We’ve worked with the Herbal Academy of New England in the past, and we’ve loved everything the school has done. They’ve offered an evidence-based, affordable education in herbalism for students from all over the world via local workshops and online education. So, we were a bit concerned when the school contacted us and told us they’d be changing their name last year.
Starting in 2015, the Herbal Academy of New England became simply the Herbal Academy. This wasn’t the only change: They redesigned their website and added even more “paths” for herbalism education. We reached out to the Herbal Academy of New Eng — sorry, the Herbal Academy — to find out what the school was doing and what it meant for their students.
Marlene Adelmann, herbalist and Director of the Herbal Academy, responded and we’re thrilled to say that while the Herbal Academy may have a new name and a new features for its students, the school’s dedication to its original mission remains intact.
Here’s the complete interview with Adelmann below: 
Why did you decide to change “The Herbal Academy of New England” to “The Herbal Academy?”
This was a difficult decision to make, but absolutely necessary. You see, we opened the doors for the first time in 2011 here in the greater Boston area. The Herbal Academy of New England was right for the time. We had many students coming to our lakeside cottage from all around New England. A year later, we ended up taking our programs online. As we began expanding more and more online, we realized students were joining from all over the globe. Our school had evolved into something with a much broader reach, and our name no longer fit us or accurately reflected our students. So in 2015, we made the decision to drop the “of New England” and we are so happy we did. The Herbal Academy feels more inclusive to everyone studying with us. It fits our community well!
When did you make that shift?
Unofficially, we started making the shift about a year ago. Fall 2015 we launched our new name to the public. That was the same time we released our new website and our advanced herbalist programs.
Is there any difference in the courses offered and in what way, if any?
We have learned over the years – mostly from our students – that there are many directions you can take once you begin your herbal journey. Regardless of the initial reasons that set us on this journey, an herbal education can be a doorway to many different paths: a way to create community or to help people in need, a way to support conservation efforts for endangered plant species, or even a means to develop a personal creative outlet through gardening, making herbal products, or as an artist or photographer.
The biggest difference students will see here at the Herbal Academy is the addition of our newly designed Herbalist Path Packages. These Herbalist Paths help direct students towards the training that best aligns with their career or educational goals. The Clinical Herbalist, Professional Herbalist, Entrepreneur Herbalist, and Family Herbalist Paths are now part of the Herbal Academy’s catalog of educational offerings.
With the new website release, we opened up two new programs for herbalist students. The Entrepreneur Herbal Course helps prepare for students for business endeavors, while the Advanced Herbal Course takes students through complex clinical topics to prepare for a professional career in herbalism.
Our foundational programs, the Introductory Herbal Course and Intermediate Herbal Course, have for the most part stayed constant as we’ve transitioned the school. We did give both courses a refresh, if you will, adding more herbal recipes, updated media, and new photography. These were great programs from the start, so they didn’t need changes!
Have you changed the “philosophy” of your school, and if you have, how so?
Our philosophy really didn’t change. Our team is dedicated to teaching the art, science, and lifestyle of herbalism by offering high quality, affordable herbal education. This was our passion five years ago when we were hosting local workshops, and it’s in our hearts now, even as we expand into a global student demographic.
How have your students responded to the change?
Herbalism is definitely entering into mainstream media, but it’s still hard to connect with like-minded herbalists at a local level. We have essentially provided a platform that enables students to connect with other herbalists who may be right there in their communities. Chances are they are meeting many herbalists from all walks of life; it’s very encouraging and affirming.
As we continue to grow, our online community grows, too, which offers many benefits for our students. We’re able to bring on more educators to support our student body. We recently opened up a student-only Facebook group to continue the discussion from our programs. It’s a rich, lively community – one that many of our students don’t have locally! I think students love the changes happening here at the school!
One of the things that’s always impressed me about your school is your dedication to citing research in your classes and correspondence. Has that changed any with the new direction of the school?
Thank you! We value evidence-based education as an important complement to traditional wisdom and practical experience. If anything, we’re doing even more of this – carrying those same principles into our blog writing as well.
Bearing this change in mind, what are your plans for the future of the school?
I wish I could tell you everything going on behind the scenes! As a school we will always remain rooted in education, but we plan to expand beyond that. Our students are begging us for some Academy memorabilia, so we promised that we would provide something before the end of the year. It is important to us to celebrate where we are with our students so we want to offer practical tools that may serve to facilitate our practice while uniting us on our common path.
We are collaborating with another wonderful herbal business at the moment. Together, we will provide a new offering that will enhance our current educational programs. While I cannot give the details, I think this will be a real treat for our students!
Our course development team continues to work together to create programs that are fresh, smart, and innovative. Herbalism has an allure all of it’s own so it makes our job very simple. We have a huge treasure trove from which to draw, and we have only scratched the surface! You can expect to see some extraordinary courses and educational programs coming out of the Academy in the very near future. While we continue to work with some of the most brilliant minds in the field today, it is as important to us now as it was when we started to provide affordable education.
Have I neglected to ask anything?
You know, many people reach out to us with questions on how to get started in herbalism on a very small budget. I encourage readers to check out our herbal blog as a great place to start. With new content being published three times a week and several years worth of existing content, this offering is incredibly valuable for beginners and experienced herbalists alike. The best part is, it’s 100% free!
Another offering that cannot be overlooked is a subscription to The Herbarium, our membership site. It’s just $45/year; that averages to be $3.75 a month. Featured inside The Herbarium is the Academy’s Herbal Monograph Database, an amazing resource for learning about herbs, as well as many articles on various topics in herbalism for continuing education. The Herbarium was created to provide a strong resource for students. It’s also a wonderful, affordable springboard for those who wish to learn more about herbs without committing to a full course.
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The post Herbal Academy of New England Changes its name, but not its mission appeared first on From Scratch Magazine.