Name of Certifying YOGA Teacher Training School and Governing Body
Prairie Yoga, LLC (dba Prairie Yoga Teacher Training)
4701 Auvergne Avenue, Suite 104, Lisle, IL 60532
www.prairieyogaTT.com
630.968.3216
Prairie Yoga is a Registered Yoga Alliance School.
For more information about Yoga Alliance: www.yogaaliiance.org.
LOCATION OF TRAINING
Location is posted on registration form and website.
PREREQUISITE
Trainees must have at least one year of consistent yoga practice prior to enrolling in the training.
PREVIOUS TRAINING
No credit is given for prior training in another program.
CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS
- Attend and participate in 100% of all teacher training classes (117 contact hours)
- Complete 42 hours of either combination:
- 18 contact hours of Teacher Training with Tias Little and 24 contact hours of elective master yoga teacher workshops
- 24 contact hours of Teacher Training with Tias Little and 18 contact hours of elective master yoga teacher workshops
- Complete 14 hours of Yoga Anatomy with Marinda Stopforth
- Attend 12 hours of Sanskrit and Yoga Philosophy with Nicolai Bachman*
- Observe and assist a senior teacher: 15 contact hours
- Complete all homework assignments (Approximately 5+ independent hours per week)
- Pass quizzes with 80% or above correct.
- Teach 2 community yoga classes. (Each class may be 1 – 1.5 hours long and you will co-teach with another trainee. (Qualifies as 2 contact hours with another instructor present, 2 independent hours of prepwork)
- Select 4 books from the book list for certification. For each book, read and write a 2 page review highlighting key ideas that most and least resonated with you.
- Teach 2 private yoga lessons that are 1 hour long each and write a 1-2 page overview of each. (Qualifies as 4 independent non-contact hours).
- Karma yoga: Teach yoga to a needy group at no charge (Qualifies as 2 independent non-contact hours).
- Proof of CPR certification
- Complete a 20 hour independent, self-study project in a specialty area of yoga that interests you. Present your exploration as a document, video, class or other medium appropriate for your topic. Final hard copy submission must be presented professionally for our teachers resource center. (Qualifies as 20 non-contact hours).
- Demonstrate the ability to teach an inspiring Level 1-2 yoga class clearly, safely and appropriately. This will be determined by observing your teaching skills within our teacher training classes and during the video review. An instructor will be present to observe your teaching. This takes place during our normal classes, therefore it does not qualify as additional hours.
*Fees for yoga anatomy, sanskrit, yoga philosophy and elective workshops are not included in tuition.
BOOKS
Required Course Books: Please purchase course books one month before the first class. (Approximate cost for required course books is $65).
Light on Yoga by B.K.S. Iyengar
Yoga for Wellness by Gary Kraftsow
The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Translated by Swami Satchidananda
Scientific Keys Volume 1: Key Muscles of Yoga by Ray Long
Required Reading for Certification: Choose 4 out of the 6 books listed below and write a 1-2 page summary of the ideas in the book that most and least resonated with you and why. You are not required to purchase these books, although you may choose to do so for approximately $42.00. To save money, you may borrow from a friend or check these out at the library.
Peace is Every Step by Thich Nhat Hahn
Bringing Yoga to Life by Donna Farhi
The Tree of Yoga by BKS Iyengar
Living Your Yoga by Judith Lasater
Fire of Love by Aadil Palkhivala
Health, Healing and Beyond by T.K.V. Desikachar
TEACHER TRAINING MATERIALS
All Prairie Yoga Teacher Training materials are copyrighted. Copying, scanning and or distributing these materials violates Prairie Yoga’s copyright. Prairie Yoga urges everyone to ethically and lawfully make productive judgments to ensure that authors are fully credited and compensated for their work.
By accepting your teacher training manual, you agree to the following:
The manual is your personal manual and is not to be copied, posted on the internet, bought, sold, lent or given to others. It is designed purely as a teaching aid only for teacher trainees enrolled in the Prairie Yoga Teacher Training Program. It is also provided to mentors in the Program. It is given with the condition that no reproduction of any part of this manual by any means will be done without prior written permission of the author, Lori Gaspar.
You also agree to the conditions outlined above for any handouts, emails or assignments given during the training, including information provided by mentors and guest teachers.
To create a safe environment for everyone’s personal development, we want to protect the privacy of everyone involved in the program. You agree that emails related to the yoga teacher training program will not be forwarded or copied without the permission of the email author.
Teacher Training Manuals
Your teacher training manual Is included in the tuition.
Replacing lost or damaged TT manuals
Damaged manuals can be exchanged for a new one for $75. Lost manuals are $150 to replace.
As we do not order more manuals than we need for each training, it may take 3-4 weeks to print your new manual.
COURSE SCHEDULE
Current schedule is posted on registration form and website.
HOLIDAYS
We do not meet on days other than the dates listed above, therefore legal and scheduled holidays do not affect our schedule.
TUITION
Current tuition is posted on registration form and website.
REFUNDS
The tuition and fees paid by the applicant shall be refunded if the applicant is rejected by the school before enrollment. An applicant fee of not more than $25.00 may be retained by the school if the applicant is denied. All tuition and fees paid by the applicant shall be refunded if requested within 3 business days after signing a contract with the school. All refunds shall be returned within 30 days. Once the 3 days have elapsed the following policies will be followed.
Trainings that meet weekly:
After 3 days of signing the contract and before the first training class, your tuition will be refunded minus $150.
After the first training class, your tuition will be refunded minus $250.
After the second training class, your tuition will be refunded minus $500.
After the third training class, your tuition will be refunded minus $750.
No refunds are available on the day of the fourth training class or thereafter.
Trainings that meet monthly:
After 3 days of signing the contract and before the first training class, your tuition will be refunded minus $150.
After the first training weekend, your tuition will be refunded minus $500.
No refunds are available on the first day of the second training weekend or thereafter.
Requests for refunds must be submitted in writing to the Director, Lori Gaspar.
ATTENDANCE
To receive your certificate and be eligible for Yoga Alliance registration, you must attend 100% of the classes and complete 100% of the requirements.
Tardiness
Trainees agree to arrive to all classes on time. In the event that you know you will be late due to special circumstances, please contact your teacher. Excessive tardiness will jeopardize your certification status. In addition, if you are late to any class more than three times and have not notified the instructor beforehand, you may be asked to leave the program. There are absolutely no refunds under such circumstances.
Absences
Excused: Each trainee must inform the teacher in writing and in advance for classes which will be missed for legitimate reasons, such as weddings, family holidays, or pre-planned vacations. In case of illness, the student shall contact the teacher before class begins. You are allowed two excused absences. Upon the third excused absence, you may continue in the program but will be on probation and need to make immediate arrangements for making-up the classes you missed. Upon the 4th absence, you will be ineligible for certification. There are absolutely no refunds under such circumstances. If you missed more than 3 classes, you must retake the training at your own expense. Exceptions to the absence policy are at the discretion of the teacher and will only be granted under unusual circumstances such as medical or job-related issues.
Unexcused absences: Upon the third incident, you will become ineligible for certification. You may also be asked to leave the program. There are absolutely no refunds under such circumstances.
Make-up: Trainees must complete a make-up (as described below) for ALL absences to become eligible for certification.
Make-ups for Missed Classwork
Contact Hours
All hours must be made up as they all count toward your certification.
You have several options for making up contact hours:
- Attend another one of our 200 hour yoga teacher training programs. Attend a training class that covers the topics you missed. There is no charge to attend one of our other trainings for make-ups.
- Attend a workshop that covers the topic you missed. In certain instances and with pre-approval of your teacher, you may arrange to attend a workshop or special event instead of another training. You will need to pay the fee for the workshop or special event.
- Private lesson with one of our teacher trainers: If you prefer, you may meet with one of the teacher trainers for a private or semi-private session at an hourly fee of $80.
Non-contact hours
If the teacher deems it appropriate, you may be able to complete a home study assignment. Ask the teacher for more details. A written assignment or project will be given. With evidence of your home study work, non-contact hours only will be credited.
QUIZZES
Trainees must pass quizzes with 80% correct or more. If you do not pass, you will be given one more opportunity to retake the quiz and pass. If you do not pass, you will not be certified. There is no additional cost to re-take a quiz.
TEACHING SKILLS
Trainees will be given the opportunity to practice teach in the training and will be given feedback prior to the video review. Trainees must pass the video review by demonstrating the ability to teach a level 1-2 yoga class safely and appropriately. Trainees must demonstrate their knowledge of asana, pranayama, meditation and sequencing as presented in the training. Trainees must demonstrate proficiency in: verbal action cueing, demonstrating clearly and manually guiding students to reinforce safe alignment. Trainees must be able to demonstrate that they can work cooperatively with other yoga teacher trainees to create a class plan and sequence.
HOMEWORK DUE DATES
Homework is due the next time the training meets. Homework is designed to prepare you for the information that will be presented at the next training class so it is important that you stay current. At the end of the training, you have 60 additional days maximum to hand in all late homework. After 60 days, no homework will be accepted and you will not be eligible for certification. No refunds are given under such circumstance.
STUDENT CONDUCT
By enrolling in this teacher training program, trainees agree that they are here to learn and agree to create a positive and supportive learning environment for everyone. Trainees will respect others by arriving on-time, being fully present, actively participating in the coursework, discussions and learning processes. Trainees agree to clean up after themselves, straightening props, sweeping floors and taking out garbage, etc. so that the space is cleaner than they found it. Trainees will not interfere with the right of others to learn in a positive, supportive learning environment. Trainees will be placed on probation for the first incident of breaking the code of conduct and will be asked to leave the program after the second incident. No refunds are given under such circumstance.
CERTIFICATION STATUS
Please keep track of your hours for each certification requirement on the checklist of certification requirements provided to trainees. Document the day, time, place and teacher for each category. Upon completion of all teacher training requirements, submit the checklist to Prairie Yoga as a WORD or PDF file via email: prairieyoga@comcast.net. Upon approval of the checklist, your 200 hour yoga teacher training certificate will be awarded to you by Prairie Yoga.
Deadline
Trainees have one year after the last teacher training class to complete and submit all remaining requirements for certification other than homework (which is due 60 days after the last training class). If issues arise, such as illness or life crisis, you must ask for permission in writing to extend the deadline. We must receive the extension request prior to your deadline date. Each 90 day extension requires a $250 fee. Maximum 2 extensions permitted. Extension is at the discretion of the Director. Students who do not file for an extension with Prairie Yoga prior to their deadline will be considered withdrawals, and Prairie Yoga will assume no further educational or financial obligation.
Denial of Certification
Trainees will be denied certification if they have not fulfilled all the requirements of the program or for not making up missed classes, not doing homework, for being disruptive or for not actively participating in the program. You may also be asked to leave the program at the discretion of the Director if you are interfering with others right to learn in a supportive and positive learning environment. No refunds given under any such circumstances.
PLACEMENT INTO TEACHING POSITIONS
Certification by Prairie Yoga provides the 200 hour yoga teaching certification necessary for most employers. The training does not provide nor guarantee job placement.