OUR MISSION
We share yoga and meditation with incarcerated people to promote rehabilitation, personal transformation, and a more just society for all.
OUR VISION
We’re Reimagining The Criminal Justice System
We envision a world where all communities are healthy and thriving, where all people feel safe, connected, and valued. Through our programs, we open doors to self-understanding, resilience, and transformation. We advocate for restorative justice solutions, holistic re-entry services, and the removal of other barriers that prevent formerly incarcerated people to rebuild their lives upon release. We work with the WA State corrections leadership to create opportunities within the system, including yoga classes for prison staff and yoga teacher trainings for incarcerated people.
OUR VALUES
We live these values on and off the mat, behind bars and behind desks
Integrity
We act with honesty and transparency.
Humility
We are committed to a lifelong practice of listening and learning. We address power imbalances, admit mistakes, and center and amplify our students’ voices in ways that are supportive and non-paternalistic.
Social Justice
We recognize the harmful, exploitive, and intergenerational effects of oppressive systems. We proactively question and explore our role in these systems, and continue to elevate the voices of incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people.
Excellence
We strive to deliver programmatic excellence to our students and take pride in the quality of our service to the community at large.
Connection
We believe love is the most powerful and affirming force for change and that with support, we can build a just and inclusive society. We are dedicated to building thriving, vibrant, and diverse communities.
See Our Progress
See What Others Say
OUR STAFF
We’re Reimagining The Criminal Justice System
Don Julian Saucier
Executive Director
Amara Oden
Development Director
Jess Frank
Program Director
Maggie Wegener
Program Manager
OUR TRAINERS
Rosa Vissers
Co-Trainer
Natalie Cielle
Co-Trainer
Damithia Nieves
Co-Trainer
Sam Brown
Co-Trainer
Shuja De'Peace
Co-Trainer
OUR BOARD
Erin Stuckey
Board Co-Chair
Seghon Rorie
Board Member
Sejal Gajarawala
Board Member
Sonia Duckworth
Board Co-Chair
Sharon Suh
Board Member
Holly Williams
2019-2020 UW Board Fellow
Matt Rowe
Board Treasurer
Claire McNamara
Board Member
Alain Chan
2019-2020 UW Board Fellow
Vanessa McClure
Board Secretary
Megan Millard
Board Member
HISTORY
We’re Reimagining The Criminal Justice System
In 2003, fresh out of yoga teacher training, Shaina Traisman met a former inmate at an activist camp. She was deeply moved by the man’s story of his many years in prison, and decided to put her yoga training to work in prisons, starting in Seattle’s downtown jail. The more she volunteered, the more clearly she witnessed the powerful effects of yoga on the lives of her students. There was a much greater demand for classes than she could meet by herself. One of the first instructors to step forward to help was Natalie Cielle. Together, Shaina and Natalie reached out to more volunteers and expanded classes to include more prisons and youth detention centers… and in 2008 Yoga Behind Bars was born.
2004
- Shaina Traisman starts first class at Seattle downtown jail.
2006
- Shaina starts working towards gaining 501(c)(3) nonprofit status for YBB.
2007
- Shaina Traisman, Founder, and Natalie Cielle, Co-Founder team up.
- We begin offering classes at the King County Juvenile Detention Center in Seattle.
- We host our first Teacher Training class.
2008
- YBB gains 501(c)3 status!
- We reach 1,000 students.
- YBB starts new programs at:
- Monroe Correctional Complex—Special Offenders Unit,
- Echo Glen Children’s Center in Snoqualmie, and
- Washington Corrections Center for Women (Purdy) in Gig Harbor.
2009
- YBB hires Natalie Cielle as part-time Program Director as the first paid staff.
2010
- 35 people attend YBB’s Teacher Training.
- Natalie Cielle becomes YBB’s Executive Director.
2011
- We receive a 3-year capacity building grant from the RiverStyx Foundation.
- YBB starts a new program at Monroe Correctional Complex Minimum Security Unit.
- YBB’s program at Echo Glen doubles in size to 8-9 classes a week, and now counts toward mental health treatment credits.
- We reach 2,000 students.
2012
- Debut of YBB’s first Eat, Drink, Give benefit event hosted by Sutra Yoga & Wellness!
- YBB’s Teacher Training expands from one day to two days long.
- We reach 2,500 students
2013
- We win a Seattle Met Magazine Light-a-Fire Award.
- YBB starts new programs at:
- Denney Juvenile Justice Center in Everett where the classes are part of PE curriculum.
- Mission Creek Corrections Center for Women in Belfair
- YBB launches a meditation program in solitary confinement at Monroe Correctional Complex – the first of its kind in the country.*
- We reach 2,900 students
2014
- YBB starts a new program at:
- Stafford Creek Corrections Center in Aberdeen
- Rosa Vissers becomes YBB’s second Executive Director.
- Rosa presents at TEDx Monroe.
- YBB is 1 of 10 finalists for the prestigious Washington Women’s Foundation capacity building grant.
- More than 200 people have graduated from YBB’s 2-day Teacher Training program.
- We reach 3,500 students
2015
- YBB launches Teacher Training Behind Bars, the first of its kind in the nation, at Stafford Creek, with ten incarcerated students graduating in February of 2016
- YBB starts new programs at:
- Clallam Bay Corrections Center, Clallam Bay
- Remann Hall, juvenile detention in Tacoma
- Federal Detention Center, SeaTac
- YBB wins Seattle Yoga News “Yoga Organization of the Year” award
- We reach 4,100 students
- We offer our first college accredited yoga class at the Washington Correction Center for Women, in partnership with FEPPS.
- YBB offers its first out-of-state teacher training in Portland, Maine
2016
- We launch our second Teacher Training Behind Bars, at Washington Corrections Center for Women, with 14 women expected to graduate in April 2017
- YBB wins the OOMPH! Award by States of Matter
- YBB starts new programs at:
- Washington State Penitentiary, Walla Walla
- Maleng Regional Justice Center, Kent
- Coyote Ridge Corrections Center, Connell
- Airway Heights Corrections Center, Airway Heights
- Our programs are featured in Seattle Weekly and Tacoma News Tribune
- We start our first classes for prison staff at Washington State Corrections CenterMore than 300 people have graduated from YBB’s 2-day Trauma-Informed Teacher Training program
- YBB’s Board President, Nicole Tsong, wins Social Venture Partners’ FastPitch competition on behalf of Yoga Behind Bars
2017
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5 women at Washington Corrections Center for Women graduate from YBBs 200-hr Yoga Teacher Training.
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YBB expands to serve 18 facilities
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Rosa, YBBs Executive Director, is a contributing editor to the Yoga Service Council book Best Practices for Yoga in the Criminal Justice System
2018
- YBB turns 10 years old!
- Incarcerated teachers at Washington Corrections Center for Women start teaching their own classes