Carlson College of Massage Therapy was founded in 1984 by Ruth Carlson. Upon her retirement in 2008, CCMT was purchased by graduate and long time faculty member Chris Rider.

​As the longest established massage therapy school in the State of Iowa, Carlson College is proud to have educated over 1200 massage therapists to date. The schools President/Owner and Administrators are at the school on a daily basis to instruct and serve the students needs. Our Administrators and Instructors are Licensed Massage Therapists and have all built successful massage therapy practices. We know what it takes to be successful in the field of massage and we want to share that with our students.

​At Carlson College of Massage students first learn a massage which focuses on relaxation and stress reduction, the Swedish Massage. Students then move on to the advanced rehabilitation work which will address common dysfunctions of neck, shoulder and low back. Putting these two client centered modalities together is what makes our work unique and HIGHLY marketable! Our graduates enter the field of massage as health care professionals confident in their ability to help people right away!

We are proud of our history….for 10 years we were located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa on one of its busiest streets, with horns honking, tires squealing, gears grinding, and sirens blowing. In 1994 we moved to the tranquil country setting of Stone City where Grant Wood painted many of his famous works. The school was moved to provide an educational setting conducive to massage and relaxation.

​Come visit our retreat-like setting! Carlson College of Massage Therapy is located on a beautiful acreage land. We share space with majestic woods, groves of evergreen trees, deer and a variety of birds.

Our location is easily accessible by hard surfaced roads, only 20 minutes from the large metropolitan area of Cedar Rapids and just 45 minutes from Iowa City, the home of the University of Iowa and the Iowa Hawkeyes.

Come visit us and experience The Carlson Difference!