The idea for The Practice Coalition began in 2017 with a simple but powerful vision: to make trauma-informed yoga accessible, sustainable, and truly healing by offering free or low-cost classes while ensuring fair compensation for teachers. For several years, the work grew slowly as a passion project. Then in 2020, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, we officially incorporated as a nonprofit and built the foundation of our current operations.

In 2021, with thoughtful community input, we refined our mission to focus specifically on survivors of sexual and domestic violence. This clarity allowed us to design a deeply trauma-responsive program model and to fundraise with purpose. We launched our first classes in 2022 and have since expanded through a combination of in-person and virtual offerings. In addition to hosting our own programs, we collaborate with partner organizations to provide healing-centered yoga for their clients and staff.

Our monthly in-person class, held in a rented Manhattan studio, is free to all students. At one point, attendance grew so rapidly that we had to temporarily cap enrollment, an indication of both demand and community trust. Our virtual classes uses tiered pricing, with full financial accessibility built in: anyone for whom cost is a barrier receives a free access code, no questions asked.

Alongside our public classes, we provide private sessions for mission-aligned organizations. These are primarily virtual, with occasional in-person sessions, and consistently reach individuals who may not otherwise have access to trauma-informed support.

The greatest opportunity, and challenge, is scale. There is no shortage of people who need our programming; demand is constant and often urgent. The limiting factors are the sustainability of our teaching staff and the ability to secure dedicated space. Many of our instructors currently volunteer or work for a small stipend, but trauma-informed teaching requires deep expertise, emotional labor, and consistency. Fair compensation is essential not only for our teachers’ wellbeing but also for the continuity and trust that are the cornerstones of a trauma-informed practice.

What motivates us is simple: survivors return. Week after week, participants show up, share that they feel safer, stronger, and more connected, and begin to build practices that support their lives well beyond the mat. Though small, we are growing steadily in capacity, partnerships, and community impact. We are becoming a trusted resource for survivors seeking healing, grounding, and empowerment through movement.