Complaints Levied Against NCBTMB over Dismissals

A group of committee members from the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCBTMB) has levied charges against the board that it acted inappropriately in dismissing two board members whose certification had lapsed-

In an open letter to certificants, the group charges that immediate past chairperson Elizabeth McIntyre acted in violation of board bylaws when she decided to remove board members Neal Delaporta and Monica Reno after it came to light that their certifications had expired, in November.

The letter further complains that Delaporta and Reno weren’t notified that their certifications were about to expire, nor granted the same one-year grace period that is granted to other certificants to reinstate their certifications. The group also contends that McIntyre attempted to remove then-chair elect Donna Feeley when it was mistakenly believed her certification had also expired and, as a result, Feeley was excluded from executive board meetings regarding the Delaporta and Reno cases, and not given an opportunity to vote on the matter.

“These policies and procedures, had they been followed, would have given Neal Delaporta and Monica Reno, two duly elected officials and valuable Board [sic] members, a proper hearing before the entire [board of directors] … [and] appropriate amount of time to quickly bring themselves into compliance,” the letter states. Attempts to contact Reno and Delaporta for comment were unreturned.

Feeley, who took over the chairperson position Jan. 1, declined to comment on the complaints, but said that the board was considering an independent review of the situation. Per board policy, Elizabeth McIntyre deferred comment to the current chair when contacted in January.