Home > Yoga > Instructors >

Yoga classes at Taekwondo World are lead by several instructors who bring a wealth of experience and personal practice to the participants.

Ms. Kristin Hakala. Kristin began practicing yoga over fifteen years ago. Her practice has included many styles of yoga, including Iyengar, Ashtanga, Bikram, and Sivananda. She is a professional ballet dancer, most recently working as a principal dancer with Ballet West in Salt Lake City, Utah. Kristin is a teacher of ballet and yoga, with a certification from the Sivananda Yoga Center.



Mr. Tong Wang. Tong has been practicing yoga for several years, including a variety of styles such as Ashtanga, Bikram, and Sivananda. He is a certified yoga instructor through the Sivananda Yoga Center. After a successful career as a professional ballet dancer for over twenty years, Tong has accepted a position at Wright State University's Theater Arts Department, where he will be Assistant Professor of Dance. His extensive experience as a ballet dancer and teacher bring a unique level of body awareness to his yoga teaching.



Mrs. Maura Krotts. Maura is a 3rd Degree Black Belt and devoted Yoga practitioner. She is the school's Administrative Assistant and a leading member of the instructional staff of the Taekwondo program. She has worked for more that 20 years as a dental assistant and office manager. With her husband, Dave, she has raised 2 teen daughters - one currently attending University of Cincinnati, the other a senior at Centerville High School. Certification in progress.





Mrs. Elizabeth Georgin. Liz has been a Yoga practitioner for 5 years. She has a professional background as an electrical engineer, but is now a "stay at home mom" for her 3 sons. Married with her French husband, Marc, she also teaches French in an afternoon foreign language program for elementary age children. As part of her busy day, she enjoys helping others find mental and physical wellness that comes from practicing power yoga. Certification in progress.



Ms. Jennifer Gleason. Jennifer began practicing Power Yoga two years ago in San Antonio, Texas while her husband, Chip, was stationed there with the Air Force. A former elementary school teacher, she quit teaching in 1997 after the birth of her daughter. She is now a stay-at-home mother, raising her two children. Jennifer has completed Yoga Fit teacher training in Levels I and II. She also has done workshops with many of yoga's Ashtanga and Power leaders. She completed a 15 hour weekend workshop with Andrew Eppler of Ashtanga Yoga Studio in Norman, Oklahoma. She has also completed workshops with Ashtanga teacher and author, Doug Swenson of Lake Tahoe, CA, Power Yoga teacher Mark Blanchard, of Los Angeles, CA, and Power Yoga teacher Bryan Kest of Santa Monica, CA. Jennifer loves to share the joys and benefits of yoga with all of her students.

When you meet one of our instructors, you will quickly note a quiet demeanor, a sense of humor, a caring nature extended to each individual member, and the seriousness and dedication with which she takes her own practice.

The philosophy of the instructors is that there should be no competitiveness between members, only cooperation, and kindness. Even competition with oneself is not appropriate for the yoga practitioner. Each individual is encouraged to achieve his/her own personal best at this specific moment in time.

Power Yoga is probably the most physically demanding of the Yoga styles. More than any other style, it focuses on the physical practice as a pathway to heightened inner awareness. Perhaps the icing on the cake, is that Power Yoga provides the 'gateway' for the beginner (or anyone who might be intimidated by his/her own inaccurate notion of what Yoga is about) to experience Yoga.

There is nothing very esoteric about Power Yoga. Everybody has a body. Everybody likes to feel physically fit and strong. Power Yoga is in the unique position among "yogas" of providing, for the ordinary person, an opening to levels of self knowledge he/she might not otherwise come to know." To arrange for Speaking Engagements, Workshops or Seminars:

e-mail:	tkdworld@sbcglogal.net
Phone:	(937) 432-0333