Instructors:

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Diana Brenes Seiler –  Diana is a licensed massage therapist and certified yoga instructor, with a BS degree in Fine/Visual Arts.  She became a healing artist in 2003 when she turned her yoga practice into a Thai Yoga Massage practice.  Since then her life has been focused on self-empowerment and healthy living.  In 2003 and 2004 she was a camp counselor, art teacher and photographer at Omega Teen Camp for 12-17 year olds.  In this fun and educational setting she realized how much she enjoyed working with teens.  In 2006 Diana became a licensed massage therapist and her focus then was put into her massage practice.  In 2008 she began teaching massage at the Finger Lakes School of Massage where along with massage instruction, she teaches communication skills, self-care, and mindfulness practices.  In the Fall of 2010 she returned shortly to work with teens, teaching yoga to 15 year old boys at the Highland Residential Center, a juvenile prison.  In the Spring of 2013 she co-designed and facilitated a week long Mindfulness Intersession at the Millbrook School, a college preparatory boarding school for students in grades 9-12.  In the Fall of 2016 she took the Go Grrrls! facilitator training for empowering adolescent girls and educating them on reproductive health and choices.  Since then, along with a team of women, she has developed the Changing Tides program which incorporates mindfulness, journaling, and yoga into the Go Grrrls! curriculum.  She looks forward to supporting and uplifting those who take the program!  http://www.HudsonValleyThaiMassage.com

Olivia Granach –  Olivia teaches Outdoor Education with a focus in Fine Arts and Primitive Skills in the foothills of the Catskill Mountains. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Philosophy at the University of Oregon in 2016, where she explored her interests in existentialism, feminist philosophy, intersectionality and health. Upon graduating Olivia worked in a residential treatment program for boys, ages 12 to 18, who demonstrated persistent patterns of criminal behavior. The program offered 24-hour supervised group living, combining care, drug and alcohol treatment and schooling in order for the boys to learn new skills and behaviors. Summer of 2017 Olivia mentored youth at a sleep-away camp where growth through free-choice, child-like inspiration, and the great outdoors was contagious. At Camp Augusta Olivia wore many hats: counseling for the 11-16 year old girl’s village, holding an office position, leading over-night wilderness trips, and working as a prep cook in the organic kitchen. In Fall 2017, she traveled to Europe and the Coast of West Africa, learning about culture, land, and peoples while doing work-trade. Olivia has trainings in Non-Violent Communication, Mindfulness (DBT) and Suicide Prevention. She is a Wilderness First Responder, Lifeguard, First-Aid, CPR and AED certified. Olivia’s passions and hobbies include organic farming and cooking, singing, hot yoga and wild crafting. Olivia’s involvement in Changing Tides is rooted in her adolescence where she received an empowering and thorough sexual education through the youth group, Teen Theater. Here the traveling troupe practiced improv and wrote skits which were presented to the community as a way to empower youth, teach communication on hard subjects between parents and their children, and promote healthy and safe sexuality among teens. Olivia is excited to offer young teens tools for communication, body awareness and voice-empowerment in a grounding, fun and safe setting. 

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Andrea Nieves – Andrea earned her BA in Biology from Hartwick College in 2015. Since graduating, she has worked a number of informal education jobs, including working as a living history interpreter, a zoo educator, an outdoor educator and and currently as an environmental educator at a small nature museum in the hudson valley. All of these cumulative experiences have added up to years of experience with all ages of children, in a variety of settings and contexts. Andrea is also a dedicated zen student, practicing within the monastery context. She conducts the “zen pre-teens” program, working with children ages 9-13 on meditation practice, understanding ritual, cultivating creativity, embodiment, emotional literacy, and developing kindness and compassion. Since meeting Diana, Andrea has been excited to jump on board with Changing Tides, and is hoping to use her knowledge of Biology and passion for empowering girls to make this program a success.