In the winter of 1997 I purchased our office building. A building constructed in 1896, it was truly a by-gone mansion that had been used, misused and abused. It took a year and a half to reconstruct what had gone missing, but the rebirth was worth the time and intense work. When NTI opened its doors with the nutrition curriculum in September of 1999, we found ourselves in a building that reflected beauty, care and respect for our world, the values NTI stands for.

In September of 1999, we held our first nutrition classes. Classes were small at first and gradually began to build. It takes time for a new approach to a field to take shape. As the nutrition programs were expanding, it became apparent that there were still a couple of pieces missing.

The first piece was the study of herbs. The study of nutrition is not complete without the knowledge of therapeutic herbs. Unfortunately, too often herbology is taught from an allopathic point of view, i.e. simply applying specific herbs in a recipe for ailments. This is a very superficial way to learn about herbs and can often be found in nutrition programs that include herbs within a nutrition curriculum.

Herbs, like food, are therapeutic and affect the body in significant ways. Therefore to work with them and understand them in depth is important for an herbal practitioner and a nutrition practitioner. For this reason NTI now offers a stand-alone herb therapy program. Four years ago we began our online program which includes the study of culinary herbs, herbs to support each body system, medicine making techniques, and practical applications. It is an excellent foundation program and gives a rich basis on which to build expertise in this field that could take a lifetime to thoroughly study.

The second missing piece was how to put the wonderful nutrients found in whole foods on the dinner table. And so the Natural Foods Chef Program was born. Our stand alone cooking program is unique in its presentation of cooking techniques, study of therapeutic foods, nutrition principles and business approaches. To house such a superb program, we needed a kitchen that would inspire, comfort and challenge our students. We renovated another building just three doors down from our main building to present a beautiful and functional cooking space. We have been going strong there for the past three years and look forward to many years to come.

And now we have hit a milestone. It took ten seasons for us to outgrow our nutrition program classroom space. Our classes were originally held in the main building. Just for this past year, our classes have temporarily been held at a nearby community center. This fall however, we are moving into yet another newly renovated building on our same block. Our nutrition classrooms will be held on the corner of York Street and Colfax Avenue.

Our neighborhood is indeed a renaissance area and NTI is happy to be participating in an environment of new ideas, new approaches and revitalization! We are urban dwellers and our campus has become an urban expression, joining the rebirth of turn-of-the century buildings. It is for NTI students, faculty and staff, a time and a place of creation, personal growth, intellectual challenge and the fulfillment of our dreams of renovating our own health and experiencing the underlying grand vitality that is ours.

Students at NTI who are willing to dedicate the time and effort to their studies make the cut in becoming successful professional nutrition therapists. You do not need a strong science background in order to be successful in this program, but you do need to be committed to study. Indeed, many of our students have been out of school for many years, many have significant college experience, many have work experience only, many are professionals in other fields and many are just beginning to build a career path.

Campus classes are small, personalized and interactive. Classes are limited in size with a recommended maximum of 30 students. Home study students have the opportunity for consistent contact with their individual instructors as well as other students.

NTI teaches students to become teachers

Classes are structured to build an understanding from simple to more complex principles. Material is presented in such a way that real people can understand it. Hence students learn the vocabulary and are trained to instruct clients, teach workshops, or teach their own classes of interested people among the public.

NTI helps students manage their own nutritional needs

One of the focuses of the NTI curriculum is to teach the mind-body-spirit approach to applied holistic nutrition. Most of our curriculum can be taught from textbooks in a classroom or in our distance learning format. However, to get a true personal understanding of the therapeutic value of holistic nutrition, we feel it is imperative for you to directly experience the life-changing power of our educational retreats.

NTI is at the cutting edge in education

In addition, NTI is on the cutting edge of a paradigm shift in education itself. Our philosophy is based on the premise that in order to be an effective teacher/practitioner in this field, you must have experienced personally the health benefits from changes in nutritional patterns that you will teach others once you have graduated. In order to effectively inspire clients to make lifestyle changes, you must have walked that road yourself. Because of this there is significant emphasis placed on the personal development of our students in the areas of nutrition and health.

NTI provides opportunites for personal growth

Our two learning retreats in the Nutrition Therapy Program are devoted directly to personal growth in relation to food choices, eating habits and detoxification. It is within the retreats that students take the time to pay attention to their own personal health issues, their relationship with food, and personal detoxification protocols. These themes are then revisited and reinforced throughout the course material.