News and Updates

ACARET Board of Directors who presented were Lilian Morten, Pres. (right), Linda Chollar, VP (middle) and Stephenie Cooke.

The ACARET Board of Directors would like to thank everyone who participated in the educational forum hosted by ACARET at the RAA Conference in Portland, Maine. We were extremely pleased with the attendance at the forum as well as the enthusiasm and positive attitude displayed.

A special thanks to all of the educators and participants who took the time to give thoughtful and meaningful input to the Questionnaire that was sent out prior to the conference. This information served as the platform to open discussion for the forum. 

Comments and discussion from the Q&A session were recorded and will serve the Board of Directors as they plan curriculum standards. ACARET’s aim is to be inclusive and seek to accommodate as many educator’s programs as possible while moving toward a higher standard of education for reflexology in America.

Key points presented in the power point , “Creating a Profession” were:

• ACARET’s Role: “Creating standards of excellence in reflexology education through  accreditation credentialing of educators and reflexology curricula.”
• ACARET’s Mission: To promote, advance and uphold standards in education for the profession of reflexology in America. We offer a voluntary accreditation process for teachers and reflexology curriculums. We do not provide or write teaching manuals or detailed curriculum.
• Why Accreditation: Professionalism, Recognition, Credentialing, Connection, Commitment, Support, Growth, CAM Guidelines Compliance. Accreditation says, “This program or this educator meets the highest standards of excellence in the industry.”
• Who Benefits from Accreditation: reflexology students, current & future educators, school owners, the profession, the consumer.
• ACARET’s serves the reflexology profession as the Accrediting Organization to support self-regulation, a code of ethics and setting uniform educational standards for reflexology education by: evaluating competency of teachers, establishing a standardized core curriculum, accrediting educators and curricula (programs not schools) and evaluating adult learning dynamics.

Highlights of responses from the national questionnaire that was emailed to educators included: 
33% supported 250 hours as a minimum standard curriculum; 27% supported 300 hours; 16% supported 200 hours; 24% were undecided. Regarding a spilt of 65 in-class/35 outside: 44 agreed; 22% disagreed; 34% were unsure.

Input at the forum covered a wide range of opinions but overall there was a collective enthusiasm and unity of mind that it is time for our profession to raise our educational standards. Most were in favor of raising the 200 hours currently in place for certification to 250-300 hours.  There was much interest in  increasing hours for technique and clinicals.  For the 65/35 split, many expressed support for increased hours outside classroom.  There was interest in receiving credit for home-based study and reflexology related activity as well as on-line study and distance learning credit. Advanced credentialing of a tiered-approach to accreditation was posed as a future option.
 
Enthusiasm was apparent that we move into the future with a focus on reflexology being recognized as a CAM practice by the White House Commission on CAM and that we rise to meet the guidelines of the WHCCAM which calls for training of CAM teachers and practitioners and for developing uniform courses, accredited by professional bodies (ACARET's role).  Learn more about the WHC Report on CAM (Complementary and Alternative Medicine) at the Reflexology Association of America website.