Faculty

Founders

Lynea Gillen, LPC, RYT-200, is visionary in the field of wellness education for youth. From its development in a behavior classroom in a rural Oregon town in 2000, her Yoga Calm curriculum is now accredited at six colleges and universities and has been taught to over 20,000 educators and therapists. Yoga Calm activities have impacted over 250,000 children in diverse settings such as Head Start programs, urban classrooms, occupational therapy clinics, summer camps, Amplatz Hospital in Minnesota and the Mayo Clinic. Renowned for her heart-centered approach, her books and media have won nine national awards and she has been a national conference presenter. READ MORE…

Jim Gillen, ERYT-500, is an innovator in the fields of business, wellness and education. Paralleling his practice of yoga & mindfulness for the last 45 years, he has taught adaptive sports for special needs children, pioneered environmental education programs for the National Science Foundation and co-developed 14 graduate-level courses in health and wellness education. Jim started his yoga and mindfulness practices at sixteen and still actively teaches. READ MORE…

 

Program Advisers

Jack Hollis, PhD, is a Senior Investigator at the Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research and a clinical associate professor at Oregon Health Sciences University. He has more than 30 years’ experience doing research on disease prevention and health behavior change. READ MORE…

 

roeser Robert W. Roeser, PhD, is the Bennet Pierce Professor in Caring and Compassion at Penn State University. His current intellectual interests focus on introducing mindfulness practices in schools for the well-being of educators and students alike. He also is a research fellow of the Mind and Life Institute and a member of Mind and Life Institute’s Network on Secular Ethics and Character Education. READ MORE… 

 

Carson headshot Kimberly Carson, MPH, E-RYT, is a yoga teacher at OHSU and co-directs Duke Yoga for Seniors teacher training. She has studied Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) with Jon Kabat-Zinn and has coauthored studies using yoga and meditation for patients with chronic low-back pain, metastatic breast cancer pain, and menopausal symptoms. Kimberly also instructs Yoga Calm’s MBSR and Teaching Yoga to Seniors courses and is a guest presenter in the Adult Instructor (RYT-200) Certification Program. READ MORE…

 

  Jeffrey Sosne, PhD, is a clinical psychologist and director of The Children’s Program. Dr. Sosne is widely recognized as one of Oregon’s leading authorities on ADHD. He is the author of two practical guides for parents and school personnel: The ADHD Notebook and The Anger Notebook and the DVD Parenting ADD/ADHD Children. Dr Sosne has instructed Yoga Calm’s ADHD: the Mind/Body Connection course.

 

Julie Gudmestad, Yoga Journal‘s Anatomy of a Yogi columnist, physical therapist and 30-year Iyengar instructor, teaches yoga anatomy courses worldwide and is the author of over 80 magazine columns on yoga and anatomy. Julie is also a guest presenter in the  Adult Instructor (RYT-200) Certification Program. READ MORE… 

 

forcum Dr. Ted Forcum, DC, DACBSP, FICC, CSCS, is a chiropractor for the U.S. Olympic team and the Portland Timbers. He teaches courses around the world on connective tissue/fascia, injury prevention and treatment and the biomechanics of movement. Dr Forcum is also a guest presenter in the Adult Instructor (RYT-200) Certification Program. READ MORE…

 

 

 

Trainers & Course Instructors

Jennifer Cory, MA, is a school teacher who’s been educating elementary and middle school children for over 20 years. In 2013-14 she participated in a study in which Wayne State University researchers evaluated the impact that Yoga Calm had on behavior and learning. Inspired by the research and positive results she continues to observe in her students, Jennifer now provides professional development courses for educators and therapists. READ MORE…

 

teaching in gardenLeah Shuyler, MA, NCC, LPC, is Yoga Calm’s Certification Instructor and Online Course Manager. She has a Master’s in Counseling Psychology and a specialty in ecopsychology. As a Certified Yoga Calm Youth Instructor, Leah has been integrating ecopsychology principles and activities into the program. She and Lynea Gillen are co-authors of Love, Knowledge and Action: Fostering Environmental Stewardship, to be published in 2020.

  Sarah Clark is a Yoga Calm Trainer and an experienced K-6 teacher and intervention specialist.  She has been a certified Yoga Calm teacher since 2010.  Sarah specializes in trauma-informed classroom strategies, social emotional learning, and integration of arts and common core standards in her Yoga Calm lessons.

 

Lisa Porter, MOT, OTR/L, is an occupational therapist and owner of Sensory Kids, a successful Portland, Oregon-based pediatric therapy clinic specializing in sensory processing and regulatory disorders. Lisa has studied extensively with Dr Lucy Miller, the founder of the SPD Foundation and a leading researcher in the field. READ MORE… 

 

Cynthia O’Connell, MEd, is a specialist professor in the Educational Counseling Department at Monmouth University. She has worked as a teacher, coach, school counselor and director of counseling services (K-12) in New Jersey for over 30 years. She is a certified Yoga Calm Trainer and an RYT-200 Yoga Instructor. She works with children through adults in yoga/mindfulness techniques and Yoga Calm. READ MORE…

Naomi Leong, LMHC, RYT200 is Licensed Mental Health Counselor with Frontier Behaviorial Health in Spokane, Washington. She is a certified Yoga Calm Trainer and an RYT-200 Yoga Instructor. Naomi works with children through adults in yoga/mindfulness techniques and Yoga Calm. READ MORE…

 

Jeff Albin, MS, CDP,  works at Northern Oregon Corrections and has extensive experience as an intervention and prevention specialist and wilderness guide. He is a certified Yoga Calm Instructor and is the author of Changing the Message. Jeff co-instructs the Boys & Coyotes course.

 

 

Benjy & Heather Wertheimer (Shantala) are guest presenters in the Adult Instructor (RYT-200) Certification Program providing a unique elucidation and musical complement to our studies of yoga philosophy. Benjy has studied East Indian singing and philosophy over the last 30 years and is a graduate of the esteemed Ali Akbar College of Music. READ MORE…

 

Mandi Murtaugh, PT, DPT, has a doctorate in physical therapy and BS in exercise science. She specializes in women’s health services for Providence Hospital and conducts trainings in core support/pelvic floor health. Mandi is a guest instructor  Adult Instructor (RYT-200) Certification Program. READ MORE…

 

 

 

Certified Yoga Calm Youth Instructors

See our full international directory of Certified Instructors.

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