Massage therapy coming to IVCC
By Holli L. Rapp
Feeling the need for a massage? In the spring semester IVCC will begin offering a certificate program in Therapeutic Massage.
The one-year program will require 30 hours. Classes will include introduction to therapeutic massage, business principles, and human anatomy.
Dr. Harriet Custer, Vice-President of Academic Affairs, said the program is being added because of the need for massage therapists in this area.
A needs assessment conducted by the college showed that graduates of the IVCC program could work in hospitals, nursing homes, health clubs, beauty salons, and chiropractic offices, Custer said. She added that many of them go into private practice.
After receiving the one-year certificate, massage therapists can take a national exam for certification. Custer said certified therapists average $25 to $35 for a half hour session, and $30 to $60 for an hour.
Bonnie Grusk, chair of the health professions division, said the addition of the program was an exciting move.
"Not very many colleges in Illinois have therapeutic massage programs," she said.
IVCCs program should attract students, Grusk said, since most of the training available is from commercial agencies which charge higher fees than the college.
The college has projected an enrollment of 24 students in the program and it will add one new faculty member. The college is currently searching for someone with a B.S. in a health field, certification by the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Body Work and two years experience as a massage therapist.
The pre-massage part of the program will begin in January 1999 with the full program to be in place by fall 1999.
Having the students in the program provide massages to students and faculty is an idea being explored, Custer said, adding that there would probably be a charge.
Oct. 8, 1998 the Apache