Our Professional Advisory Committee (PAC)

Ben E. Benjamin, Ph.D., holds a doctorate in education and is the founder of the Muscular Therapy Institute. A Certified SAVI Communications Trainer, he has taught communication skills as a consultant and coach for more than 25 years. Dr. Benjamin teaches extensively throughout the country, with clients ranging from schools, hospitals, and churches to multinational corporations. In addition to his teaching, he maintains a private practice in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Josie has been a licensed massage therapist for more than 20 years and is a licensed clinical social worker. She has taught courses in the evaluation and treatment of injuries, deep tissue bodywork, gestalt communication skills and Anat Baniel Method transformational movement lessons. Josie is a Certified Feldenkrais Practitioner with over 15 years of advanced training and experience working with infants and children with special needs, anti-aging and improving performance skills in adults.

Debi is a licensed clinical social worker with a masters degree in social work from Florida State University. She provides support to FSM staff and students, both individually and in group sessions. She specializes in death, dying and major life transitions. Debi believes in the acknowledgement of each person's wholeness and humanness.

Christina Polnyj BA, LMT is a Clinical Aromatherapist and Massage Therapist in private practice in Gainesville, Florida. Since 1993 she has been teaching classes in massage to health care professionals and the public. She is deeply passionate about aromatherapy, offering workshops and seminars to massage therapists, health professionals and the general public. She also is a consultant, providing people with the solutions and the necessary skills for using essential oils in both the home and professional environments. She founded Essential Education International in 2008.

Leslie Sahler, LCSW, is a licensed clinical social worker in private practice with more than twenty years counseling experience. She is an avid traveler and reader, and is a long-time student of the Diamond Approach, a psychospiritual approach to growth and wholeness.

Lee brings a background in personal counseling and many years of retail management experience to her role as an Advisory Committee member. Her deep connection to the Florida School of Massage was forged during almost nine years spent both as an administrator and as Bookstore creator and manager. Lee is a NAHA certified Aromatherapy Practitioner and creates yummy, aromatic Blue Moon Essentials products. A Florida native, Lee feels passionate about nature and the preservation of greenspace. She serves on the Board of Trustees of Heathcote Botanical Gardens in her hometown of Ft. Pierce, Florida, where she and her husband Pete settled after arriving on their sailboat Blue Moon.