OCY Teachers
Hillary Swift, RYT 200
Hillary was born and raised in Oxford, Ohio and is grateful to be a part of our wonderful and thriving local community. She first started practicing yoga during her college years at Miami University and quickly fell in love with the supportive group of people in her classes, the increased body and mind awareness as well as that wonderful sense of calm that comes with breathing deeply and moving mindfully.
Hillary graduated from Miami University in 2015 with a B.S. in Public Health and completed her RYT-200 in 2016. She has taught yoga at the MU REC Center, Uptown Yoga in the Park, and at Root Yoga in Oxford, OH.
In 2017, Hillary accepted a job in Hamilton, OH working as a Health Specialist at a senior living community where she taught a variety of fitness classes including yoga and chair yoga for the past five years. Hillary has a background in teaching Pilates, Tai Chi for Arthritis as well as Silver Sneakers Yoga, Classic and Circuit classes. In 2020 Hillary became an ACE Certified Personal Trainer.
She is excited to return to her home town and offer yoga classes that allow people to connect with others in a safe and supportive space, to move in a way that honors the body exactly as it is, and to rediscover the immense power that we each have within ourselves.
Scott Williams, E-RYT 500, YACEP
Scott Williams has been teaching yoga since 2004 when he completed Miami University's yoga teacher training course. He is registered nationally with the Yoga Alliance through the 200-hour course offered by the Cincinnati Yoga School and 500-hour course offered by Eddie Modestini and Nicki Doane.
Scott teaches vinyasa (movement linked to breath) style yoga and has experience teaching classes from basic for beginners to challenging for advanced practitioners, and for all ages.
Gail Hautau, RYT 200, Certified Longevity Coach
Gail was born in Virginia, but moved to Ohio as a young child. She has been an Oxford resident ever since. Gail attended local schools and graduated from Miami University with a Masters Degree in Education. Gail taught in the public school system for 25 years before retiring. Prior to that she worked as a Visual Display Manager, and Assistant Store Manager for the Macy’s in Oxford, OH.
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Gail practiced yoga in her 20's and 30's and has maintained a regular meditation practice over the years. Taking care of a family and working full time brought a halt to her yoga practice for a number of years but she decided to begin again, and became certified to teach yoga.
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Gail has been teaching locally since 2018 and currently teaches Yin Yoga, Restorative Yoga, and Qi Gong. She loves the benefits for the mind, body, spirit, and the energetic body gained by these practices.
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Gail’s interests are (in no particular order) yoga, Qi Gong, gardening, pets, (indoor) plants, cooking, and spending time with family and friends.
Stephany Plantz, RYT 200
Stephany is delighted to share her practice within the OCY community, where her yoga journey first began. She was introduced to yoga and meditation in 2022, and quickly developed a great appreciation for mindful movement, self-observation without judgement, and the power of breathing. As she noticed a positive shift within herself, she grew excited to share these experiences for the benefit of others.
Stephany is an emerging yoga teacher, completing her RYT 200 in 2023 at OCY's Tree of India School of Yoga under Jessica Lohrey. She continues to follow her curiosity by being on the mat within the yoga community, practicing self-inquiry, and tackling an endless reading list. She plans to pursue an RYT 500 certificate in the future.
Outside the studio Stephany loves being in nature, trying new things, creating, reading, and enjoying the company of family and friends. She has fun adventuring with her preschool aged son, who inspires her to look at the world with great enthusiasm and interest.
Joyce Fernandes, RYT 200
Joyce has been an Oxford resident since 1999, when she began a faculty position at Miami University. She has been practicing yoga for about 18 years, and having grown up in India, brings a unique perspective to her practice and teaching.
Joyce loves nature photography, long walks, growing veggies from seed, and considers cooking to be a form of meditation. She looks forward to being part of the growing group of yoga practitioners at Oxford Community Yoga.
Georgia Slagel, RYT 200
Georgia Slagel is a student at Miami University studying Accounting and Entrepreneurship. Her regular yoga practice started at a young age, when she discovered she had scoliosis. To maintain a strong back, she implemented yoga into her fitness routine during high school. She instantly fell in love with the awareness of the mind-body connection that yoga brought her. Georgia found herself less stressed and a more mindful person from her yoga practice. Her senior year in high school she became a RYT 200 from Eternal Yoga School in Ashland, KY.
Georgia enjoys helping others reset and unwind from their everyday lives. She loves sharing her love, light, and energy with fellow yogis. She has been teaching yoga for the past two years and looks forward to being a lifelong yogi.
Scott Sander, RYT 200
Scott's personal yoga practice began in 2010 strictly for the physical benefits, but now he keeps coming back to his mat for the constant mental challenge and emotional growth yoga offers. Scott's struggles with alcohol and ongoing recovery through AA opened his mind to powers larger than himself and he now embraces a spiritual component to his life that is further nurtured through yoga.
This led him to complete Yoga Teacher Training in April 2023 (at Pure Yoga in The Dalles, Oregon) and he now looks to provide inclusive practices that embrace all identities at the intersection of addiction recovery and self-education/development. He emphasizes how yoga practices on the mat (ie: strength, flexibility, compassion, forgiveness/letting go and loving kindness) can be directly carried into daily life.
Piper, RYT 200
Meet Piper, your yoga guide! With a passion for holistic well-being, exploration, and a heart deeply rooted in the Oxford community, Piper has been a dedicated yoga practitioner since 2004.
In 2018, Piper embarked on a transformative journey, incorporating meditation and yoga into a daily practice, which she continues today. In May 2023, Piper completed the Yoga Teacher Training Program at OCY's Tree of India School of Yoga.
Piper is a licensed massage therapist with her own business since 1999. She is also a Registered Nurse, mostly working in the specialty of psychiatric/mental health care at a local hospital. Her unique blend of medical expertise with a focus on healing brings a unique perspective to her yoga teaching.
Through the years, meditation and yoga have been a guiding light, enriching Piper's life in a profound way. She loves planting seeds of enrichment, empowerment, and healthy living!
Piper is excited to share the many benefits of yoga, breathwork (so powerful) and meditation with the Oxford Community. She looks forward to embarking on this transformative journey together!
Jessica Lohrey, E-RYT 500, C-IAYT, YACEP
Jessica is both an Oxford native and a Miami graduate. Jessica returned home in 2020 after living in cities across the US for 28 years. She is excited to share the powerful teachings of yoga with her hometown community!
Jessica has been a dedicated student of yoga since 2000, studying teachings from the Vedas and Upanishads, the Yoga Sutras, the Bhagavad Gita, the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, and writings from the Saiva Tantra traditions. She holds teaching certificates from Yoga of India (Gurmukh Mike Noury), The Pranakriya School of Yoga and Healing Arts (Yoganand Michael Carroll) and The Center for Integrative Yoga Studies (Marlysa Sullivan.)
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Jessica is a Certified Yoga Therapist (C-IAYT) with the International Association of Yoga Therapists and is certified at the highest level as an E-RYT 500 and Continuing Education Provider (YACEP) with Yoga Alliance. She specializes in private yoga, teacher training and mentorship, and showing others how to use yoga as a therapeutic tool for maintaining physical and emotional balance.
Jessica is also the owner and Certified Aromatherapist at Tree of India.
