YOGA THERAPY: A CAREER PATH THAT CHANGES LIVES THROUGH THE HEALING POWER OF YOGA
We are an integrative professional yoga therapy program that teaches you the how and why behind the transformational & evidence-based practices of yoga that will empower yourself and others on a path toward holistic healing.
WHO WE ARE
An Integrative IAYT Accredited Professional Yoga Therapy Program
Our program is designed to provide the tools, knowledge, and support necessary for you to confidently and competently apply the practices of yoga in a multitude of settings. Our Staff includes dual-licensed yoga therapists who help you:
- Prepare for a career path that will help shape the future of modern medicine by teaching you how to integrate yoga with western medical approaches
- Acquire the training required to effectively interact with both medical professionals and clients
A Path Toward Holistic Healing
We teach a whole-person approach to wellness that allows you to look beyond your client’s symptoms to identify obstacles and apply tools that address the root cause of their suffering
- Learn how to apply yoga-based philosophy and mindfulness techniques to achieve mental, emotional, and energetic shifts
- Understand the interconnected relationships in the body and how to develop asana and breathing techniques to improve functional movement and release tension
Transformational & Evidence-Based Practices Of Yoga
Yoga therapy is rooted in the practice of helping people understand their experience and find balance so they can recognize their innate sense of wellness. We don’t ‘treat’ or ‘heal’, we guide people toward their own capacity to heal themselves, and we use well-researched practices to do so.
- Learn to apply yoga philosophy with your clients and patients to apply mindfulness-based problem solving, emotional regulation, and healthy coping strategies
- Learn the skills to confidently incorporate evidenced-based yoga, meditation, breathing, and mindfulness-based practices into your current (therapy) practice, increase self-regulation and general wellness
PROGRAM DETAILS
Our program is intentionally structured so that Module 1 can serve independently as a 300-hour Yoga Alliance approved teacher training certification. This is a wonderful alternative to traditional 300-hour teacher training for students interested in pursuing a more therapeutic approach to yoga teaching or who are looking to integrate private sessions into their offering.
The next program start date for Module 1 is April 3, 2025.
Applications must be received by March 3, 2025 to be considered for Cohort 6.
You can find more information on the upcoming program here.
• Module 1 •
300 Hours
Start Date: 4/3/25
End Date: 12/14/25
Regular Tuition: $3,995
(enroll by 4/1/25)
Early-Bird Tuition: $3,595
(enroll by 1/4/25)
• Module 2 •
260 Hours
Dates:
Jan - Sep 2026
Tuition:
$3,995
• Practicum •
180 Hours
Dates:
Aug 2026 - Sep 2027
Tuition:
$2,495
• Module 3 •
260 Hours
Dates:
Nov 2026 - Sep 2027
Tuition:
$3,995
Note: There is a book list containing required reading that accompanies this course. Students are required to purchase these books separately. The estimated cost of these materials is $325.
Before beginning the practicum, students will be required to obtain liability insurance in order to provide services as a Yoga Therapy Intern. We recommend BeYogi (est. $175/year).
Payment Plans
Students are required to place a deposit for Module 1 to secure their spot in the course. After paying the deposit, students can choose to pay-in-full for the Module prior to the program start date or set up a monthly payment plan.
Note: Payment plans incur a $150 payment plan fee which is included in the monthly payments.
Schedule Format
Program hours will include a combination of weekend on-site classes, virtual learning classes, pre-recorded content, and academic mentorship hours.
Currently, we are offering a hybrid program. Weekend on-site classroom hours are offered both in-person and virtually on zoom.
Weekend Class Schedule
Virtual Prep Classes: 4/10/25, 4/17/25
Weekend Class Hours
Friday: 1pm – 6pm
Saturday: 9am – 5pm
Sunday: 8am – 5pm
Weekly Virtual Learning Hours
Thursdays: 4pm-6pm
PROGRAM FACULTY
Emily Smith
M.Ed., CRC, CCM, C-IAYT, E-RYT 500
All my life, I have been drawn to human services. I began working with individuals who had disabilities when I was 19 and became a rehabilitation counselor in 1992. I started my yoga practice in 1998. At the time, I had a little baby and a 5-year-old. I needed yoga to clear my head, help with stress, and offset the pain from training. I was working as a full-time rehabilitation counselor and became a yoga teacher. At this point, I was well aware of the pitfalls and gaps in traditional allopathic medicine. There was a pivotal time in my career when I was working with an incredible man as a counselor. I was at his side during his treatment. At this time, mind-body techniques were not even considered a valuable tool in medicine.
Shanti Kelley
MSP., C-IAYT, E-RYT 500
I was born Shanti Nicole, my father being in seminary school and getting his Masters in world religions liked the word and the meaning. I guess it was all circumstance from there. I traveled a lot as a young person, saw a lot of things. By 15 I was inducted into the Suzuki Roshi method of Zen practice and studied under this austerity for many years. By the time a friend suggested I join her for a yoga class, I was 20 years old. I needed a change but didn't know it. Upon returning home I enrolled in yoga at the local Community College. This began the next 7 years of study with the most groovy and seasoned Yoga and Thai Chi master named Swami Budhaprem. After 4 years of practice and dedicated studentship, he gave me a certificate to teach in the Indra Devi system of Elemental Yoga. What I learned there, I still teach to this day.
Jenny Orona
C-IAYT, E-RYT 500
I hit the bottom of a pool at my birthday party in my late 20’s, I suffered from continuous numbness on my entire right side due to a reverse curve in my neck and compression in the lower lumbar area. For almost 10 years my back was in constant pain, no one could do anything for it other than put me into the hospital in traction and give me pain pills. Then I remember having this conversation with my dear friend who said “try Yoga”… of course I thought she had absolutely lost her mind, “Yoga” I replied what good is that going to do me, I don’t even understand that concept. I continued on with my life and with my pain. I remember one night just turning the wrong way, I knew there was no way that I was going to be upright the next day. So I woke up at 2 am in the morning got fully dressed, especially shoes cause I know that was going to be a problem, and spent the night sitting, laying, flailing about in the living room until I could call a cab to take me to my doctor's office. I had had enough.
Christina Cohee
C-IAYT, YACEP
I was introduced to yoga in the early 90s through a magazine. My life was chaotic and unpredictable, and I was drawn to the serenity I found in practicing the postures and breathing techniques. In college I enjoyed the physical release of an asana practice, but it wasn’t until I was debilitated by chronic and mystery illness that I discovered the breadth of yoga as a healing modality.
After suffering for close to 20 years, a friend invited me to a restorative yoga class. After the first class, I thought it was a waste of time and money (so pitta!). I kept going (to be with my friend), and amazingly, after a few weeks I began feeling better. I was curious to know why “doing nothing” was affording me some relief. Thus began my journey through teacher training.
Dr. Sandi Russom
PT, DPT, C-IAYT, E-RYT 500
My introduction to yoga and meditation began during rehearsals for a play while I was completing my bachelor’s degree in theatre in 2002. We used movement and meditation techniques to build a deep bond among the cast members. To my surprise, I walked away from each rehearsal feeling light and calm and noticed over the months that my anxiety and associated symptoms had been relieved. After completing my degree, yoga became a more integral part of my daily life. I was attending bi-weekly classes at my local YMCA when I felt the call to deepen my study of yoga and share the practice with others. I soon moved to Austin and completed my Hatha Yoga Teacher Training at Yoga Yoga in 2006.
Dr. Mark Uridel
DPT, C-IAYT, E-RYT 500
I began my yoga journey in 1985. I was an amateur runner and was very tight from 13 years of training 5-10 miles a day and competitive running. I took my first yoga class at the Town Lake YMCA with Peggy Kelly, an Iyengar teacher. I liked the slow stretching, the attention to detail, the mindfulness, and I sensed a spiritual dimension. I was hooked.
Kat Scherer
PhD, MFT, C-IAYT
I am a faculty member of the Practice School of Yoga Therapy and a Psychologist in private practice. At the school, I teach about the intersection of yoga therapy and psychology, focusing on the role of psychology in yoga therapy. As a psychologist, I also teach classes on mindfulness, social-emotional development, neurobiology, and relational attachments in various settings including universities, professional conferences, community centers, and schools.
Shawn Kent
Shawn Kent is a licensed practicing counselor, a licensed massage therapist, and a certified Yoga instructor. Shawn specializes in Mindfulness Based Yoga Therapy and teaches yoga as a practical wellness discipline. He has run Mindfulness Based Yoga Therapy groups for adolescents in juvenile detention, for incarcerated adults, and currently for under-served youth in the public school system. He also runs Mindfulness Based a Relapse Prevention groups for youth in recovery. He sees yoga as a healing discipline that has the potential counteract many of the difficulties of modern life, and encourages students to truly practice mentally, physically, and emotionally both on and off of the mat.
Adjunct Faculty
Shruti Mehta
RYT 500
Shruti Mehta has been working in the field of mental/behavioral health for more than two decades. Shruti RYT 500 and a lifelong student of Sanskrit language, philosophy of Vedas. She is also a teacher of Sanskrit with Samskrita Bharati. Shruti has authored two books that are self-published, namely Yog Sanskriti, the Culture of Yog and India, A Poetic Journey. As an artist, Shruti likes to paint regional art of India and European art styles. Her art has been displayed in various places in Austin, and she has been featured by Austin PBS in December 2020. In her free time, Shruti likes to try new recipes from Indian cooking, spend time with family, and go for walks in nature. Recently with a friend, Shruti has started a podcast called Saarthika, geared towards nourishing the mind and body.
Vivek Bakshi, Ph.D.
Vivek is the founder of Sangam Retreats, the spiritual arm of The Writing Barn, a writing retreat and workshop space in Austin, Texas, that he owns and operates with his wife, Bethany Hegedus. Born in Lucknow, India, and a graduate of the Indian Institute of Technology, he received his Ph.D. in the US. Vivek has long been a seeker of spiritual wisdom, including meditation, Sanskrit, and the study of various religious traditions, even as he is a leading and in-demand expert in the technical field of computer chip manufacturing. His latest book, Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography, is a bestseller. A student of yoga for the past fifteen years, coupled with his studies of Sanskrit at the University of Texas, has led Vivek to develop programming in an effort to serve yogis and yoga therapists, as well as other spiritual seekers, in reading, writing, and understanding the meaning of Sanskrit words, shlokas and scriptures. Scriptures such as Ramayana, Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra, Upanishads, and Bhagavad Gita are among his favorites. Learn more at sangamretreats.com.