Sent: Wednesday, June 25, 2014 11:20 PM

To: admin@bmbt.org

Subject: letter to CE committee meeting 6-30

To the NC Board and the Committee on Continuing Education

I have practiced massage for 25 years and have taught continuing education courses for 15 years.  So I have a stake in the massage profession and in the continuing education of therapists.  I understand an ad hoc committee has been created to consider changing the teacher approval process from NCBTMB to FSMTB.  Is this committee open to the public and does it keep minuets that are open to the public?  If so, I would like to attend and/or have access to the minutes so I and my colleagues can give useful input.

I wonder why you want to make such a big change and what you hope to gain?  I myself have not been particularly happy with NCBTMB – they certainly have had problems and made mistakes, but their teacher approval process seems to be working pretty well now.  The current system of approval by NCBTMB and acceptance by most states has allowed teachers like me to teach in several states and therapists to take courses from teachers in other states.  That is a good system that should be preserved.

I’ve been in education for 30 years and I know it takes years of trial and error to develop a good approval process.  The FSMTB has no experience, so I am not looking forward to going through that trial process with another agency.  I hope you will work with us to get it right quicker, if you are determined to go that route.  And I hope some concessions will be given to teachers who are already approved by NCBTMB if there is a new approval program.

I have a PhD in Linguistics and Education, and before getting into massage I had 15 years’ experience in teaching, teacher training, and curriculum development at the college and adult education levels.  I’m well acquainted with both the need for some kind of teacher training and approval and the inherent difficulty of making and running any kind of approval program that actually ensures quality teaching.  It is naïve to think one can quickly and easily create a new program with a new agency that does the job any better than the NCBTMB.  You will need lots of help, and we can help. 

You will need to be very clear about what you are trying to do and why.  There are many ways to address whatever current problems there are.  Is it really about public safety or the standards of the massage profession or more of a legal or political issue?  We first need to know what those problems are, and what you are trying to do.  We want to be part of the process and solution, not just critics, because it is our profession which we care about, and we are the ones who will be directly affected by your decisions.

To help you in this process, the Coalition of Massage & Bodywork CE Instructors has put together some key questions which are being sent to you separately.  I hope you will consider them seriously and respond to the Coalition and allow us to discuss options with you.

Respectfully,

Robert Wootton, PhD, LMBT