The Successful Hands Grant Program, developed through the collaborative efforts of Biofreeze, Bon Vital, and Massage Envy, has announced the winners of its educational grants. The application process for the 2016 program began in March and involved students applying for one of eight $1,000 grants. In addition, each winner’s school is awarded a $500 grant and a $500 product package. The grant application process required students to complete an essay of 200 words on “What being a successful massage therapist mean to me.” The submission process closed on Oct. 15 and winners were chosen by this year’s review committee members, which included Julie Keller Callaghan, editor-in-chief and publisher of American Spa, Mae Manacap-Johnson, editor of Pulse, Karen Menehan, editor-in-chief of Massage Magazine, and Scott Dartnall, CEO and president of One Concept. This year’s winners of the Successful Hands Grant Program are:
- Andrew Steigmeier, Finger Lakes School of Massage, Mount Kisco, NY
- Andrew VanDeusen, National Institute of Massotherapy, Akron, OH
- Audrey Wood, Bellus Academy, Poway, CA
- Cassandra Herrera, Academy for Massage Therapy Training, San Antonio, TX
- Jessica Dunn, AR Therapeutic Massage Institute, Hot Springs, AR
- Lydia Tovar, American Career College, Long Beach, CA
- Sadie Robinson, North Country Community College, Saranac Lake, NY
- Whitney Waugh, Colorado School of Healing Arts, Lakewood, CO
“As evidenced by the quality of the submissions we received, our future is in the hands of very passionate and talented individuals,” says Lynda Solien-Wolfe, vice president, massage and spa for Performance Health. “Once again, it was truly a privilege to invest in these students’ futures through this collaborative grant program with Massage Envy. Thank you to all the students and schools who participated this year. The 750+ applications represented 294 massage therapy schools and/or programs. Because of this overwhelming response, I’m pleased to announce we will be implementing the program again in 2017.”