Kate has served as the Director of Shelburne Falls Yoga since 2011. Drawing from over twenty-five years of experience as an instructor of movement, including 12 years as a full-time teacher of yoga, Kate (she/her) seamlessly weaves together elements from the tradition of Kripalu Yoga with somatic exercises, movement training & conditioning, and meditation & pranayama techniques to create a rich and evolving yoga experience enjoyed by both long-time practitioners and brand-new beginners.
Kate values a straightforward and consent-based approach to yoga teaching, where students are offered a number of choices in the classroom and the freedom to execute them. This fosters a learning environment where students have the ability to grow and evolve at their own pace and in their own direction. She favors the sometimes messy process of embodying integrated movement skills rather than merely replicating shapes in the classroom, a process which both research and experience has shown to lead to more favorable and longer lasting results.
Kate completed her initial professional trainings at Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health, where she also returned several times to assist in the advanced yoga teacher training program. Following a years-long, intensive period of asana, pranayama, and meditation practices in the Kripalu tradition, she began an in-depth study of anatomy and kinesiology, and also began to incorporate evolving, evidence-based, and trauma-informed practices into her teaching with the aim of helping each to student work toward clarity, health, and vitality in ways that are as applicable in day-to-day life as they are on the yoga mat. Kate has been influenced by the teachings of Swami Kripalu, T.K.V. Desikachar, Amy Matthews, Jonathan Foust, Dr. Fritz Smith, and many others.
Kate was certified as a practitioner of Zero Balancing, a bodywork modality that draws from the wisdom of osteopathy, acupuncture, and yoga as it works to cultivate a harmonious balance of structure and energy in the human body. She incorporates this wisdom into her yoga classes.
Kate values accessibility, and strives to create an inclusive and welcoming environment at the studio, where work-study & sliding scale options are available for those with financial need. She regularly offers yoga and mindfulness in settings beyond the studio and is actively engaged in social justice work as an outward expression of the principles of non-harming, truth, and the interconnection of all beings. Kate also serves at the Agency Recruitment Coordinator at the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts.
