SYI - Level 1 Teacher Training

Established 2026

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School Yoga Institute

Pioneer Rd, Oregon, USA

Marion County, OR

Program Instances

Hybrid

Dates: TBD

200 hours • TBD

Marion County, OR, US

Led by

Keri Nelson Pennell

CYT-L3

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Purpose

Our programs guide you through yoga’s rich philosophy, daily practice, and self-inquiry to create an immersive experience that goes far beyond the physical postures. With sacred locations in Costa Rica, Bali, Peru, Guatemala, Portugal and Thailand, every training blends immersion in nature with supportive guidance, creating the space for true growth and discovery.

For over 20 years, students from around the world have trusted SYI to guide their path, combining authentic teachings with a supportive community. If you feel the call to become a yoga teacher—or simply to dive deeper into your practice—our200-hour Yoga Teacher Trainingprovides the foundation for a lifelong journey.

What to expect

Our 200-Hour Mystical Hatha/Vinyasa Immersion Yoga Teacher Trainingis registered with Yoga Alliance USA and Yoga Alliance International. ThisYoga Traininginvites passionate practitioners and aspiring teachers to deepen their knowledge in a supportive community while exploring the true self through ancient yogic wisdom.

Upon completion, students receive aYoga Alliance–recognized 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training Certificate, valued worldwide. Whether your goal is to teach or to enrich your personal practice, we ask for full commitment, dedication, and immersion in our spiritual community, following a yogic lifestyle that includes a vegetarian diet, no alcohol or caffeine, and limited technology.

Our intimate groups, typically up to 18 students, create a safe and sacred space, with additional instructors available when needed, ensuring every participant feels held and inspired as part of our loving community.

Each day carries a spiritual intention explored through sunrise meditation, 90-minute asana practice, and nourishing yogic meals. The curriculum includes lessons on yogic living, diet, anatomy, meditation, Ayurveda, and the Yoga Sutras, along with healing practices such as earth medicines, energy work, and guided journeying.

Through theArt of TeachingandArt of Touch, students gain experience in Mystical Hatha and Vinyasa flows, learning alignment, intelligent sequencing, and supportive adjustments.

At School Yoga Institute, our welcoming atmosphere fosters community, transformation, and growth. This life-changing200-hour Yoga Teacher Trainingprepares graduates to step into teaching—or into life—with compassion and confidence. It is a profound immersion into yoga and self-discovery, rooted in tradition and supported by modern methods. Evening satsang gatherings with meditation, kirtan, and sacred ceremonies deepen each student’s path as both practitioner and teacher.

Style/Lineage

Step Into Transformation with our 200-Hour Yoga Teacher Training.

A 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training is more than a certification, it’s a personal journey of growth, transformation, and connection. At School Yoga Institute, we welcome both aspiring teachers and dedicated practitioners. Whether your path leads you to teach or simply to live your yoga more authentically, this experience offers a foundation that lasts a lifetime.

Additional Information

INSIDE OUR 200-Hour Yoga Teacher Training CurriculumDuring our yoga training program you will:

Work through the traditional Peruvian Medicine Wheel in a process of self-inquiry, discovery and personal transformation.
Learn to teach two Asana sequences: Sadhana Vinyasa and Sadhana Hatha flows, as well as guidance on creating your sequences.
Live the yogic lifestyle, deepening your Sadhana, personal spiritual practice.
Incorporate daily Meditation, Pranayama, and Asana.
Explore the Art of Teaching through interactive daily workshops and learn through peer-teaching starting day one.
Participate in daily Satsang, evening gatherings. Learning traditional Kirtan chants from India and the rest of the world.
Participate in traditional ceremonies: Full-Moon, New-Moon, Letting-Go Ceremony, Traditional Andean Gratitude (despacho), and/or Cacao Ceremony, and other traditional ceremonies.
Ethics for Yoga Teachers

Study Yoga Anatomy & Physiology and incorporate these principles into your teaching and practice.
Study selected Yoga Sutras in depth.
Learn the foundation and historical background of yoga philosophy.
Explore Chakras, Bandhas and energetic anatomy in theory and in application to your practice and your teaching.
Study Ayurvedic Philosophy & Medicine, while studying and living the Yogic Diet.
Focus on integrating Yoga into your life through daily Spiritual Lessons.
Introduction to Conscious Business and discuss Tools for developing the business of yoga and take it to the marketplace.
Learn and integrate holistic health modalities such as massage, energy healing, nutrition, and other forms.
Our training programs are taught in English.

Core competencies

By the end of this program, graduates will be able to…

Teaching Skills	Design a hatha and vinyasa class sequence with appropriate cueing and adjustment points, structuring it to build toward a coherent closing peak. Develop a personal teaching style statement, integrating demonstration, observation, and assisting into a coherent approach. Assess a guided meditation script for pacing and clarity, evaluating its suitability for a mixed-experience group.
Anatomy, Physiology, Biomechanics	Evaluate a chakra-themed sequence for coherence, assessing whether the poses selected reflect the chosen chakra's qualities. Apply dosha-based principles to a sample daily routine, using lifestyle adjustments suited to a stated constitution. Construct a brief anatomical breakdown of a chosen pose, formulating an explanation of its primary muscular and joint actions. Assess a sequence's likely effect on the digestive system, evaluating whether twists and forward folds support healthy function.
Business Skills	Evaluate a teacher's stated qualifications against accepted minimum standards, assessing whether each required area is represented. Apply a marketplace strategy to a hypothetical teaching practice, using at least one concrete method for building a student base. Describe how reintegration into daily life connects to sustaining a teaching business, explaining why a transition plan matters.
Lifestyle & Ethics	Assess a personal reflection against the medicine wheel framework, evaluating which direction's theme it most closely engages. Evaluate a personal experience of silence or fasting, assessing what it revealed about habitual patterns of mind. Evaluate a personal communication habit against compassionate communication principles, assessing where growth is most needed. Assess a personal reflection for genuine self-inquiry, evaluating whether it moves past habitual narrative into real examination.
Practice Skills	Evaluate one's readiness to progress a pose to a more advanced variation, justifying the decision against personal alignment and stability. Differentiate between activating and calming pranayama techniques, distinguishing which nervous-system state each tends to support. Evaluate one's own readiness to attempt a given kriya technique, assessing whether preparation and guidance have been sufficient. Differentiate between a concentration-based and an open-awareness meditation approach, distinguishing how attention is directed in each.
Yoga History & Theory	Evaluate a personal practice against the eight-limbed path, assessing which limbs are well developed and which are underdeveloped. Differentiate between the four paths of yoga, distinguishing the temperament or life circumstance each tends to suit. Evaluate a personal habit or routine for its likely influence on the gunas, assessing whether it tends to stabilize, agitate, or dull the mind. Compare a teaching from the Bhagavad Gita's dialogue with a personal life situation, examining how the teaching might apply.