Empowering Massage Therapists Through Education, Specialization, and Financial Freedom
We Know the Challenges You Face—We’ve Been There Too.
Being a massage therapist is about more than just technique. It’s about having the right education, the right support, and the right business knowledge to build a thriving career. Yet, too often, specialized training is inaccessible, and financial uncertainty holds talented therapists back.
Advanced Massage Specialty Group (AMSG) bridges that gap. Founded in 2020 by Felicia Newsome and Rebecca Smith, AMSG is designed to equip massage therapists with the specialized skills and business acumen they need to thrive.
Our mission is threefold:
✔ Empower therapists with financial literacy so they can build sustainable careers and serve their communities with confidence.
✔ Deliver high-quality, medically informed continuing education in oncology massage, lymphatic therapy, and other specialized modalities.
✔ Prepare therapists to become the next generation of continuing education providers, equipping them with the confidence and foundation to draw from their breadth of knowledge, and share their expertise for the benefit of the massage profession at large.
Felicia Newsome, LMT
Co-Founder & Managing Partner, Advanced Massage Specialty Group
Felicia Newsome is a seasoned Licensed Massage Therapist whose work bridges compassionate clinical care and strategic education design. After a successful career in the entertainment industry managing complex creative projects, Felicia followed a deep calling to wellness and became a Licensed Massage Therapist with a specialty in Oncology Massage. Her clinical stewardship began at Memorial Sloan Kettering’s Integrative Medicine Center and expanded as a senior therapist helping build the initial Oncology Massage Program at NYU Langone’s Perlmutter Cancer Center.
Each experience helped her see what kind of leadership was needed and directly informed the creation of the foundation of what became the CATA Oncology Massage Training & Certificate Program, establishing its clinical framework and educational intent. As the program and oncology massage studio expanded, she brought Rebecca Smith in to collaborate, strengthening the work through shared clinical insight and instructional refinement.
Driven by a vision of equity, practice sustainability, and community, Felicia co-founded Advanced Massage Specialty Group (AMSG). As Managing Partner, she leads organizational strategy, operations, and execution, translating the partnership’s shared intellectual direction into sustainable systems, programs, and growth pathways, while honoring consensus-based decision-making with her co-founder.
Felicia’s work embodies a blend of clinical expertise, educational leadership, and operational stewardship, making her a trusted voice in shaping the future of massage specialty education.
Driven by a vision of equity and empowerment, Felicia co-founded Advanced Massage Specialty Group (AMSG) with Rebecca to offer education that is both affordable and transformative. Through AMSG, she continues to train therapists in clinical massage care, while also equipping them with the business and financial skills needed to thrive.
Rebecca Smith, LMT, LLCC
Co-Founder & Contributing Partner, Advanced Massage Specialty Group
Rebecca Smith brings a lifetime of embodied expertise to her work as a Licensed Massage Therapist and specialist in lymphatic and oncology-informed care. Her journey from professional dancer and movement educator to integrative health care was shaped by intimate encounters with cancer care, first as a witness to her mother’s cancer journey and later through her own. Rebecca pursued additional training in CranioSacral Therapy, Lymphatic Therapy, and Oncology Massage, and served as Senior Lymphatic Therapist at NYU Langone’s Perlmutter Cancer Center. She later joined Memorial Sloan Kettering as a lymphatic specialist, contributing to the patient-centered care at the Integrative Medicine Service.
Rebecca joined Felicia Newsome’s vision as a key collaborator in developing the oncology massage studio and supporting the continued refinement and strengthening of the CATA Oncology Massage Training & Certificate Program, contributing her specialized expertise to its educational depth and clinical relevance.
As Contributing Partner, Rebecca focuses on educational integrity, curriculum development, and subject-matter leadership. She participates fully in shared intellectual direction and consensus-based governance while remaining intentionally outside day-to-day operations.
Rebecca’s teaching and mentorship helps practitioners deepen clinical confidence, refine specialized skills, and bring informed, compassionate care to diverse client populations.
