Training for Well-Being
Learn More About
Our Well-Being Training Program
Learn how to live a healthier, fuller life. Our program will help you cultivate well-being that lasts. Spanning approximately ten months, our training consists of a mix of teaching practices–didactic, experiential, personal study, and physical movement–to ensure that all of our participants have the tools they need to be successful in a variety of settings.
Based on the research of the Anthropedia Institute, and in collaboration with the Center for Well-Being at Washington University, our Well-Being Coach Certification Program is a 270-hour course that integrates evidence-based well-being approaches from psychology, mindfulness-based stress reduction, and various mind-body approaches to health and well-being.
Do you prefer talking to someone?
Below you will find out a lot of information about our training. Sometimes, however, there is no substitute for talking to a person to get more information. We regularly offer information sessions to talk about our work at the foundation, discuss our training, and answer any questions applicants may have. You can sign up to attend by clicking the red RSVP button on the right.
Here are some dates for upcoming events:
California Information Session
San Francisco Bay Area
Location TBD
Depending on Location of Registrants
What's your interest?
There are 2 ways to participate in our 270-hour training:
1
I want to improve my personal well-being and become a coach.
Well-Being Coach Certification Track
Become a coach and teach others about sustainable health and well-being. This program is suitable for aspiring or practicing helping professionals–such as counselors, social workers, community health workers, and educators–seeking to become certified coaches. Participants must complete the 270-hour Resilience and Well-Being Program plus additional requirements for certification.
Cost: $6,450
Payment plans and financial aid available.
2
I want to improve my personal well-being.
Resilience & Well-Being Track
This program is intended for individuals seeking to improve their own well-being, but who are not interested in coaching others. You’ll take the same course, but you don’t have to satisfy any of the requirements of coach certification.
Cost: $5,150
Payment plans and financial aid available.
Earn a Professional Certificate and/or CEUs
Participants who complete our training are eligible for a professional certificate from Saint Louis University.
For participants seeking continuing education credits, we have certification with the Missouri Institute of Mental Health, which will award 270 clock hours or 318 contact hours (31 CEUs) for the program. There is a $200 fee for the year.


Our training is face-to-face person-centered community-based authentic in-person .
We offer our coach training in person, face-to-face. No part of our training is offered online or by phone.
Today, when many people suffer from isolation, disconnection, and a lack of community, we feel it is impossible to help someone grow in well-being without human interaction. Neuroscientific studies have shown how our brains react differently to screens than to faces.
For these reasons, our training and our coaching is never conducted online or over the phone.
Studies prove our training improves well-being

A recent study of 75 of our coach trainees yielded substantial gains in character development as measured by the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI). This included statistically significant (p<.01) improvement in the mean character trait scores before and after the training.
Our training is integrative and interdisciplinary is focused on the whole person integrates the humanities, art, and culture uses the Know Yourself DVD Series .
Courses Include:
- Body Practices for Well-Being
- Nutrition and the Human Body
- Neuroscience
- Coaching Fundamentals
- Pedagogy for Helping Professionals
- Psychology and Human Development
- Cultural Foundations of Well-being
- Personality Assessment Seminar
- Know Yourself: Principles of Well-Being
- Measuring Well-Being and Personality
- Anthropedia Coaching Methods
- Anthropology and Well-Being
- The Mind-Body Relationship
- Economics, Ecology, and Well-Being
USA Locations & Dates
St. Louis
Summer 2018
Aquinas Institute
23 South Spring Ave.
St. Louis, MO 63108
Aug. 11-12 & 18-19, 2018
Sep. 15-16 & 22-23, 2018
Oct. 20-21 & 27-28, 2018
Nov. 17-18 & 1-2, 2018
Jan. 19-20, 2019
Feb. 9-10 & 16-17, 2019
Mar. 9-10 & 16-17, 2019
Apr. 6-7 & 13-14, 2019
Apr. 27-28 & May 4-5, 2019
May 18-19 & 25-26, 2019
June 15-16, 2019
St. Louis
Winter 2019
Aquinas Institute
23 South Spring Ave.
St. Louis, MO 63108
Feb 8-11, 2019
Mar. 8-11, 2019
Apr. 5-8, 2019
Apr. 26-29, 2019
Jun. 14-17, 2019
Jul. 12-15, 2019
Aug. 16-19, 2019
Sep. 13-16, 2019
Oct. 11-14, 2019
Nov. 8-11, 2019
International Locations & Dates
Sweden
Winter 2019
Kompetenscentrum
Vårdskolevägen 5
371 41 Karlskrona
March 4-8, 2019
April 8-12, 2019
May 20-24, 2019
June 24-28, 2019
August 26-30, 2019
Weeks 7-10 | TBD
France
2019
The French Academy of Life Coaching also offers Anthropedia’s Well-Being Coach Certification Program in French in Vallauris. For more information about the training please visit
Testimonials




FAQ
Most frequent questions and answers
Instructors
Anthropedia’s instructors have all completed the coach certification program, as well as additional training developed by our institute. Like the members of the institute, our instructors have expertise in a variety of fields. Some of them are medical doctors, psychiatrists, psychologists, counselors, and social workers, while others are experts in philosophy, literature, education, coaching, and physical movement.
Robert Cloninger, MD, PhD
Wallace Renard Professor of Psychiatry, Psychology and Genetics, Director of the Center for Well-Being at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, and Director of the Anthropedia Institute
Kevin Cloninger, PhD
Executive Director and co-founder, Anthropedia
Doctorate in Curriculum and Instruction, Denver University
Nigel Lester, MD
Director of Mental Health, PALM Health and Anthropedia Institute Member
Trained in psychiatry at University College London and St. Vincent’s Hospital in New York City
Alinda Muszynski, BA, CPT
Director of Administration and Programs, Anthropedia
BA in Psychology, Education, & Mathematics, University of Colorado, and Certified Personal Trainer
Amanda Chesnutt, BA
Member Navigator and Mind-Body Movement Instructor, PALM Health
BA in Geography and Internationally Certified Ballroom and Social Dance Instructor
Anney Perrine, MEd
Director of Membership, PALM Health
Masters in Education, University of Colorado
Brian Keady, PhD
Doctorate in Philosophy and Theology, University of Denver
Christina Mengert, PhD
Associate Director of College Programs, Bard Prison Initiative
Doctorate in English with an emphasis on Creative Writing, University of Denver
Dave Gouaux, BA
Well-Being Coach, PALM Health
BA in Psychology, University of Texas, Austin
Jessica Dycus, CPT
Membership Navigator and Mind-Body Movement Instructor, PALM Health
Certified Personal Trainer
Joe Muszynski, MEd
Adjunct Professor of English Literature and Screen Writing, Vassar College
Masters in Education, University of Colorado at Boulder
Julie Geeting, MEd, LPC
Counselor and Well-Being Coach, PALM Health
Masters in Counseling, University of Missouri, St. Louis
Lara Pennington, MSW
Director of Development and Community Engagement, Anthropedia
Masters in Social Work, St. Louis University
Mary Druyvesteyn, PhD
Manager of Training and Development, PALM Health
Doctorate in French Literature, University of Chicago
Peter Hutchings, PhD
Doctorate in English Literature, Princeton University
Sarah Bird, DNP
Family Nurse Practitioner certified in Functional Medicine, PALM Health
Doctorate in Integrative Health and Healing, University of Minnesota
Sarah Lewis, LMSW
Program Coordinator and Member Navigator, PALM Health
Masters in Social Work, Washington University
Sita Kedia, MD, MPH, FAHS
Neurologist & Chief Medical Officer, PALM Health; co-founder & Vice-President, Anthropedia
Medical Degree and Masters in Public Health, University of Colorado
Spencer Hutchings, PhD
Doctorate in Musicology, University of Colorado, Boulder
Each day of the training consists of five 1- to 1.5-hour classes (see course list above for specific course titles). We begin at 8:30am and generally go until 6:30pm (there are seven days that end at 4:30pm). Because each class requires a lot of attention and energy, we take 30-minute breaks between each course, and our lunch break is an hour and a half.
There is no reading required outside of class. Upon completion of the training, however, you will be tested on the content of the Know Yourself DVDs, so you will want to study those throughout the course of the training. In addition, the other major task for those interested in certification is to complete a portfolio of exercises each month of the training. You can expect anywhere from 30-40 exercises per month. The amount of time that these exercises take varies from person-to-person, and they are all geared towards helping improve your self-awareness, resilience, and stress management.
The coursework is mostly the same, so it is a question of completing some extra classes, and fulfilling the requirements of certification, in addition to paying the difference in tuition. Generally people figure this out quite quickly, so we would encourage you to discuss it with us as soon as possible once the training begins.
Generally, attendance is expected at all sessions. Of course, we understand that emergencies and other justifiable situations do arise. However, please bear the following in mind:
- Attendance at all courses during the first four days of the training is mandatory.
- For the remainder of the training, you cannot miss more than two days (or the equivalent thereof, i.e., 10 courses). Exceptions are granted for absences that are due to the death of a loved one or for medical reasons.
In addition to private practice, our certified coaches work in a variety of settings—medical clinics, hospitals, schools, corporations, homeless shelters, halfway houses, and within other service-oriented organizations.