides a grounded focus with an expansive vision for the school.

Nora Davidson BA, LMT
Administrative Assistant
Nora graduated from the Santa Fe School of Massage in March of 2017. She is proud to be the second member of her family to attend the school. Her mom was in the second graduating class of the Scherer Institute of Natural Healing (SFSOM) in 1981. After years of experiences and inspiration that led her to Santa Fe School of Massage, she is thrilled to now be working behind the scenes to help keep this beautiful school running smoothly. She loves getting to know the students as they undertake their very own personal journeys through this program. She is also grateful to be a practicing massage therapist in various locations around Santa Fe.

Emily Johnson, BSN, RN, LMT
Director of Admissions
Emily graduated from the Santa Fe School of Massage in April of 2019. She’s been fascinated by bodywork since her early teen years and was thrilled to finally attend SFSOM after years of interest. Emily had been living in Arizona prior to moving to Santa Fe for massage school, where she lived for 22 years. She got her Bachelor of Nursing at Arizona State University and completed the ASU/Mayo Clinic Nursing program in 2014.She has always had a deep passion for holistic wellness, alternative medicine, and incorporating massage/energy work in the healing process. She couldn’t stay away from the school for long and began working as the Director of Admissions in late October 2019. She is loving being back in the school environment, working with such an incredible staff and getting to assist students on their journey towards the life changing world of massage. She also currently works in the community running her own part-time massage private practice and part-time as an outpatient RN at Presbyterian.

Kim Gibbs BA, LMT, RMTI #S-0446
The Fragile Client
After graduating from the University of Northern Iowa, Kim moved to Colorado where she worked as a network systems programmer and storage specialist for a large computer services company for 17 years.  Kim received her massage certification in 2008 from the Santa Fe School of Massage (formerly the Scherer Institute of Natural Healing) in Santa Fe, NM. Kim maintains a private practice in which she provides integrated sessions including modalities of Reiki, Connective Tissue Bodywork, Deep Tissue, Swedish and Oncology massage.  She also works at the acupuncture offices of Drs. Sandy and David Canzone and Emily Brough.  Kim enjoys gardening, reading and printmaking.

Jackson Mathey, LMT #8132
Anatomy and Kinesiology; The Biology of Trauma
Jackson Mathey, LMT is a native of the high desert southwest. Before coming to the Santa Fe School of Massage he studied audio engineering at the College of Santa Fe. He loves figuring out how things work, learning and sharing knowledge. He has found a passion for teaching Anatomy because of the depth of connection it brings to one’s own self and others. His teaching style is engaging and interactive, and his classes, while rigorous and challenging, are also fun. Jackson is also an avid drummer, backpacker and fly fisherman.

Caitlin Townsend, LMT, RMTI #S-0518
Healing Quality of Touch, Pathophysiology, Business
Caitlin graduated from Santa Fe School of Massage in 2011, and shortly after launched her business Heartwise Massage and Bodywork. Along with her work in private practice and at a high-end spa, she has also enjoyed working with incoming and current students as the Admission/Outreach Coordinator at SFSOM for a few years. She feels blessed to be able to bring her six years of experience as a small business owner, and utilize her degrees in Business Administration and Accounting to help bridge the worlds of business and bodywork as she joins the SFSOM staff as the Business instructor. Caitlin has a passion for sharing her heart-centered approach to life whether as a practitioner, teacher, or life-long learner.

Emilie Brough, DOM, LMT
Cancer and Massage (Guest Lecturer)
Emilie combines her 15 years as a practitioner and teacher of massage and herbal medicine into her acupuncture practice. She uses Oriental medicine, nutrition, massage, reflexology and hot rock therapy to focus on cancer care, acute and chronic pain management, and holistic wellness support. Emilie is an instructor at the Santa Fe School of Massage (Scherer Institute) , the Peregrine Institute of Oncology  Massage and developed a student  massage clinic at the Cancer Care Center at St. Vincent’s Hospital. In addition to her private practice in Santa Fe she is a DOM at UNM’s Integrative Medicine Clinic, the Center for Life.

Silvia Stenitzer, MA, LPCC, LMT #0060
Ethics, Interpersonal Neurobiology
Silvia has been addressing the body-mind-soul connection in her private practice “Interactive Bodytherapy” for the past 25 years. In her work, she embraces the whole person, including the psychological, mental and physical aspects of well-being. She designs and facilitates experiential workshops that foster self-knowledge and self-care. She teaches and presents regularly at conferences on topics of interpersonal neurobiology, attachment theory and action methods. Silvia holds a MA and a certificate in Interpersonal Neurobiology, Somatics and Action Methods from Southwestern College in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Shanna Marsh-Martínez, MA, BCPP, RPE
Polarity
Shanna is a teacher and private practitioner of mind/body/spirit health.  She is devoted to supporting people in living wilder, fresher, and better. A former public school educator, she now brings her practical, passionate, and playful approach to all learning arenas.

Farice Rezabek, LMT, RMTI #S-0279
Hydrotherapy
Farice came to massage after many years of computers, math and teaching in corporate, academic and non-profit realms.  Farice is a life-long learner dedicated to helping others alongside herself.   She graduated from the Scherer Institute (SFSOM) in 2001.   In the following decade, she continued her growth through assisting classes, tutoring students, supervising student clinic, ‘massaging’ the office data and teaching Anatomy.   Her after-school time was spent honing her art through her work at Santa Fe Massage, Bishop’s Lodge Shanah Spa and Encantado.  Farice looks forward to bringing her skills, experience and enthusiasm to working with the healing power of water within and around us.

Kayla Lucky, LMT, RMTI #S-0565
Integrative Deep Tissue Bodywork, and Clinic Supervisor
Kayla grew up in Southern Utah where she received her Bachelors degree in Psychology. She spent several years traveling and studying alternative healing such as yoga, meditation, reiki, altar of creation healing, herbalism, and intuitive guidance. While managing the Wellness Center at the Omega Institute for Holistic Studies, Kayla found a deep appreciation and connection with bodywork. It was there in Upstate New York she heard about the Santa Fe School of Massage and decided to make the move to attend. Not long after getting her massage license, Kayla also became a Certified Neuromuscular Therapist. She currently sees clients in her own office, as well as working at some of the high end spas around Santa Fe. This work has made her more fulfilled and happier than ever. She is honored to be able to share her passion with new students.

Lauri Genesio, LMT,RMTI-I #0564

Shiatsu

Lauri graduated from the Scherer Institute (SFSOM), in 2004, after completing studies at the Ohashi Institute in Chicago, Il.—now called Zen Shiatsu Chicago. Zen Shiatsu, a concept created by Shizuto Masunaga and Wataru Ohashi, is a practice of listening, assessing, and treating the whole body system—by connecting to the energetic flow between the Hara and Meridians. Lauri became an instructor at SFSOM in 2005, teaching an introductory Zen Shiatsu course, and continues to provide CE training and courses in Shiatsu. In 2015, she began the study and clinical practice of Medical Qigong with Red Thread Institute in California.  Lauri lives in Santa Fe, and practices Asian bodywork, therapeutic massage, Aroma Acupoint therapy, and is certified as a Medical Qigong practitioner.