Board Of Directors
Manfred Mueller, MA, DHM, RSHom (NA), CCH
NASH President
Manfred has been fascinated with homeopathy since 1978. Prior to his training in homeopathy, he was a psychotherapist, with a Masters degree in humanistic psychology from the University of West Georgia, and diplomas in theology and counseling psychology from the University of Tübingen, Germany.
In 1986, Manfred began his full-time homeopathic practice in Durham, North Carolina, where he practiced for 18 years. Since 2004, he has provided homeopathic telephone consulting to clients with complex chronic disorders from around the world.
Manfred has been an clinical and educational consultant, lecturer, textbook editor, and his practice has served as an official clinical rotation and teaching site for medical students nationwide. In 1989 he founded The Homeopathic College. He was certified in classical homeopathy in 1995 by the Council for Homeopathic Certification. He is a board member of the Homeopathic Action Alliance and has been President of NASH since 2005.
A veteran health freedom fighter since 1990, Manfred, in 2003, became a Board member of Citizens for Healthcare Freedom (a position he left in 2005), a state leader with the National Health Freedom Coalition (which he is still a member of), and spearheaded the legislative campaign for freedom to practice alternative healthcare in North Carolina. The Health Freedom bill he drafted in 2003 was still pending in the NC legislature as of 2009!
Manfred’s vision for NASH is “to continue to set and implement optimal standards of excellence in the mastery of our trade and for NASH to be the defining voice for the freedom to practice and voluntary self-regulation of professional homeopaths in North America.”
Tanya Kell RSHom (NA), CCH
NASH Vice President
Tanya has been involved in Homeopathy for more than half her life. She has been a registered NASH member as well as a CCH certificate holder since 1996. She began her studies at the Pacific Academy of Homeopathy in 1990, worked at Hahnemann Pharmacy, and went on to attend Evolution of Self/Soul School of Homeopathy in Arizona.
After opening a practice in Nashville, TN and running a study group, she co-founded the Nashville School of Homeopathy, now in its 10th year of operation. Tanya is passionate about making homeopathy a household name, accessible to all.
She says: “I look forward to serving and growing our community.”
Vatsala Sperling MS, PhD, PDHom, RSHom, CCH
NASH Secretary
Vatsala Sperling, MS, PhD, PDHom, RSHom, CCH, is a certified classical homeopath. Born and raised in India, Vatsala saw homeopathy being used all around for treatment of severe, chronic illnesses as well as for acute health complaints. She learned how homeopathy addresses health and illness in a gentle and safe, and yet deeply philosophical manner. Vatsala earned a post-graduate degree in clinical microbiology and was awarded a Gold Medal by the then President of India, for her outstanding academic achievements. Vatsala continued her clinical microbiology studies and earned a Ph D degree for her research. She was invited to join the staff of a 200-bed multi-specialty children’s hospital as the head of clinical microbiology services. Years of post-graduate training and professional career in clinical microbiology never dulled her keen, life-long interest in homeopathy. On moving to the US in 1996, she enrolled with Misha Norland’s School of Homeopathy, Devon, UK, and after graduating successfully, she set up her practice in Rochester, Vermont.
Myra Nissen, RSHom (NA), CCH
NASH Treasurer
Myra is a graduate of the Pacific Academy of Homeopathy and has a classical homeopathic practice in Walnut Creek and Benicia, California. She established a community homeopathy clinic in Oakland, CA and was a consulting practitioner at the innovative Elephant Pharmacy in Walnut Creek.
Before choosing a career in homeopathy, she has had past experience as an archeologist, in computer technology, environment and recycling, and customer service. She credits homeopathy with curing her debilitating allergies. She offers her organizational skills to NASH.
Laura Sholtz, PhD., RSHom, CCH, FBIH
NASH Registrar
Laura Sholtz, PhD, RSHom(NA), CCH, FBIH, a certified professional Homeopath and Master Herbalist, has been using natural healing methods since 1967, and immediately resonated with homeopathy after first learning about it over 24 years ago. She has been practicing in the Central Maine area since 1989. Laura is on the Board of Directors for the North American Society of Homeopaths (NASH), and serves as both Registrar and Book Review Editor; she also served on the Board of Directors for the Council for Homeopathic Certification (CHC) for more than six years. Laura has been an instructor for the British Institute of Homeopathy (BIH) since 2002, and teaches classes, and is a frequent speaker, on homeopathy and alternative healing locally. For several years she taught Homeopathy at the University of Maine. One of her goals is to have knowledge of homeopathy in every home, and easily available to all as an automatic first choice for healing, rather than only as a last chance.
Laura’s Center for Natural Healing is located in Exeter, Maine, where she lives with her husband and tribe of cats. Phone: 207-379-2571. Her 3 children have successfully fledged.
Julie Mann, RSHom(NA), CCH
Director, NASH Foundation
Coming from a diverse background of film production, business management and art curriculum development, Julie discovered her true passion in the practice of homeopathy over 20 years ago. Trained through the School of Homeopathy in Los Angeles, Lou Klein’s Master Clinician course and years of seminars, her practice includes working with both humans and animals. She is the founder of the Homeopathic Collective of Los Angeles, better known to the homeopathic community as the “Monday Night Study Group”, where students and practitioners meet each week to study, share knowledge, and consult on cases.
As current board member of the North American Society of Homeopaths, she works to define the role of the professional homeopath as well as to further research and education in homeopathy as director of the NASH Foundation. Her past teaching experience includes being on the faculty at The Los Angeles School of Homeopathy, and supervising the homeopathic clinic at the American University of Complementary Medicine and currently teaches at the Homeopathic Academy of Southern California.
She is also the co-founder, grant writer and chief financial officer of The Learning Garden, an organic medicinal herb garden project in Los Angeles which has become the model for school and community garden projects nationwide. She is also a leader in the Sustainable Medicine project of the Transition Town movement in Los Angeles. She is dedicated to preserving our important medicinal plants and the knowledge by which to use them.
Elizabeth (Liz) Bonfig
NASH Executive Director
Liz brings to her role as NASH’s executive director an extensive background in office management and administrative support. She understands the importance of good customer service having spent many years as a successful sales manager and tremendously enjoys assisting NASH’s wonderful members.
Her discovery of homeopathy, as with so many, resulted from her two boys constantly being prescribed antibiotics for recurrent colds and ear infections. Knowing there had to be a better way, it didn’t take long for her to develop a passion for homeopathy; telling everyone she meets about the amazing little pellets.
Liz’s long term goals include studying to be a professional homeopath; eventually displaying an RSHom designation by her name. She is proud to be a member of the NASH team, particularly at such an exciting time for the profession.
