WELCOME TO THE HIGHLAND SQUARE SCHOOL OF YOGA— 200 AND 300 HOUR yoga TRAININGS APPROVED BY THE YOGA ALLIANCe
We're happy you found us!
Are you a dedicated yoga student with a calling to share the practice of yoga with others? Or, are you looking to dive much deeper into your own spiritual & physical practice by studying the history & traditions of yoga, while learning correct alignment in all postures? And, are you looking to create more community in your life by finding people to talk to about the inevitable growth & development that comes with living a life on the yogic path? If you answered yes to any of those questions, you're in the right place!
Here you can find information for our Highland Square School of Yoga 200-Hour Yoga Teacher Training. This is our seventh Yoga Alliance-approved 200-Hour training, and we have put so much thought and care into its creation. We have involved yoga teachers and other professionals who we truly feel will bring tremendous value to our program and its participants. It is with immense gratitude and pride that we offer this training to our community.
MEET YOUR TRAINERS!
Kevin Karas (lead trainer)
Kevin serves as Executive Director of Elevate Akron, a yoga nonprofit in Akron, Ohio that has partnered with 200+ local businesses, nonprofits & artists to bring Yoga to 16,500+ people through community programming such as Elevate Akron Yoga Festival. He’s the Board Governance Manager for Yoga Alliance, the world’s largest yoga nonprofit association which sets global standards for over 110,000 members. He certifies yoga teachers at the 200-hour level at Yoga Squared Akron, leads yoga retreats locally & internationally, and partners with talented musicians such as Zen That Beat, SEER Music, Museus, Zach Friedhof, Jim Kellerman Music, Samuel Salsbury Music, Mark Nathanson, Narada Wise, and Lana Sugarman to provide Yoga with Live Music. His lineage is inspired from 15 years of study in the Sivananda, Integral, Sampoorna, Ashtanga, Iyengar, Restorative, and Mindfulness traditions. Further, his award winning 4-year graduate thesis explored the teaching methods of master yoga and meditation teachers.
Elizabeth Tipton (lead trainer)
Elizabeth (she/her) has been a dedicated yoga teacher for over six years. Learning is a deep passion for her and trainings light her up -- she completed two 200hr trainings in 2017 + 2019 and her 300hr training in 2021, the same year earning her position as an E-RYT200 + RYT500 teacher and YACEP. Throughout her teaching journey, Elizabeth found Katonah Yoga, awakening her passion for breathwork, assisting, Chinese medicine, and connecting individually with students. She received her Katonah Yoga certification after an additional 200 hours of training in 2020. Yoga is the first thing that allowed Elizabeth to feel awake and at home in her body, and she hopes to create + hold space for others to find the keys to unlock doors in their own practice. Outside of the yoga studio, Elizabeth is passionate about photography + capturing moments of true embodiment, practicing many different movement modalities, and exploring the beauty in the world around her.
Nikki Woodford-Shell
Nikki (she/her) is the founder and co-owner of Yoga Squared and the co-founder of The Highland Square School of Yoga! As a 500-Hour E-RYT, she has helped to guide 10 Yoga Alliance-approved 200 and 300-Hour trainings over the last 5 years, and is passionate about teaching future teachers! As an RN for over a decade, Nikki learned firsthand the inextricable connection between body, mind, and spirit, and this led her down an unexpected path. She became a yoga student first, and eventually took her 200-Hour yoga teacher training. During training, she recognized that she was ready for a career shift, but it was imperative that she continue to fulfill her passion of helping people recognize their own capacity for healing. As an enthusiastic Highland Square resident for many years, she had the desire to help create a more vibrant neighborhood, too, and Yoga Squared was born! Now, Nikki works full-time for Yoga Squared, teaching weekly classes, workshops, facilitating trainings, and helping lead retreats all over the world through the YS retreat platform. In her free time, Nikki loves to spend time with her dogs, Raja and Haze, read, bake, and research new retreat destinations! She also runs, strength trains, and practices yoga regularly.
A few things to note about this training experience:
We will be meeting the following 12 weekends (Friday, Saturday, Sunday) from October 11th, 2024 until March 23rd, 2024.
October 11th-13th
October 25th-27th
November 1st-3rd
November 15th-17th
December 6th-8th
December 13th-15th
January 10th-12th
January 24th-26th
February 7th-9th
February 21st-23rd
March 7th-9th
March 21st- Graduation!
SCHEDULE:
Fridays from 5PM until 9:30PM
Saturdays from 2PM until 7PM
Sundays from 1:30PM until 4:30PM
PRACTICE REQUIREMENT:
You will be required to take at least 2 studio classes per week for the duration of the training! Recommend in-person classes, but online classes can also be utilized.
It is necessary that you be available during these times in order to receive important content and graduate from training. However, we understand that things come up! Make up work can be given in the instance of illness or an important occasion!
The price of your training includes unlimited free access to all in-studio and online classes at Yoga Squared throughout the training period. If you are already a member, your membership will be paused during training. Please let us know how we can assist you in determining whether this schedule is right for you!
There will be reading assignments and individual practices that will occur on your own time. This is one of the most important pieces of teacher training—the development of your personal practice. It is necessary that you are ready to devote this time on your own mat in order to develop yourself as a teacher. We are so excited to take this journey with you!
We have multiple payment options for your consideration. Note that the earlier you commit to YTT, the less expensive the training is. We are happy to speak with you individually about these options, so please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at any time.
Payment Options:
Early Acceptance: Training paid in full by July 1, 2024: $2500 (YES, you can break this into multiple payments (of any denomination), as long as the training is PIF by July 1!) A $500 deposit is required initially to hold your spot.
Regular Acceptance: Training paid in full by October 1, 2024: $2700 (YES, you can break this into multiple payments (of any denomination), as long as training is PIF by October 1!) A $500 deposit is required initially to hold your spot.
Payment Plan: Training paid in full by graduation. A $500 nonrefundable deposit is required to hold spot. After that, there will be 6 payments of $392 made monthly (October through March) for a total of ~$2850 (including deposit).
Price of training includes UNLIMITED yoga at YS for the duration of the training (starting the first day). You’ll also receive 10% off merch and an opportunity to purchase wholesale mats and props during the training period!**
**If you already have a YS membership, your membership will be put on hold until graduation. If you are a Charter member, you may gift your remaining months to a friend, OR we will pause your membership until after training so that you receive all 12 months of the Charter membership)**
Books:
Purchase of books will be the responsibility of each student. We honestly feel that this is a more economical option for you. Please let us know if you have difficulty sourcing any of your books, and we would be happy to assist you! Book list will be provided upon acceptance into the training and the placement of your deposit!
Reiki 1 Training:
Cost of Reiki 1 Training is included in the price of the training. If you have already taken Reiki 1 Training, you can either a. Take it again with the group or b. We can prorate your training, and you can skip it!
Dates: Note—dates are subject to *minimal* change. We value your time and your schedules outside of YTT immensely, and we want this to be an amazing experience for you! Part of that is knowing that you can count on us to keep you updated. Please know that we will work with you to ensure that you are able to complete training even if you know you’ll miss a day or two—the important thing is that OVERALL, this schedule works with yours!
Know that we are committed to providing you with a professional, organized, and inclusive teacher training that will meet your needs both individually and as a training group. Yoga Teacher Training is a life-changing experience, whether your goal is simply to deepen your personal practice and dive deeply into the history and philosophy of yoga, or to become a certified yoga teacher capable of leading a full class of students with poise and confidence! We’ve got you.
We hope that the information we’ve provided only deepens your interest in Yoga Squared’s Highland Square School of Yoga! If you have any questions please email us at hello@yogasquaredakron.com.
To apply for the Fall 2024 Training, Click Below!