Melissa Stager, EMBA, SEP, is the Owner of bee mngt, where she manages small business clients, including program development and management for the Ergos Institute of Somatic Education for Peter A. Levine, Ph.D., and managing Retreat Cove Studios for fine artist Philip Buller. 

She has completed training in Somatic Experiencing® and NeuroEffective Touch, with additional Relational Bodywork and Somatic Education™ (BASE™) training. Her studies in these fields have led to the personal relief of chronic pain and stress-based nervous system dysregulation. She has a passion for helping others heal traumatic impact symptoms somatically. Her passion is leading small groups in a unique program she developed called Somatic Resource Journaling™. Melissa is on the Board of Directors at Eightfold Path, an advisor to Somatic Experiencing International, and a co-organizer with The Embody Lab.

She holds an Executive MBA in Business and Technology and a Bachelor of Arts in Applied Arts and Sciences, Cum Laude, with an emphasis in Applied Design and Distinction in Art. Her focus in art was Furniture Design, Conceptual Art, Mixed Media Installation Art, and Japanese Art History, with additional Interior Design and Architecture studies as her first major. Her body of work focused on patterns and childhood narratives. She had a 7-year career in curatorial arts and fine art consulting as Gallery Director for Susan Street Fine Art, where she curated and managed dozens of painting and sculpture exhibitions for well-established artists and fulfilled large-scale curatorial projects for hospitals and other large businesses. Most notably, she curated and installed artwork for the Sulpizio Cardiovascular Center and the Kaiser Permanente Garfield Specialty Center in San Diego, where her artwork is featured in the main lobby and beyond. Her extensive education and experience in running critiques, analyzing conceptual work, curation, and designing structures lends well to developing programs and systems for her management business.

Outside of work, Melissa is a writer, traveler, artist, designer, and photographer learning to play the lap steel guitar. She was born in Havre, Montana, grew up in San Jose, CA, and resides in Vista, CA (with a few stops along the way). She has an affinity for mid-century furniture and succulents and is a proud mother to a grown son who lives in San Francisco, CA. Her dream is to complete her drama series about how childhood trauma can shape our lives and how we can break free from the narrative that binds us.