RUBBER SOUL YOGA
adventure club
yoga teacher training program
DATES:  September 4 through December 11, 2010.  Stay posted for details regarding the Spring 2011 Adventure Club.
MISSION:  To develop teachers of yoga... to grow in multiple directions... and to have fun.
METHOD:  Individual and group instruction in yoga, communication, teaching methodology, philosophy, literature, theater skills, diet & nutrition, health & well-being, activism, and service.  Students will attend classes, teach classes, watch films, maintain records of their disciplines, meditate, perform creative assignments, practice circus skills, engage in activism, and experience life transformation.  
OUTCOME:  By the program's conclusion, the following goals are expected:  a) personal growth and greater abilities in the life adventure, b) wider understanding and abilities with yoga, c) increased teaching abilities (in yoga or other forms), d) greater confidence in the ability to contribute to the life and health of other beings. Students will be certified at the end of the program as a "Rubber Soul Yoga Teacher" and may (at their discretion) register with Yoga Alliance at the 200-hour level (see bottom of this page for details).

THE MANY PATHS... 

CERTIFICATION TRACK:  Those who do all the assignments, pass the exam, and meet the attendance requirement will be certified as a "Rubber Soul Yoga Teacher."  The attendance requirement is that a student may miss a) one Saturday and two Tuesdays, b) two Saturdays and no Tuesdays, c) no Saturdays and three Tuesdays. Absences beyond this amount for any reason will result in no certification.  The best policy is to only miss in cases of emergency.  Also, a student is allowed three "tardies." (Tardy is defined as any amount of coming late or leaving early, but if one misses more than 50% of the day, that is counted as a miss.)

LIFE ADVENTURE TRACK:  Basically, all the same rules apply, except that you would not need to complete the hours quite as rigorously. This track would be good if you a) want to deepen your practice but b) don't have quite enough time in your life to do all the projects, c) have schedule conflicts that would cause you to miss classes, d) haven't practiced yoga as much prior to joining the club.  

EMERITUS MEMBER TRACK:  Former participants of Adventure Clubs may continue to attend as "Emeritus Members." They may be asked to lead sessions. Otherwise they engage the program much as those on the non-certification track would do. It is necessary that all members (certification, non-certification, and emeritus) set an intention to do as much of the program as possible, given life circumstances.

TIME TABLE:  Training sessions will be Saturday from 8:30 am to 6:45 pm and Tuesday from 5:30 pm to 11:00 pm.  The entire scheduled time is required of all students. Beyond these scheduled sessions, students are required to perform 4 hours of independent assignments per day.

ABSENCES:  Students are expected to attend all sessions. Emergencies, however, do occur. Students on the certification track who miss more than 2 Saturday classes or more than 2 Tuesday classes will be shifted to the non-certification track. Students on the non-certification track or emeritus track may miss more as long as those misses are due to pre-planned life events. Missing over half of a day counts as an absence. Missing less than half is regarded as a "partial." Three partials is one absence. Consult Cal if you have concerns about attendance.

 ASSIGNMENTS AND CURRICULUM HOURS:
Classroom Instruction (includes anatomy and teacher practicum)  204
Meditation 16
Daily yoga, evaluation, journal, and charting 188
Activism 13
Readings in ethics, yogic philosophy, dietary health, etc. 65
Mind-Body Therapy 7
Circus practice 32
TOTAL 525

In-house Instruction: 15 Saturday sessions and 14 Tuesday sessions

Meditation: One 15-minute session, 5 days a week (not including the meditation performed during the weekend sessions).

Daily yoga, evaluation, journal, and charting:  5 public classes or home practice per week, 90 minutes each, plus 30 minutes journal writing, plus 30 minutes writing evaluations and filling out chart

Reading: 2 books per month (about 1 hour per day, or 5 hours per week)

Activism: 1 hour per week (or 4 hours per month), probably as a member of an "activist pod"

 Mind-Body therapy: 7 sessions with Kate Morrissey (about 2 per month)

Circus practice: One 30-minute sessions (or two 15-minute sessions), 5 days a week. The practice culminates with a show on Graduation Day.  You can work on skipping rope, poi, unicycling, juggling, handling imaginary objects, thowing knifes at naked men or women in bikinis who spin on a giant disc... you know... feats of incredible skill... like yoga.

TRAINING SCHEDULE:

SATURDAY
 TUESDAY
10:00 - 11:30 Yoga session
12:00 - 12:45 Lunch  
1:00 - 2:00 Theater excercises and circus skills
2:15 - 3:30 Training Session A
3:40 - 4:00 Meditation
4:00 - 5:15 Teacher Practicum

5:30 - 6:45 Training Session B
 5:30 - 8:30 Adventures in yoga poses and beyond
8:00 - 8:45 Dinner
........................... 8:45 - 11:00 Documentary

TRAINING SESSION TOPICS (a general idea):
Yoga Vinyasa
Alignment and dynamics in specific yoga poses
Pranayama
Teaching asana
Human physiology and anatomy
Nutrition
Raw Food
Communication
Theater exercises
Balancing
Activism
Silence
Yamas and Niyamas
 Ethics
The business of yoga

You may wish to view the course schedule for a past Adventure Club of Spring 2010.

READING LIST: Students are asked to read 2-3 books a month, for a total of 7-9 books over the course of the program. Assignments may accompany the reading. Short in-class writing assignments (quizzes) allow students to demonstrate reading comprehension. Here is the book list for Fall 2010.

 EXAM: The final exam covers a) some sanscrit terms for yoga poses, b) key concepts, c) nutrition, d) anatomy, and e) ideas from the readings. The exam is not intended to be incredibly difficult... more of a learning tool.

FACULTY:  The program will draw from the resources of Rubber Soul teachers, emeritus adventure club members, and other luminaries in the wider world. 
Cal Clements, Ph.D., Program Director:  asana workshop, pranayama, teacher feedback, circus skills, theater exercises, literature and philosophy and film discussion, and other classes

Kate Morrissey, MA, LMSW: teacher feedback, assisting in yoga poses, mind-body therapy, non-violent communication, meditation, and other sessions

FEES:  Program tuition covers a) the training sessions, b) unlimited classes at Rubber Soul, c) independently-scheduled Mind-Body sessions, and d) lunch on Saturdays and dinner on Tuesdays, unless you elect to bring specified food items for the meals, in which case the rate is lower. It does not include the cost of books. The monthly fee is due on the first Saturday of the month and is halved for December.  Therefore payments are as follows: September 4, October 2, November 6, December 4 (50% of normal amount). Note that if life causes you to drop out of the program early, you won't be charged for future months.  
Monthly Fee Schedule Standard If volunteering at Rubber Soul
Certification and Life Adventure Track $180 $133
Emeritus Track $108 $80

Monthly Fee Schedule
when bringing assigned food items on Saturdays and Tuesdays		 Standard If volunteering at Rubber Soul
Certification and Life Adventure Track $100 $80
Emeritus Track $80 $66

 Therefore, the total price for the entire program for a student who contributes to the meals would be $350 plus books.  Amazing but true.

REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSION:  Students are asked to eat a vegetarian diet, reduce or eliminate drug and alcohol use, be healthy, and have a life intention to help other beings in a reasonably selfless manner. It would be appropriate to have practiced yoga more or less daily for at least a year (or off-and-on over a number of years). Although this is a 500-hour training, it is not necessary to have already completed other teacher training programs at the 200-hour level.

MIN/MAX CLASS SIZE: Adventure Club shall be held with a minimum of 10 students and no more than 16. Applications are processed "first come, first serve." Therefore, apply early to be ensured of a place.

OK, I WANT TO DO THIS: Copy the following questions and send them to calclements(at)gmail(dot)com with the subject line "Application to Yoga Life Adventure School." Please put a good deal of thought into each question and answer in an essay-style.  Admissions are now closed (as of 8.31.10). Stay tuned for future sessions.
Name:
Today's Date:
Address:
Phone:
Email:
Age:
Do you have any injuries or physical limitations? (If yes, explain.)
Discuss your health:
Discuss your diet, issues with food, and intentions for nutrition and ethics of eating:
How do you feel about holding a vegetarian diet through the course of the training?
 Discuss your relationship to legal or illegal drugs:
Are you smoking? (If yes, explain.)
Are you drinking? (If yes, describe and explain.)
When and how did you come to yoga?
Years of daily yoga practice:
Describe your yoga practice:
Describe your experiences with meditation:
List previous trainings:
Top three influences in yoga (explain):
Top three influences in life (explain):
Describe your relationship to public service and activism:
 List all academic degrees and other certifications:
When you consider enrolling in this program, what difficulties to you envision?
What circus skill will you work on?
 How would you like to teach yoga?

Would you like to do the certification track or the life adventure track?

If an emeritus applicant: Answer the above questions, noting changes since the last Adventure Club. Suggest contributions that you would like to make as a teacher/activist in the upcoming Club.

There is no application fee.
CERTIFICATION WITH YOGA ALLIANCE: If a student of the Fall Adventure Club wishes to register with Yoga Alliance at the 200-hour level, an application may be made (here) once the program is completed. The Adventure Club meets Yoga Alliance guidelines, both in terms of the hours we devote to the various required subject areas and Cal being the equivalent of an Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher or E-RYT.