Terms & Conditions
Purpose Statement
We are committed to holding high ethical standards for our yoga teachers. We believe that it is the responsibility of a teacher to ensure a safe environment in which our students can grow physically, mentally, and spiritually. Students are looking for guidance from teachers with authenticity, experience, and wisdom. Our Code of Conduct was developed to protect our students in this potentially vulnerable relationship with their teachers and to uphold the highest professional standards.
Financial Practices
Teachers will be honest, straightforward, fair, and conscientious in conducting all of their business affairs. Teachers will manage their business affairs according to recognized business standards and accounting practices. Teachers will discuss all fees and financial arrangements in a straightforward professional manner. Teachers will seek opportunities to render service to individuals or groups who are underserved by the broader yoga community on a pro bono basis.
Professional Growth/Continuing Education
Teachers shall maintain and improve their professional knowledge and competence, strive for professional excellence through regular assessment of their personal and professional strengths and weaknesses, and through continued education and training. Teachers shall stay current with new developments in yoga through practice and study.
Teacher-Student Relationships
Teachers shall treat their students with respect. Teachers shall never force their own opinions on students, but rather recognize that every student is entitled to his or her worldview, ideas, and beliefs. However, teachers must communicate to their students that the authentic practice of yoga involves a transformation of the human personality, including attitudes and ideas. If a student is not open to change or if a student’s opinions seriously impede the process of receiving yoga, then a teacher may end the teaching relationship. Teachers shall not exploit the trust of students and their potential dependency but rather, encourage students to find greater inner freedom.
Integrity
Teachers shall commit to the highest standards of professional and personal conduct. Teachers shall ensure that their behavior does not give even the appearance of professional impropriety. Any actions that may benefit the teacher to the detriment of the yoga community, or an individual student must be avoided to not erode the public trust in the integrity of yoga. Teachers shall dedicate themselves to studying, teaching, and promoting the art, science and philosophy of yoga and to maintaining high standards of professional competence and integrity.
Scope of Practice
Teachers shall represent their qualifications honestly and provide only the services they are qualified and certified to perform. Teachers shall not give medical advice. Teachers shall not recommend treatment, diagnose a condition, or suggest that a student disregard medical advice. Teachers shall refer their students to medical doctors or complimentary licensed professionals when appropriate.
Confidential Information
Our studio will maintain the confidentiality of all private information disclosed by our teachers, students, and clients. We will maintain commercially reasonable policies and procedures to protect the confidentiality of all private information disclosed by our teachers, students, and clients.
Inter-Professional Relationships
Teachers are part of the well-being community and should strive to develop and maintain relationships within the community for the benefit of their students and their own professional development. Teachers shall practice tolerance toward other teachers, schools, and traditions. Teachers shall not undermine a student’s trust in teachings they have received from other traditions, schools, or teachers by criticizing such teachings without reasonable cause. If a teacher hears such criticism being made by students or colleagues, he or she must act with the utmost discretion and professionalism in voicing their view on the matter.
Advertising and Public Communications
Teachers shall not make false advertisements. Teachers shall refrain from making public statements on the benefits of yoga that are not supported by science or the generally accepted experience of the yoga community. Advertisements of workshops, clinics, seminars or similar events must have a clear statement of the purpose of the event, the audience for which it is intended and its educational objectives. The education, training, and experience of the teacher shall be fairly and accurately disclosed. Advertisements shall be made with dignity. Advertisements shall not include exaggerated claims about the benefits of yoga.
Yoga Equity
Teachers shall welcome all students regardless of age, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity and perceived gender expression), sexual orientation, color, race, national origin, marital status, parental status, veteran’s status, religion, or physical or mental disability, provided that the teacher has appropriate expertise.
Retaliation Policy
We will not retaliate against any person for having reported or threatened to report harassment, discrimination, retaliation, or violations of our Code of Conduct or polices, or for participating in an investigation into any of the foregoing. Anyone who retaliates against a person will be subjected to disciplinary action, up to and including termination.
We encourage any person — including employees, non-employees, and students — who believe they have been subject to retaliation to inform a supervisor or manager.
We have a zero-tolerance policy for sexual harassment or sexual misconduct. We encourage anyone who has been or anyone who is subject to this behavior to report it to the Human Resources department or school management. We will do everything possible to ensure that you are not retaliated against by anyone because you have reported misconduct.
Harassment Against Members of Protected Class
We do not permit managers, employees, teachers, independent contractors, students, or others in the workplace to harass any other person because of age, gender (including pregnancy), race, ethnicity, culture, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, disability, socioeconomic status, genetic information, or any other basis proscribed by law.
Harassment is unwelcome verbal or non-verbal conduct, based upon a person’s protected characteristic, that (i) denigrates or shows hostility or aversion toward the person because of the characteristic and which affects their employment opportunities or benefits; (ii) has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with their work performance; (iii) enduring the offensive conduct becomes a condition of continued employment; or (iv) has the purpose or effect of creating a work environment that a reasonable person would consider intimidating, hostile, or abusive.
Harassment includes epithets, slurs, name calling, negative stereotyping, insults, intimidation, ridicule, threatening, intimidating or hostile acts, denigrating jokes, and display in the workplace of written or graphic material that denigrates or shows hostility or aversion toward an individual or group based on their protected characteristic. Petty slights, annoyances, and isolated minor incidents may not rise to the level of harassment.
Sexual Harassment in the Workplace
We do not tolerate sexual harassment in our studio. Sexual harassment refers to any unwelcome sexual attention, sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal, visual, or physical conduct of a sexual nature when:
(a) submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual’s employment;
(b) submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment decisions affecting such individual;
(c) such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work performance; or
(d) such conduct has the purpose or effect of creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment.
Examples of sexual harassment include unwanted and unnecessary physical contact; offensive remarks (including unwelcome comments about appearance); obscene jokes or other inappropriate use of sexually offensive language; the display in the studio of sexually suggestive objects or pictures; and unwelcome sexual advances by teachers, students, customers, clients, or other visitors to a studio. Non-physical gesture, behavior, unnecessary physical contact, verbal suggestion, or innuendo may constitute sexual harassment.
Sexual Misconduct
We prohibit sexual misconduct in our studio. Sexual misconduct is any unwelcome sexual advance including requests for sexual favors, sexual touching, and verbal, visual, or physical conduct that creates a sexually hostile environment in a yoga class or studio. Sexual misconduct exists if a teacher engages in conduct that has the result of requiring a student to submit to such conduct to obtain any benefit or privilege relating to the study or teaching of yoga.
While it is not possible to list all the circumstances that may constitute sexual misconduct, the following are examples of misconduct:
- Verbal Harassment
• Unwanted sexual teasing, stories, jokes, remarks, or questions
• Sexual comments, stories or innuendo
• Turning work discussions to sexual topics
• Asking about sexual fantasies, preferences, or history
• Asking personal questions about social or sexual life
• Sexual comments about a person’s clothing, anatomy, or looks
• Telling lies or spreading rumors about a person’s personal sex life.
• Referring to an individual as a doll, babe, sweetheart, honey, or similar term
• Repeatedly asking a person out on dates who is not interested
• Unwanted letters, telephone calls, or sending materials of a sexual nature
• Stalking on social media
• Unwanted pressure for sexual favors
- Non-Verbal Harassment
• Blocking a person’s path or following
• Giving unwelcome personal gifts
• Displaying sexually suggestive materials
• Making sexual gestures with hands or through body movements
• Unwanted sexual looks or gestures
- Physical Harassment
• Hugging, kissing, patting, or stroking
• Touching or rubbing oneself sexually around another person
• Unwanted deliberate touching, leaning over, cornering, or pinching
• Giving an un-wanted massage
• Sexually oriented asana adjustments or touch
• Promising enlightenment or special teachings or status in exchange for sexual favors
• Actual or attempted rape or sexual assault
Romantic Relationships Between Teachers and Students
Teachers shall not invite, respond to, or allow any sexual or romantic conduct with a student during the period of the teacher-student relationship.
Sexual or romantic interactions that occur during the teacher-student relationship constitute sexual misconduct and are unethical. Sexual or romantic interactions detract from the goals of the teaching relationship, may exploit the vulnerability of the student, may obscure the teacher’s judgment concerning the student, may be detrimental to the student’s well-being and damage the reputation of the yoga community.
Yoga teachers must maintain professional boundaries in their relationships with students so that the best interests of the students are served. The interest of the teacher is not relevant: the art of teaching yoga is focused on serving the spiritual needs of the student. The teacher-student relationship involves an imbalance of power and any appearance that this imbalance has been exploited for the sexual purposes of the teacher is unethical. Even if the relationship is initiated by the student; it must still be avoided by the teacher.
If a teacher is becoming romantically involved with a student, the teacher should end the teaching relationship. The teacher must ensure that any behavior in dealing with students is always professional and not open to misunderstanding or misinterpretation. If a relationship begins to develop, the teacher should seek the guidance of school management.
Reporting of Policy Violations
We encourage anyone who has been the subject of sexual misconduct or any other action that violates our policies and Code of Conduct to report the incident to our Ethics Committee, Human Resources department, or school management (henceforth referred to as the “reviewing body”).
The report should contain the following information:
• Your full name;
• Your email and phone number;
• The name of the person who the grievance is against;
• A description of the alleged policy violation;
• The date and location of the policy violation;
• Names and contact information of any witnesses with first-hand knowledge of the situation; and,
• Any other credible evidence that is available to support the grievance.
In the interest of fairness and privacy, all reports must be made by the person who has personally experienced the misconduct. We will not investigate a matter based upon a third-party report of misconduct.
All reports must be made in good faith based on information the person reporting the incident reasonably believes to be accurate. We may request additional information from the person reporting the incident throughout the course of review of the report.
We will take appropriate action to ensure compliance with our policies. The reviewing body will impose any sanctions that it feels are fair, just, and reasonable under all circumstances. We will not allow anyone to retaliate against any person for making a report in good faith or providing information in connection with an investigation into an alleged violation. Any information provided during a grievance report review will be treated on a confidential basis. Similarly, any actions that the taken in response to the report will also be confidential.
Missed Training Hours
Each student may miss 10 hours, or one weekend, of the 200-hour yoga training program. These missed hours must be rescheduled, at no additional cost. If more than one weekend of training is missed; the student must schedule make-up sessions at a rate of $20 per hour to graduate from the program. Students must contact the program director before the weekend which they will be missing. For participants granted a fee waiver, there shall be no cost assessment for missing classes; however, such fee waiver participants will be required to reschedule the missed class and will also be obliged to volunteer for the institute for the number of hours that such participant seeks to reschedule.
Tardiness
Any student who is late for class by more than 15 minutes will be noted as having missed one hour of training.
Withdrawal Policy
If a student wishes to withdrawal from our program for any reason, they must first contact the program director to discuss their reasons for withdrawal. Refunds will be given in accordance with the program’s refund policy.
Termination from Program
The program may decide to terminate any student’s participation in the program if: (1) false information was used in the admission process that materially affects the program; (2) a student missed more than 50% of any subject category; (3) a student is absent for more than 2 consecutive days without contacting the program director; (4) the student fails to make timely payments of tuition; or (5) the student is unable to pass a test after being given 10 attempts. If the program decides to end the student’s participation in the program, the student is not entitled to any prior payments or fees. All prior payments and fees are non-refundable and non-transferable.
Termination from Program: Bad Conduct
No refunds will be given if the program removes a student from the program for bad conduct. Bad conduct is violation of the Code of Conduct, gossip, harassment, bullying, or any other behavior that is inappropriate or disruptive to the welfare of the program or to fellow students.
Refund Policy
Upon receiving an acceptance email, the applicant will be charged a deposit of $100 on their credit card. Final invoices will be emailed 4 weeks before the start date of training.
The deadline to pay in full is 2 weeks prior to the start date of training. The cost of the program will be determined on a case basis based on the participants ability to pay.
If applicant withdraws from the program after acceptance, but before the program starts, $100 from applicant’s deposit amount will be retained by the program. However, such amount can be applied towards a future training program.
The program will not give any refunds or credits after the training starts. The program reserves the right to cancel any training before it begins. In that case any payments applicants have made will be refunded in full.
For fee waiver participants, no deposit or course fee shall be required. Upon acceptance into the program, fee waiver participants are required to sign a statement of commitment to adhere to the program commitment guidelines, with the exception of fee obligations, 4 weeks before the start of training.e it stand out.