Equity Statement
Our statement of support for equity in our yoga community and country:
It can be a scary thing for small businesses (or large ones) to stand up and say, “this is what we value.” There’s a feeling in business that you have to be neutral and please everyone lest you lose clients. This perspective, however, is not leadership.
As a business, we have made conscious decisions to stand up for our values and make them heard. We support the lives of all and we recognize that many people are treated as less-than, by other people and by policy. Black and brown, transgender and LGBTQIA+ lives are not treated as equal in this country and we are committed to being a part of changing that. The way we see it, this isn’t a debate, and it transcends politics.
We are unabashedly in love with each and every member of our community. Our teachers are each working to learn and create a more diverse yoga world and world-at-large. As a team, we are constantly learning and opening ourselves to finding new ways to hold one another up.
Our Initiatives:
We have taken a hard look at our studio and the yoga world-at-large and know that the work to bring more equity to yoga spaces is ongoing. BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ folx are chronically underrepresented and undeserved in yoga. We pride ourselves on being a welcoming space that strives to be safe for all community members, but we recognize the need to do more to bring equity to the mat. Our mission is to create initiatives that break down some of the barriers facing BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ yogis in beginning or continuing a yoga practice.
OUTREACH TO UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES: We commit ourselves to forming relationships with communities where yoga is not accessible, and bringing yoga into those communities through free classes and events. If you have a suggestion for a community/organization we can bring yoga to, please e-mail us at createpoweryoga@gmail.com
EQUITY IN YOGA TEACHER TRAINING SCHOLARSHIP. We believe representation matters, and BIPOC are under-represented in the yoga community and especially as yoga teachers. Our Equity in Yoga scholarship program aims to create equity in the accessibility of yoga training and help BIPOC to overcome barriers to yoga trainings. With this scholarship, we aim to overcome some of the financial barriers to yoga education facing BIPOC. See our full scholarship details.
EQUITY MEMBERSHIPS: In 2023, we introduced a new option to reduce the economic barrier to yoga membership for BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ folx. This is an effort to ensure that BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ folx in our community are able to access a consistent healing and yoga practice. We offer discounted memberships to any person who identifies as BIPOC or LGBTQIA+. We work on a case-by-case basis to find the price-point that works for each individual. Please email us at createpoweryoga@gmail.com to work it out.
COMMUNITY CLASSES. We believe cost shouldn't be a barrier to wellness. We have expanded our $10 Community Class program to four classes per week in our effort to break the financial barrier to quality yoga classes. In addition, we have committed ourselves to re-assessing our marketing of these classes to reach more people for whom yoga classes feel out of reach.
BIPOC YOGA SERIES: In 2022 we introduced a quarterly yoga class specifically for BIPOC folx. This class strives to foster a space where your identity, culture, race, and socioeconomic status are respected, valued and uplifted. We work towards creating a safe space and dismantling systems that create barriers for individuals of color to experience and explore yoga. Our intention is for BIPOC individuals to feel empowered in their yoga practice and provide a space for joy, liberation, rest and healing. See class dates here.
ONGOING TEACHER TRAINING. We recognize that our teaching team does not represent the diversity we seek to see in yoga and know that it is important for us to do personal work as we week to bring equity to our studio. Our teachers have committed themselves to diversity trainings, materials and webinars such as Skill in Action by Michelle Johnson, and ongoing conversations around our own biases and assumptions.
BIPOC FOLX IN LEADERSHIP: As we grow and diversify as a community, we are committed to elevating the BIPOC folx on our team to positions of leadership within our programming and teacher training. In 2022, we were able to form our first BIPOC leadership team. This team now works directly with our teacher training program as we train new teachers.
We acknowledge that these initiatives don't address every barrier in the yoga community, and we have ongoing work to do to increase accessibility and create equity in yoga. These programs are part of ongoing work. If you have suggestions for barriers that you think we can address in our community, or for ways to reach communities of color to continue our work on inclusivity and breaking barriers, please e-mail us at createpoweryoga@gmail.com.
What our students are saying...
I highly recommend Create Power Yoga! The prices are affordable compared to other yoga studios in the area. Vinyasa is their most popular class and it is a great workout. The staff is always helpful and welcoming, especially for beginners who are hesitant to try a class.
I am a senior and have been going here since 2015. It is amazing how good you feel after class and there is no judging by the instructors or your classmates. Everyone should try at least once. You leave relaxed and limber. And in this stressful environment, you leave with a peaceful and hopeful mind.
Petra and the team of yoga instructors at CPY are warm and welcoming to all and make the new and experienced yogi's comfortable. Love the studio, it has a calming atmosphere for the body/mind practice. So happy to have found CPY!!
My favorite place in the whole wide world. Its the only place I can go and truly feel at peace. I love the new "pop-up classes" and the owner is always going above and beyond to create new adventures for their members. The staff is so super awesome and genuinely caring about your well being. I'm a big fan!
I have been taking classes at Create Power Yoga for a few weeks now and I absolutely love it. The heated classes are the perfect balance of stretch and strength. Breath is emphasized in class. I've never heard so many yogis ujjayi breathing in one place, it is beautiful. I would definitely recommend this studio to anyone looking for some heat and a challenge.
Create Power Yoga studio is a MUST for anyone with an interest in yoga. Petra and her staff are helpful, welcoming and committed to making everyone's yoga experience a great one.
I have practiced yoga in the hot studio for the past year and am thrilled with the move to Newport Ave (within walking distance). At the age of 63 with very mixed abilities, i have been warmly welcomed, encouraged, and guided. Yoga has been very beneficial to me and I am sure you could benefit, too!
I had never taken a yoga class before I tried CPY, but now I don't know why I went so long without trying. It's so relaxing it's hard to believe you're working out! The yoga instructors focus on your breathing, so you are relaxed the entire time! I'm hooked. The instructors at CPY clearly very passionate about what they are teaching and care about how everyone is doing in the class. I can't imagine going to another yoga studio. CPY is perfect for all ages and experience! You have to come check out this studio. It'll change the way you see yoga (I know it did for me).
I've practiced in a lot of different studios, and I've rarely found one as warm and welcoming as Create Power Yoga.
The owners are wonderfully nice and there's always someone who remembers you and says hello. The teachers are fantastic and really interested in creating a good experience for you. The heated studio/hot yoga is perfect for feeling like you are really getting a workout (and it's a great respite from the cold during the winter). It's takes a lot to convince me to go to the gym, but I look forward to coming to this studio to do yoga a few times a week! Also, I would highly recommend this place to someone who is less comfortable with their skill level- there is a great mix of people and the teachers are great about helping (but not pushing too hard), so even I feel comfortable, even though my inverted-something-twisting-pose isn't exactly fitness model worthy.