Teacher Training Program Information

Open House Dates
April 22nd @ 6:30pm
April 24th @ 6:00pm
April 29th @ 6:30pm
May 3rd @ 11:00am
May 6th @ 6:30pm
May 13th @ 6:30pm
May 16th @ 6:30pm

Join us for one or more of these Q & A sessions with Paula Scopino, owner and director of Sacred Rivers Yoga. She will answer any questionsabout our 200 or 500 hour Yoga Alliance registered yoga teacher training program.
Please reach Paula at 860.657.9545 if you would prefer a private meeting.

200 Hour
This 200 hour in depth study qualifies you to become certified as a beginning Yoga teacher and is in compalince with the standards of the nationally recognized Yoga Alliance. You will receive the 200 Hour Yoga Alliance Certificate upon successful completion of the program, as well as credit towards the 500 hour Advanced Training.

You will be graned the use of the Alliance Registry Mark -RYT 200. Yoga Alliance actively works to maintain a national registry of Yoga teachers and schools who meet the Alliance's recommended eductaional standards. It is dedicated to uphold the integrity of yoga, to provide support, to educated the public about the benefits of yoga, and to provide a vehicle for those who teach unity to come together in unity while supporting the diversity that exists within the yoga community.

This program is also recommended for any serious Yoga student who wishes to deepen his or her practice and transform their life through personal growth and self discovery, or to follow the yogic path.

There is an application process for the year long program and students hoping to attend should have practiced and studied yoga for a minimum of six months.

500 Hour
For the first time in Connecticut, 500 Hour Yoga Alliance Teacher Training is available here, only at Sacred Rivers.

Tuition:
Please call for tuition rates and payment plans: 'Early Bird' Discounts deadlines: March 30 for 200, and April 20 for 500

Books: Visit the "SHOP" section of our website for the required and optional reading lists - you can purchase the books online through Sacred Rivers Yoga and Amazon.com.

Instructors:

Dr. Michael Reife (Anatomy and Physiology) is an adjunct associate professor of basic and clinical sciences at the University of Bridgeport College of Chiropractic. He is an adjunct instructor in the Masters of neuroscience program at the University of Hartford.
Dr. Reife has board certification as a diplomate in the American chiropractic academy of neurology and is in private practice in Marlborough, CT.

Anne Stamatakis (Subtle Energy Anatomy) has 27 years of experience in complementary touch therapies in England and California. She is a CT licensed massage therapist and Certified Healing Touch Practitioner and has a private practice in Rocky Hill. Her additional studies and international affiliations with spiritual teachers and relationship trainers have given her a well-balanced blend of modern, traditional and intuitive methods of natural healing. Anne's focus will be on teaching energy medicine and a heightened awareness of the subtle bodies. The chakras and the human aura, the electromagnetic energy field around and inside of us, will be explained and demonstrated throughout this series of classes. Anne will encourage you to directly apply this valuable knowledge to your relationship with your body, emotions, mental beliefs, spirituality and yoga practice. She loves yoga, loves life and firmly believes in the healing power of keeping a sense of humor.

Swamini Lalitananda-(History, Philosophy, Styles of Yoga)
Education: Andhra University - Andhra Pradesh, India, V. Yoa Research Institute Tirapathi, India, Swami Shivananda Ashram Uttar Kashi India, Swami Dayananda Ashram Rishikesh, India and Arsh Vidya Gurukulum, Sailorburg, PA, USA, Kailash Ashram Rishikesh, India, Swami Dayananada Ashram, Anaikatti Tamil Nadu , India, Swami Lalitananda received a master degree in yoga and philosophy and was initiated into Sannyas in Shivananda Ashram
Experience: Andhra University, Andra Pradesh India: taught yoga studies, philosophy, and yogic sciences. Manhattan, New York, Shivananda Yoga Vedanta Center: taught yoga, Vedanta and sanskrit for eight years. Hindu University, Orland, Florida: taught sanskrit, yoga, meditation, sloka chanting, devotional singing, yoga nidra, Patanjali’s yoga sutras. University of Connecticut: guest lecturer in Vedanta, yoga and meditation. Founded the Atma Vidya Ashram in year 2000.

Patricia DiFazio (Yogic Philosophy and Meditation) has been practicing yoga for 25 years and has been living a yogic lifestyle for the last 15 years. Patty has studied yoga with many of the great yogic masters of India. She has traveled to India seven times where she lived in an ashram. She was certified as a yoga instructor through the Yoga Institute in Houston, Texas and also through the Atma Vidya Ashram. Patty continues to study with her teacher Swamini Lalitanada of the Atma Vidya Ashram. It was her guru Swamini Lalitananda who gave Patty her spiritual name Divya Jyoti which means Divine Light. This personal, in depth spiritual teaching has prepared Divya to teach yogic philosophy and meditation techniques as well as lead asana.

Paula Scopino (Yoga For Every Body, Yoga Therapies, etc.) Paula Scopino is the Owner/Director of Sacred Rivers. Paula was inspired at a young age by her parent's spiritual explorations and discovered yoga at age 19. She has been a student of yoga since 1976 and has been teaching since 1978 after receiving her first certification with Ruth Bender (pre-Kripalu).
Paula has taught in many different settings, including corporations, hospitals, and fitness and rehabilitation centers. She has studied many different yoga styles all over the country and has been inspired and influenced by numerous wonderful teachers. Her love and interest of yoga, movement, and energy led her to study massage therapy, Reiki, Feldenkrais, and Pilates.

Paula is a Registered Yoga Alliance Teacher - 500 hour, and is a certified Cardiac Yoga Teacher, having studied Yoga of the Heart with Nischala Joy Devi (the stress management portion of the Dr. Dean Ornish program). Paula does yoga therapy for heart disease and cancer, and yoga therapy for chronic conditions, back problems, arthritis, and multiple sclerosis. She teaches prenatal yoga, yoga for children, and yoga for 60,70, and beyond.

Paula graduated from the Connecticut Center for Massage Therapy in 1989 and is a Connecticut licensed massage therapist and member of the American Massage Therapy Association. She also assists her brother Rick Haesche in teaching the Art of Traditional Thailand Massage in massage therapy schools as a part of their regular and continuing education curriculum. In addition, she is certified in Karuna and Usui Reiki. She has maintained a private practice since 1989.

Jack Lynch (Ashtanga) received his formal training from renowned teachers Beryl Bender Birch and David Swenson. These accomplished mentors have instilled in Jack a deep understanding of the ancient Ashtanga system (both first and second series), and imparted an abundance of skillful adjustment techniques.

Jack has also studied with Sri K. Pattabhi Jois, Ana Forrest, Nancy Gilgoff and Doug Swenson. Through Continuous study and practice he is able to offer not only primary and second series Ashtanga classes, but also unique classes inspired by these other distinguished teachers.

You will enjoy the way Jack's sense of humor and compassion puts you at ease while fostering a safe environment in which to work the body.

Susan Taff (Kinesiology) Susan Taff holds a Masters degree in Counseling from Southern Connecticut State University and a Masters degree in Public Health from Yale University. Susan has been practicing massage therapy for 12 years, teaching kinesiology and massage therapy courses. She has also studied and has been teaching yoga in the style of B. K. S. Iyengar since 1989. She brings to her yoga teaching her years of study and interest in anatomy and movement. Susan especially enjoys adapting yoga asanas for students with physical limitations.

Marybeth Keener (Eating for Wholeness)
Marybeth Keener, LMT, CCH, AADP is a biochemist with over 20 years experience working with the nutrition and cosmetics industries. She is a Traditional Asian Medicine Practioner who blends her knowledge of modern nutrition with the 3,000 year old healing modality of Asian medicine to create personalized wellness programs that help clients address root causes of imbalance and move toward wellness.
Learn more about Marybeth by visiting her website at www.wellnessthroughbalance.com

Rick Haesche (The Art & Science of Traditional Thai Massage) Rick completed his initial massage training at the Connecticut Center for Massage Therapy in 1994, where he was first introduced to Thai Massage during his last term of study. His interest in this beautiful and ancient body work led him to study Thai Massage in Boston, MA, and eventually in Chiang Mai, Thailand in 1997. He has been teaching Thai Massage workshops to massage therapists throughout New England since 1999. Rick is a nationally certified, Connecticut state licensed massage therapist, and has a practice at Sacred Rivers Yoga.

Karen Mack-Piacentini (Restorative Yoga) Karen Mack- Piacentini M.S., RYT 200 hr, has been studying yoga since 1994 and completed her teacher certification in Anusara-influenced Hatha yoga in 2001. Ansuara means flowing with Grace orflowing from your Heart. Karen brings this heart centered practice to her teaching. Her warmth, compassion, and humor encourages people to explore their true potential and touch their true nature ~ joy. She works with the universal principles of alignment to safely explore the body in each posture (asana). Karen is also a certified Chakra yoga instructor and has completed Level 1 and 2 of Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy training.

Ann Marie Bazzano (Restorative Yoga) Ann Marie Bazzano, RYT, has completed 200 hr teacher certification and is currently working on her 500 hr certification with Kim Valeri of Yoga Spirit. Ann incorporates many styles of yoga practice in her teaching including Iyengar, Kundalini, and Ashtanga. Her eclectic background and open heart brings a wonderful nurturing flow to her teaching. She is a certified prenatal yoga teacher and has also studied Meridian Yoga, restorative yoga, and Yoga Therapy.

Ann and Karen's shared passion for helping others restore the rhythm of rest in their lives shines through in their teaching. Their teaching styles blend beautifully to create a safe, fun, and peaceful environment in which to explore the yogic path. They offer classes in restorative yoga, partner yoga, and parent and child yoga. Karen and Ann are recipients of 2005 Teaching for Diversity grant from Kripalu Teachers Association for their work bringing yoga to under privileged mothers and children in the Middletown area of CT.