AMA Herbalism School
About AMA
"AMA" stands for
Akouatzin Medicina Ancestral
Akouatzin is also the Nahuatl indigenous name given to our beloved elder and the leader of AMA Herb School.
It means venerable element of water.
"Ama" is also another word heard in our communities that stands for Mother, for Tonantzin, for Coatlicue, for Chalchiutlicue, the name that we shout towards for help in birth, in death, in grief, in joy, for what we honor, for who we go to when we need to be nurtured and guided.
OUR PRAYER:
AMA, we call on you to guide us on our paths and to help us remember that we are one with this land. We learn the names and understand the medicine you have gifted us, which helps sustain ourselves and our communities. We show you our gratitude by learning to honor your ways with respect and dedication to our medicine way practices.
Walking the Path of a Traditional Herbalist
Becoming a skilled herbalist isn’t about a certificate — it’s about passion, dedication, and years of showing up. This work is lifelong. It begins in the heart and grows through practice, reflection, and community. Traditionally, many of our most respected Yerberas / Yerberis (herbalists) learned through apprenticeship — walking alongside elders, hands in the soil, medicine in the making. This program intends to follow that path.
This is not just an online course.
This is not a weekend workshop.
This is a calling. A remembering. A reweaving.
One step and class at a time.
It’s for those who hear the voice of the Earth — our blessed Tonantzin Tlalli — calling them back into relationship. It’s for those who feel their ancestors whispering the call to heal, to help, and to honor life in sacred ways, in circle and in service.
Throughout our time together, you’ll be invited into deep reflection, hands-on practice, and community-rooted learning. When you complete this program, you’ll know that your growth was earned — and you’ll understand that it’s just the beginning. The journey of a community herbalist is one of lifelong learning, listening, and offering.
A Confident Practicing Herbalist in Every Home
Our goal is to help you become a confident practicing Yerberi (herbalist) — someone your family and community can turn to for support, guidance, and medicine. We believe every home should have someone who carries this knowledge. And if you're called to go deeper — we’re here for that too. We will continue to develop and offer advanced teachings and courses to help you grow on your path. Stay tuned!
Learning Through Service
This isn’t just about gaining knowledge — it’s about applying the knowledge and skills, right now, at a time in history where it matters most! As you learn, you’ll make medicine alongside experienced Yerberis (herbalists), with the intention of giving back. Some of what we create together will go to support mutual aid for organizations such as Casa de Resistencia, Herbalists Without Borders, & Birth Comadres. Our communities are in urgent need. Learning in service grounds your skills in purpose. It’s how we deepen our practice and create real, collective impact.
MEET OUR TEAM
Santa Akouatzin Yáñez-Montemayor (she/her/ella)
Founder & Lead Maestra
Santa Akouatzin is a Yerbera / Mujer Medicina who founded her own herbal business, Akouatzin Medicina Ancestral. She has been offering pláticas for BIPOC community on various topics including herbal allies and support for emotional, mental, spiritual and physical health. Beginning this year, she will be offering a Community Herbalism program from the perspective of Ancestral teachings of sacred plant medicine.
As a member of Kalpulli Teokalli Teoyolotl, she has been studying Curanderismo under Jefa Rosa Tupina Yaotonalcuauhtli; and as Mujer Medicina in her community, she is Primera Palabra del Santuario de Colibris, a medicinal plant garden. She is a Council member and Moondancer of Danza de la Luna Huitzilmeztli and a member of Danza Mexica Xochipilli. She is a Native Texan of Apache, Wixárika, and Coahuiltecan ancestry who grew up both in Mason in the Texas Hill Country and in Del Rio, borderland with Cd. Acuña, Coahuila.
She had been studying and learning about plants indigenous to her ancestry on her own, remembering plants that her Mamá Emilia, Abuelita Goyita and Tia Paulina used not only in the kitchen but for healing. She was truly inspired by her Tia Paulina who was a curandera. She has also studied with Mujer de La Tierra, Sacred Journey School of Herbalism and The Herbal Academy.
Santa Akouatzin is committed to providing herbal support to her familia, her community, and those most in need for healing through the ancestral medicines. She is the happiest putting seeds in the ground and watching them grow. You will find her most days in her jardín and Santuario de Colibris offering her work and sweat as prayer.
Rosa Tupina Yaotonalcuauhtli
Guest Maestra
Rosa Tupina Yaotonalcuauhtli is a Mexica Mother, Grandmother, Spiritual Leader and Psychotherapist who holds sacred space for the Mexica ceremonial ways in Austin, Texas. She is one who “walks with the sacred staff on one hand and the laptop on the other one”. Rosa Tupina was born in Chihuahua, Mexico and raised in a small rural mining pueblo called Avalos, Chihuahua. Thanks to her grandmother who raised her, Abuela Tupina was truly enriched with a valuable cultural upbringing. She says her abuela planted the seeds of spirituality and medicina by teaching her “las yerbas y remedios” that were commonly used. She wanted to be a doctora when she was little. Rosa’s path brought her to the United States when she was 17 years old and she married. She has 2 sons and 6 grandchildren. She never lost her dream and desire to be in the health field. Her gifts in the healing practices, her dedication and perseverance opened up the doors in the Nursing Field.
She worked in various hospitals until she found her “spot” in the area of Mental Health working as a nurse in the Mental Health and Mental Retardation Clinic at El Paso, Texas. She continued her education in Psychology obtaining a BS and later on a Master’s degree in Social Work paving the way for her career as a Mental Health Clinical practitioner. Her work as a Psychotherapist specialized in PTSD and other MH disorders is one of her passions.
Rosa also has a passion for her cultura ancestral and she founded a community called Kalpulli Teokalli Teoyolotl in Austin in 2008. She leads women on what she calls “their spiritual PhD” through deep studies of the Mexica Codices, The Mexicayotl, Moondance ceremonial work, Danza Mexica, Temazkal, Traditional Medicine ways, Curanderismo, Ancestral knowledge retreats in Mexico and simply forming community as a primary way to “decolonize”. Abuela Tupina has walked alongside Native and Indigenous Healers and Ceremonial knowledge keepers for more than 40 years.
She acknowledges the strength of identifying who you truly are to start a healing process and affirm your connections to your natural birth-given truth and that is how she is able to navigate through the two systems she encounters as a Mental Health practitioner and a Spiritual practitioner. She acknowledges the strength of the Familia as the nucleus of your circle at all times recognizing there is a lot of work to be done to heal intergenerational traumas and it needs to be done in spaces where our gente can trust and feel connected. She endorses the belief of “We are one with everything through infinity”, “Somos uno con el todo en el infinito”.
Briana Popoca Salpeter
Flow Keeper/Supporting Teacher
My name is Briana Popoca Salpeter. I am a certified End-of-Life Practitioner (death doula), trained by Alua Arthur, and hold the NEDA (National End-of-Life Alliance) proficient designation. I volunteer with Hospice Austin and advocate for Green Burials, supporting environmentally conscious and culturally rooted end-of-life practices.
In addition to my work in death care, I hold a B.A. in Psychology from Texas A&M University, grounding my path in both Western and ancestral understandings of the human experience.
I am also an herbalist and the founder of Raven Remedies, where I create handcrafted herbal remedios to support grief, dreaming, and the nervous system. With over a decade of experience in community herbalism, I serve through traditional plant-based healing and am an avid gardener and land steward. I'm also a Certified Health Coach through the Institute of Integrative Nutrition and was trained as a Birth Doula by the late Jessica Atkins.
I am currently an Apprentice of Curanderismo, studying under Maestra Dr. Lisa Martinez and Dr. Samuel Nez, deepening my connection to ancestral healing traditions. I am also a student of Akaxe Gomez/Machtia Toltekatl and a Mexica danzante, practicing macehualiztli as a spiritual discipline and form of ancestral prayer.
I am the mother of two beautiful children. I was born and raised in Corpus Christi, Texas, among the sacred waters and on the ancestral lands of the Karankawa people. I now live in Austin, Texas, on the ancestral lands of my relatives—the Lipan Apache, Coahuiltecans, Tonkawa, and Jumano peoples.
Jennifer Lopez
Memory Keeper & Media Manager
Jennifer Lopez is a yerbera, artist, and mujer medicina. She provides herbal support and creates art inspired by ancestral knowledge and her childhood memories. Her path is guided by the teachings of her elders, including Abuela Santa Akouatzin and Abuela Rosa Tupina Yaotonalcuauhtli. She briefly studied at Sacred Journey School of Herbalism. She’s supports in the medicine tent during Danza de la Luna Huitzilmeztli and Danza Xochipilli. She will serve as the weaver of community through media and guardian of the voice and vision for AMA Herbalism School. She is committed to providing herbal support to her family, community and those in need of healing through ancestral medicines.
Akayla Bogan
Supporting Teacher
I am an herbalist, middle school science teacher, and full-time fairy. My journey with plant medicine began in my teens, exploring the healing properties of teas. That curiosity bloomed into crafting herbal smoking blends and founding Fairy Farts Herbal Company. I’ve spent the past three years deepening my practice through study and apprenticeship at Sacred Journey School of Herbalism. It’s a true honor to now share and grow within the mission of Akouatzin Medicina Ancestral Community Herbalism School.
Arely Oceloxochitl Camacho
Supporting Teacher
Arely Jaguar is a yerbera, artist, and mujer medicina. Her roots stretch from Northern Mexico to the vibrant state of Michoacán. She was raised in the borderland of the Chihuahuan Desert, between Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, and El Paso, USA. Early childhood camping trips into the forest mountains of Chihuahua and daily desert excursions instilled in her a profound appreciation and love for the natural world. In 2015, her move to the Texas Hill Country ignited an even deeper connection to plants, their sacred spring waters nurturing her spirit and fueling her dedication to learn from the natural world.
The political climate of 2016 became a turning point. Feeling a strong desire to do more for her community, Arely committed herself to intentionally and with responsibility shaping her contributions to the world. She completed over 200 hours at the Sacred Journey School of Herbalism in Austin, Texas, under Ginger Webb, and has continued her personal studies and medicine crafting since 2017.
In 2018, she launched Jaguar de Jade, her own small-batch apothecary, with her partner Christopher Amorim. Through Jaguar de Jade, Arely shares the profound magic of recognizing how we are surrounded by patient, caring, and wise plant relatives. For her, crafting plant medicine is both a great honor and a significant responsibility. Acknowledging her Mexican ancestry, she understands that colonization and cultural assimilation led to the loss of valuable traditional knowledge. Arely has embraced the vital task of reconnecting, relearning, and remembering the truthful and honorable ways of living in harmony with the world.
Arely is also a Danzante Mexica with the group Danza Mexica Xochipilli, and a Moondancer within Danza de Luna Huitzilmeztli, guided by la Jefa y Abuela Tupina Yaotonalcuahtli. Her participation in Kalpulli Teocalli Teoyolotl has further transformed her relationship with the world and medicine making, as the Mexicayolotl ways profoundly influence her herbal remedies and her everyday life.
She wants others to know that the path of a yerbera is a continuous journey, shaped by direct experiences with plants—through gardening, singing to them, making offerings, crafting medicine, and sharing it with others. Ultimately, the yerbera's path is about cultivating a right relationship with the plants and, most importantly, dedicating oneself to their service and to the well-being of the community.
Al Acosta
Supporting Teacher
Al Acosta of Santos Suerte is a Queer herbalist, Mexica Danzante and student of curanderismo under the guidance of Kalpulli TeoCalli Ollin. They have been studying herbalism since 2018 and continue to strive to learn about using plant relatives through a de-colonial lense. They are part owner of The Medicine Bag; a small apothecary located in East Austin that focuses on BIPOC health and wellness.
Dani Ilhuicacuahtli Juarez (they/them/elle)
Supporting Teacher
Dani Juárez (they/them/elle) is a queer, xicane, trans, two-spirit community herbalist. Dani is also a danzante mexica, ceremonial water carrier and is in their first year of supporting in their kalpulli’s medicine tent in a week-long Danza de la Luna ceremony. Their herbal studies began in their abuela’s casita & jardín in Lubbock, Texas, and then formally years later in Austin, Texas with Leighla Molina of Corazon Verde Yerbas and elders Santa Akouatzin Montemayor and Rosa Tupina Yaotonalcuauhtli. Their camino, herbal and spiritual, continues, learning of ancestral practices and medicines from elders and matriarchs of their kalpulli, as well as from BIPOC teachers within Turtle Island. Their aspirations are to impart knowledge they have received with other queer, trans and BIPOC relatives, continue working with youth in herbal workshops and to build community in this new chapter with AMA herb school.
Leighla Tecatzin Molina (she/they)
Supporting Teacher
Leighla Molina (she/they) is a folk herbalist who has dedicated the past decade to studying medicinal plants and their traditional and spiritual uses. For the last six years, they have been teaching herbal classes through a decolonized lens, centering the experiences of BIPOC students. Leighla is a Moon Dancer with Danza de la Luna Huitzilmeztli, a portadora de fuego, and a member of Danza Mexica Xochipilli. Of mixed Native ancestry (Huasteca Nahua, Coahuiltecan), Leighla works to preserve knowledge surrounding ancestral plant medicines + connect people with the land they are on. They share their work through Corazón Verde Yerbas and their shop, The Medicine Bag, offering lovingly made plant medicines + goods from local BIPOC medicine makers.
Claudiah Ojeda
Supporting Teacher
Claudiah, whom her friends call Cloudy, is a bioregional herbalist and social worker student at Texas State University. She resides in Tonkawa and Coahuiltecan lands, aka Central Texas, with her family, including three loyal Frenchies and one spicy Chihuahua. She identifies as a detribalized Indigena Xicana. Claudiah possesses a deep passion for healing our bodies using ancestral medicine, supporting people to help reconnect to their ancestral roots, using intergenerational strengths to break intergenerational trauma, building relationships with plants and the land, social justice, and making small batches of herbal medicines for her family.
Weird fact: Likes to collect honey from places she travels to. Thank you, honey bees, for sharing your hard work with us.
Laurena Reneé Salinas-Garcia (she/her/ella)
Apprentice
Laurena Reneé Salinas-Garcia (she/her/ella) is an infinite learner and guardian of the natural world. She is Indigenous to the Coahuiltecan lands and waters of Ajehuac Yana in San Marcos, Tx. She is an Outdoor Education Specialist and youth mentor. She is firmly rooted in her connection to plant relatives as a pathway to ancestral birthright and thriving lifeways. Laurena has exemplified her devotion in her work with PEAS, as a Soul Fire Farm F.I.R.E alumna, and as a Tānko-Xinachtli educator. Collective liberation and indigenous pedagogical practices are the pillars of her commitment to BIPOC youth and communities. As an apprentice of AMA, she is excited to deepen her kinship with the natural world and nurture a space that empowers fellow BIPOC herbalists. Laurena is overjoyed that despite colonization, detribalization, and attempted erasure of our lifeways - we guided by the natural world, are illuminating the wisdom and prayers of our ancestors today and always.
