Kathy Szafran, President and CEO of Crittenton Services, attended The Art of Yoga, a nationally affiliated pilot cohort in Northern California. Kathy brought along Lindsay Schooler, Yoga Instructor and owner of Happy Goat Yoga, to be trained with her to use in Crittenton’s residential program.

The Art of Yoga is a project that teaches a trauma-informed and gender-responsive model with a yoga and creative arts curricula. Eight organizations are participating in the pilot from seven states in the country. The diverse group includes behavioral health treatment centers, group homes, and juvenile detention centers in communities in Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York, Mississippi, Texas, and West Virginia.

The curricula will be used in the weekly yoga classes residential clients participate in currently, and will now be a more trauma-informed approach. The Child Trauma Academy’s evidence-based Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics is used to address sequential brain regulation. Difficulty calming the brain is common in youth experiencing development and complex trauma. Regulate, Relate, and Reason is used for the class structure to promote self- regulation, mindfulness and healing.

The Art of Yoga has served over 6,000 girls since 2003. The curricula combine yoga, meditation, creative arts and writing to promote self-awareness, self-respect, and self-control.

*Lindsay Schooler, Yoga Instructor and owner of Happy Goat Yoga and Kathy Szafran, President and CEO of Crittenton Services*