MARGARET BURNS VAP - Founder & Program Director 
Margaret is the founder of Georgetown Yoga. She began her yoga practice over eight years ago in her then-home New York City, to cope with a hectic lifestyle while working for L'Oreal. She has taken yoga from many top instructors at the Jivamukti Yoga Center and Richard Freeman's studio; has attended David Swenson's intensive training in the foundations and teaching techniques of the Ashtanga yoga primary series, and has done intensive practice and study of the Ashtanga Primary and Intermediate series with Dave Oliver from At One Yoga in Phoenix, Arizona. She enjoys practicing and teaching a vigorous, flowing yoga that helps people recognize their potential and transform their health and well-being. Margaret holds a BS in Business and Languages from Georgetown University and an MBA from Thunderbird, the American Graduate School of International Management. She speaks French, Spanish, and a little Italian and has lived abroad on numerous occasions. Most recently, Margaret completed Georgetown Yoga's first 200-hour teacher training with Yoga Works and traveled to Hawaii for Baron Baptiste's bootcamp. In early 2007, Margaret moved her home base to Bozeman, Montana, where she will lead yoga getaways with her newly formed venture Big Sky Yoga Retreats. Margaret represents companies she believes in: she is sponsored by Athleta, outfitting women athletes since 1997, and is their featured athlete for yoga. She is also a product ambassador for Manduka.
Margaret's seasonal newsletter features Montana musings, seasonal recipes and yoga poses, health tips and more!
Margaret is mom to Morgane Sienna, pictured at right,
who is two and loves yoga poses named after animals.
 

ANTONELLA ACCINELLI - Instructor
Antonella grew up with a family of yoga practitioners who exposed her to the philosophical and meditative aspects of yoga at a young age. The teachings of Paramahansa Yogananda were particularly influential in her early life and she has visited the Self Realization Fellowship’s Ashram Center in Encinitas, CA. Antonella began her asana practice 4 years ago here at Georgetown Yoga and is a regular Ashtanga practitioner. In August 2006 Antonella completed Georgetown Yoga's first 200-hour teacher training with Yoga Works for Yoga Alliance registration. Antonella grew up in the D.C. area and attended American University where she received her B.A. in Political Science with a minor in Philosophy and Religion; she loves to travel and is a native Spanish speaker.
 

OPHELIE CHEVALIER - Instructor
A native of France, Ophélie grew up in Africa and spent important periods of her life in Latin America. She practiced ballet and modern dance in Paris for over 10 years. Since 2002, with the spiritual and physical aspect of the practice of yoga, she initiated a real voyage of discovery that consists not in seeking new landscapes but in bringing more awareness to the entire being. She has been exposed to various traditions, particularly Ashtanga and Jivamukti and is a student of Ayurveda. To her, the fundamentals of alignment are key to expand self-awareness through the practice. Ophélie holds a JD and LLM from the Université de Paris and a Master of International Affairs from Columbia University, and works as an institutional specialist in international development projects.
 

SHELBY SETTLES HARPER - Instructor  
Shelby has practiced yoga since 1999, and taught since 2004. Her practice and training has included various yoga traditions and styles, particularly Ashtanga, Iyengar, vinyasa, power, and restorative yoga. Shelby is a Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT) through Yoga Alliance, having completed over 230 hours of teacher training. In her classes, Shelby seeks to challenge the physical body while bringing more awareness to the entire being. Shelby holds a JD from the University of Colorado School of Law, and by day works as an attorney in the anti-domestic violence movement. A former marathoner, skydiver, and snowboarder, Shelby now enjoys reading, writing fiction and poetry, running (short distances only!), and exploring the world with her husband. Shelby is mom to  son Arlo Rowan Harper, who was born January 16th, 2007.

LEAH REILLY - Instructor  
Leah found yoga in 2002, and has had a devoted practice ever since. She has studied Iyengar, Anusara, Ashtanga, and power yoga with wonderful teachers in the DC area and in Prague. She recently completed the Yoga Alliance registered 200-hour Yoga Works Teacher Training program at Georgetown Yoga.
In her practice and teaching, she uses the principles of alignment to create a greater understanding of the body and clarity of the mind. Leah holds a Bachelors Degree in Anthropology from Wake Forest University and a Masters in Teaching from Johns Hopkins as well as certificate in Teaching English as a Second Language. She has taught elementary school since 1996 and is currently a second grade teacher at the Washington International School in Georgetown. Leah is passionate about teaching and about the practice of yoga, and she enjoys the opportunity to combine the two!
 

tara speisman - Instructor
Tara’s yoga practice began seven years ago at New York’s Yoga Works Studio. She graduated in May 2005 from Georgetown University with a BA in psychology. In collaboration with Georgetown Yoga, Tara dedicated extensive time and energy to expose Georgetown students to the benefits of yoga by founding and presiding over the Hoya Yoga Club on campus. Tara is a Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT) through Yoga Alliance, after completing her 200 hour certification at Yoga Mountain in New York in 2004. While her yoga experiences include Ashtanga, Iyengar, Jivamukti and Sivananda, she hopes to integrate all of these practices with her background in psychology to create a source of healing through yoga and “moving meditation”. She is currently pursuing her graduate degree in Homeland Security at Georgetown University.
 

KARA SULLIVAN - Instructor  
Kara has been practicing yoga since 1995, and began teaching in 2004. From the start, she valued the way her yoga practice generates a harmonious balance of calm and stillness mixed with strength-building and flexibility. She conveys this metaphor in her teaching and encourages students to apply their yogic learning to life off the mat. Kara has studied with Simon Park, Cyndi Lee and David Swenson. A graduate of Smith College, Kara works for A&E Television Networks in New York. In addition to yoga, she loves to cook for her wonderful husband, Michael, and is looking forward to developing babyfood recipes for her son Curtis.