Katie started practicing yoga occasionally in 2005 as a way to help with flexibility and balance for athletics. After graduating college she continued practicing yoga and started seeing the benefits in her running, work and personal life. The only time life truly exists is in the present and yoga is a practice that through breath, movement and mindfulness can get us to that place. In early 2016 she completed her 200 Hour Yoga Teaching Certificate through CorePower, and went on to complete an extensions training program and a yin yoga training. Katie is much a student of the practice as she is a teacher. She often travels to various locations for retreats and workshops, and is constantly reading to deepen her understanding of the practice. Her class is an experience of carefully picked postures, music, breath cues, readings and adjustments. Katie is passionate about breaking down traditional barriers associated with yoga and making the practice attainable for all through a safe and open space. Yoga isn't about being able to touch your toes, it's about showing up, letting go of expectations and being open to allowing this practice to change your life. 

Zenzele Isoke is Associate Professor of Gender, Women and Sexuality Studies at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. She has been practicing meditation in the Insight Tradition since 2005 and has been an active member of Common Ground Meditation Community since 2014. Zenzele incorporates mindfulness techniques in university classroom settings, specifically in the advanced undergraduate course Pleasure, Intimacy, Violence that she co-created with the Aurora Center for Advocacy and Education and the University of Minnesota Women’s Center. She is author of Urban Black Women and the Politics of Resistance, a book-length study of black women’s contemporary activism across the spheres of black queer resistance, hip hop politics and the politics of black feminist homemaking. She is published widely across the fields of African American studies, geography and political science. Zenzele faciliates our monthly Meditation for People of Color.

Anne is a yoga teacher and life-long truth seeker. A native to Minnesota, she considers the planet her playground and has called many places home over the past four years.

After spending 10 years in corporate america, she started to feel misaligned with her higher purpose. Her experience in yoga teacher training was the culprit for helping her realize she needed to follow her heart. The gift of yoga has given her the tools to realign her values and find more meaning in her life.

Anne teaches a mindful vinyasa flow. Her classes are playfully sequenced and gently themed. 

When she's not teaching or practicing yoga, she is studying to be a health coach. In addition, she enjoys being active outside, cooking, reading and spending time with her family. 

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Rachel became a yoga teacher to be the teacher she never had: plus-sized, body positive, and anti-diet. It's her mission to share yoga with people who don't think they look like yogis or who might feel uncomfortable practicing due their size, age, gender expression, sexuality, physical ability, or experience. She invites each student to honor their unique practice and celebrate the body they have right now. Rachel completed the 230-hour teacher training at the Yoga Center of Minneapolis, is a Yoga For All Certified Teacher, and is an Accessible Yoga Ambassador. She is eating disorder sensitive, queer and trans-friendly, and a part of the Health at Every Size (HAES) movement. Rachel facilitates are Yoga for Larger Bodies series that frequently sells out.

Laurie has been practicing yoga for over 20 years and her love for yoga and it's healing effects have taken her to India and Indonesia to deepen her practice. She is Yoga Calm certified, completed her 200 hours yoga teacher training, and a practicing licensed psychologist. She creates classes that build strength and openness in the body. Holding postures a little longer and slowly stretching the muscles. Her hope is that you will experience a challenge and deep relaxation in her classes and have a few moments of stillness both in the body and mind.  She supports her students with gentle guidance. Laurie wants to bring the healing effects of yoga to individuals who may not traditionally seek out yoga as well as the experienced yogi.

Instructor:Ben Connelly teaches meditation and mindfulness across the United States. He is a fully authorized Soto Zen lineage holder and also teaches in many secular contexts including police training, chemical dependency recovery and wellness groups. Ben writes for Experience Life and Tricycle magazines and is author of three books for Wisdom Publications including his latest, Mindfulness and Intimacy. Ben facilitates  of our Mindfulness Meditation series.

Hello I’m Scarlett. I started my yoga journey when I hesitantly took a class ten years ago  and I have not looked back since. Originally I started my career path to become a nurse, but my curiosity for yoga rapidly grew to become my first love and passion. I love to inspire and grow with my students. As a teacher and student I’m always learning and expanding my knowledge in yoga. I travel when I can, but when I have free time you usually find me on my yoga mat upside down somewhere. Namaste! 

Jessica began practicing yoga in 2010 and completed her RYT-200 at The Yoga Center of Minneapolis in 2013.  Through the practice, she found healing from an eating disorder.  Jessica is currently studying Yoga Therapy through the YogaWell Institute with Chase Bossart, Dolphi Wetergren and Kevin Kortan.  Her dedication to teaching is anchored by a confidence in the tools yoga provides.  It’s important for her to build relationships with her students and hold space for them to have an experience on all levels: body, mind, emotion & breath. .

Jaya Stenquist completed her teacher training with Radiant Life Yoga. Her classes are for all people, backgrounds, and bodies and aim to reduce anxiety, manage pain, and support mental and physical health. Her practice ranges from vinyasa, to restorative, to kundalini, and all influence her teaching style. 

Lori Vander Poel has been practicing and studying many of styles of yoga for over
ten years. She received her teaching certification from Devanadi Yoga in 2016. Lori
is a certified health coach and has a background in music therapy. She considers
herself a forever student, and is grateful for travel experiences abroad where she
studied yoga extensively in India and throughout Southeast Asia. Lori incorporates
themes of mindfulness, self-compassion and gratitude in her classes and encourages
the unfolding of ones own innate wisdom to guide their wellbeing. Her warm and
inviting approach welcomes students of all levels.

Femi is currently a medical student at the University of Minnesota, where his intention is to serve as a bridge between Eastern and Western healing modalities for both mind and body. 

Femi is also a nationally certified massage therapist, Shaolin Kung Fu black belt, and former Division 1 athlete.  He has been practicing yoga and Buddhist meditation since 2004.  An avid practitioner of both traditions, he completed yoga teacher training in 2013 at Your Yoga in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

 At Common Ground, he helped start the center's men’s circle,  is a member of the Inclusivity Advisory Council and People of Color (POC) sangha steering committee. Of particular interest to him is how an embodied yoga & dharma practice can be utilized to meet the challenging needs and deep wounds of our modern society.