OUR INSTRUCTORS

OUR GOALS AS INSTRUCTORS

At the Artemisia Academy, we strive to make herbal & holistic health education:

1. Accessible, Applicable and Relevant

That means we teach people where they are at (not where we want them to be), and we teach skills, herbs, and recipes that can be used in everyday life for our student base.
Most of our students live in cities, not on a farm or in the rain forest, so we try to keep our approach as down to earth as possible.

2. Knowledgeable, Qualified, and Thorough

We teach from our own experiences, and are not afraid to say, “I don't know,” when something is outside of our own knowledge base.
We ask our students to fill in the gaps, or be a resource for our own learning, and to let each class be a cooperative learning experience.
We encourage students to look up answers online during class, and to research answers for themselves and report back to us if something is outside of the scope of the class material that day.

3. Compassionate, Open & Authentic

Through our collaborative teaching style, we encourage everyone to share and be vulnerable, too.
We believe that there is no such thing as a stupid question, and make sure that everyone feels comfortable to learn, share, and ask questions.

OUR INSTRUCTORS

"I've been so impressed with each of my instructors while completing the Herbal Apprentice Program. Not only are they extremely knowledgeable and good at what they do, but also kind and empathetic human beings. They embody a holistic approach to herbalism and healing, and I wouldn't want to learn from anybody else."

Nicole, 2022 HAP Graduate

OUR INSTRUCTORS

Emily Watson

Emily is a certified plant geek who loves connecting people with their own personal plant allies and their healer within. She has been studying holistic health since 2007, from farming apprenticeships in Hawaii to the Herb Pharm in Oregon. Emily studied clinical herbalism & nutrition at the North American Institute of Medical Herbalism (now the Colorado School of Clinical Herbalism).

There she learned the importance of teaching from a vitalist perspective, that every body has the ability to heal itself with supportive diet, herbs, and lifestyle practices. Her hope is to pass on the knowledge of sustainable living with practical entrepreneurial skills, so that herbalists can create thriving practices that fully support themselves, their land, and their community.

Nicole Iaquinto

For as long as she can remember, Nicole has loved to go outside and get her hands dirty. As a little girl, she'd play in woods and the cornfields surrounding her house, making "magic potions" out of all the plants and flowers she could find.

As an adult, she started studying the art and science of herbal medicine in 2018. She chose to further her herbal education with Artemisia Academy and now serves as the school's Apothecary Manager and as an Herb Walk Instructor. In addition to her work with herbs, Nicole is an ordained Reverend in the American Baptist tradition and pastors a local church.

Outside of the apothecary you can find her acting on stage, ministering to her congregation, hiking, growing things, playing cozy video games, and hanging out with her 2 cats.

Mary Andrews

Mary Andrews is a highly experienced and knowledgeable individual in the field of horticulture and gardening. With a Bachelor of Science in Horticulture, along with a background in Permaculture and Herbalism, Mary has honed her skills through practical experience in retail and wholesale nurseries. Since 2004, she has dedicated herself to cultivating a diverse array of food, flowers, and herbs on her expansive 2-acre garden.

Recognized as our Holistic Gardener teacher and mentor, Mary Andrews is renowned for her ability to guide and inspire others in designing and creating their dream gardens. Having accumulated a wealth of wisdom from her journey filled with trials and triumphs, Mary is eager to share her expertise with aspiring gardeners.

Jiling Lin

Jiling Lin is a Licensed Acupuncturist (L.Ac), herbalist, and yoga teacher in Ventura, CA. A first generation Californian with her ancestral roots in China and Taiwan, Jiling bridges her love of travel with a deeply grounded relationship with place. Running her clinical practice locally while teaching globally, Jiling provides the best integrative medicine and experiential education to empower thriving health and environmental stewardship in our bodies, communities, and world to co-create a wild beautiful Earth of ecological diversity and flourishing full-systems health, both internally and externally, individually and collectively.