DORENE PETERSEN.
ARC CHAIR
Dorene Petersen has served as Chair of the Aromatherapy Registration Council (ARC) since 1999. As Chair, Dorene helps to ensure minimum standards of training and safety knowledge of registered aromatherapists (RAs)
Dorene holds a BA in Archaeology and Anthropology from Otago University, New Zealand, a Diploma in Natural Therapeutics from the South Pacific College of Natural Therapies in Auckland, New Zealand, and is a certified acupuncturist with specialized training in Chinese herbal medicine and moxibustion.
Dorene is President and Founder of the American College of Healthcare Sciences (ACHS). Founded in 1978 in New Zealand, ACHS later opened additional branches in Australia and Hong Kong. Today, ACHS is housed entirely on the U.S. campus located in Portland, Oregon.
In addition to her work as President of ACHS, Dorene also teaches courses for the College and leads annual summer study-abroad programs to Greece and Indonesia, which explore holistic health, holistic nutrition, and therapeutic aromatherapy and distillation, among other topics. She is an eCollege certified online instructor and is a faculty member meeting the qualifications prescribed by the Oregon Office of Degree authorization. She stays abreast of current methodologies through various trainings with the Distance Education Training Council and by attending annual conferences about online learning, educational technology and instructional design.
Dorene regularly lectures about medical herbalism, aromatherapy, and iridology, including appearances at: The South Pacific College of Natural Therapies (NZ), the National College of Naturopathic Medicine (NCNM), the Aesthetics Institute, and at the Birthingway School of Midwifery all in Portland, Oregon,
In addition, Dorene has appeared on various TV and radio shows, including Good Morning Oregon, the national radio show Voice of America, KPTV Better Portland, and In the Garden. She also has presented papers at the Asian Aroma Ingredients Congress and Expo in Kunming, Yunnan, China; the International Federation of Essential Oils and Aroma Trades Annual Conference in California, USA; the Aroma Environment Association of Japan in Tokyo, Japan; the Asian Aroma Ingredients Congress and Expo in Bali, Indonesia; the World Perfumery Congress in Cannes, France; The Herb Growers and Marketers Conference in Hyannis, Massachusetts; the International Scientific Aromatherapy Symposium in Grasse, France; and at the International Herb Association Conference in Portland, Oregon. Her articles about aromatherapy have appeared in publications worldwide, including: Perfumer & Flavorist, International Journal of Professional Holistic Aromatherapy, Alternative Therapies in Clinical Practice, The News Quarterly, Making Scents, The Herbarist, the NAHA Aromatherapy Journal, Massage Magazine, the International Herb Association Herb of the Year books, me (a Massage Envy health and wellness publication), and the Aromatherapy Registration Council newsletter.
Dorene is also a professional member of the American Herbalists Guild. In 2009, she was awarded the Professional Service Award from the International Herb Association for her outstanding contributions to the herb industry.
Dorene is active with the Distance Education Training Council (DETC), and chaired the DETC annual meeting and conference in Seattle in 2006. She is also a member of the Research and Educational Standards Subcommittee of the DETC.
Dorene can be contacted via email at info@aromatherapycouncil.org and by phone at (503) 244-0726.
Mynou de Mey
ARC Board Director
Mynou de Mey has been involved in Aromatherapy since 1989, has a Master’s Degree in Medicinal Herbology, an International Certification in Aromatherapy, and is a Certified Educator in the field of Aromatherapy. Her extensive training in Aromatherapy and Herbology has greatly contributed to her excellent professional profile. Director of the American Institute for Aromatherapy and Herbal Studies, Mynou offers both correspondence and live certificate courses. She teaches Aromatherapy worldwide, has appeared on television, and contributes to news articles for health-oriented publications.
Mynou has served as Vice-President of NAHA (National Association for Holistic Aromatherapy), an association concerned with the education and ethics of aromatherapy in the United States, and previously served on the Educational Committee and the Ethics Committee. Mynou is a co-founder, and actively serving as a Board Director for ARC (Aromatherapy Registration Council,) a non-profit organization involved in promoting education in the field of Aromatherapy.
Mynou was selected by the US-AID program in Washington D.C. and sent to Russia to teach Cosmetologists and Doctors about the practice of aromatherapy and the business of aromatherapy in the American context. There, she introduced many essential oils that were unknown or/and unavailable to those professionals.
Mynou worked as a consultant for a well-known National Football League, making blends specifically designed for athletes, their success, self-confidence, and the locker room!
She served as a consultant for some known Cosmetic product designers and reviewed the accuracy of their marketing lingo, medical claims, and safety use.
She is proud to have many students in the US and in Japan, who, under her guidance, have started their own Aromatherapy business, or teachings. She has had several celebrities learning with her and continues to seek students that want to spread the word about Aromatherapy responsibly.
Today, she still teaches Aromatherapy, and always looks forward to get involved with the industry of essential oils at any level that would promote Aromatherapy, and its profession.
Mynou de Mey can be contacted via email at info@aromatherapycouncil.org and by phone at (845) 672-4535.
Sylla S. Hanger
ARC Board Member
Sylla Sheppard-Hanger is the Founder and Director of the Atlantic Institute of Aromatherapy in Tampa, Florida. She brings 45 years of experience and personal research into the practice of aromatherapy and essential oils.
Her fascination with this subject led her to study with the most knowledgeable scientists in the fields of aromatic and medicinal plants, essential oil research and herbology. In 1993, she completed the Medicinal and Aromatic Plants Program at Purdue University in Indiana, and she continued on to complete the International Training in Essential Oils: Advanced Studies, Parts 1 and 2 (1996-7). She was a founding member of the American Aromatherapy Association (1988) and served two terms on the Board of Directors. As former Chair of the Safety Committee with the National Association for Holistic Aromatherapy (14 years), she saw an influx of essential-oil-related injuries and began annual Injury Reports, which are available at the Atlantic Institute of Aromatherapy’s website.
After the September 11th tragedy, Sylla volunteered with the Carolina Emergency Relief Massage Team, whose four deployments provided complimentary chair massages and aromatherapy treatments to over 3,500 relief workers and volunteers. During this time, Sylla formed the United Aromatherapy Effort, Inc. (UAE) a non-profit charity with the mission to collect and provide donated aromatherapy products to those affected by critical incidents and emergency work. The UAE was active in Florida during the aftermath of the 2004 hurricanes, and they supported the community in Biloxi, MS, after hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005. Most recently, the UAE collected aromatherapy supplies for NATO soldiers in Camp Phoenix, Afghanistan.
Sylla is a licensed Cosmetologist/Esthetician, a Licensed Natural Health Care Practitioner and a Massage Therapist. She has provided introductory through advanced aromatherapy education since 1988 and has developed comprehensive educational programs that are presented throughout the United States. The Atlantic Institute of Aromatherapy is a Continuing Education Provider (Boards of Massage and Acupuncture) for the state of Florida, as well.
Sylla is the author of The Aromatherapy Practitioner Correspondence Course and The Aromatherapy Practitioner Reference Manual, the latter of which is a complete reference book with over 350 aromatic plant extracts and phytochemical, clinical and botanical indexes. Most recently, she began publishing her SBS Series, which includes the Aromatic Spa Book (2007) and the Aromatic Mind Book (2008). Since 1996, Sylla has also been involved with an on-going research project called Psychosocial Aromatherapy Research Project (PARP) with Dr. Trevor Stokes from the University of South Florida. The project studies the positive benefits of aromatherapy for children with autism and other disorders. She has also partnered with colleagues Dr. Robert Pappas, Martin Watt, and Tony Burfield for various academic papers and studies including the recent publishing of Tony Burfields second edition Natural Aromatics.
Besides teaching and mentoring students, writing aromatherapy articles for magazines and journals, Sylla also consults for private-label aromatherapy companies and other clients in need of her expertise. She volunteers her time and aromatic counseling skills to organizations within her community, and she continues to maintain her private aromatherapy practice in Tampa, Florida, where she resides with her husband and one cat.
Sylla can be contacted via email at info@aromatherapycouncil.org and by phone at (813) 265-2222.
Jennifer Wilson
ARC Board Member
Jennifer is a South Carolina native, the owner of Aromatic Elements, and a Registered Aromatherapist™ that has been studying aromatherapy since 2015. Her passion and focus is in aromatherapy education and research to which she has devoted countless hours in addition to her formal education, which includes studying with the Atlantic Institute of Aromatherapy and the Tisserand Institute.
She is a Professional Member of the Alliance of International Aromatherapists (AIA), the National Association for Holistic Aromatherapy (NAHA) and the International Clinical Aromatherapy Network (ICAN). She is also serving as the current South Carolina State Representative for AIA and has served as the secretary for the United Aromatherapy Effort.
Because there is still so much misinformation regarding aromatherapy, Jennifer has spent the last few years creating, and/or helping to admin, several social media pages and groups that are dedicated to providing reliable aromatherapy information and resources. A couple of these have a specific focus on awareness about the safe use of essential oils, and the support of individuals that have been injured by them.
In addition to serving as a student mentor, she provides writing, editing, consulting, and supportive administrative services to others in the industry. She is also the author of several articles, one of which has been published in the International Journal of Professional Holistic Aromatherapy (IJPHA).
Jennifer can be contacted via email at info@aromatherapycouncil.org and by phone at (803) 378-3220.