AKASHA PROJECT
Akasha Project partners with a range of organizations to create space and empower those who would not otherwise have access through the practice of yoga and meditation.

FOUNDER/PRESIDENT
Elaine Musselman

BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Elaine Musselman
Sherry Feldpausch
Grant Woolfolk

HONORARY BOARD
John Friend
Elena Brower
Desiree Rumbaugh

STAFF
Grant Woolfolk – executive director
Calie Traver – program director

CURRENT PARTNERS

The Ali Forney Center is a local resource center that provides shelter and a nurturing environment for homeless LGBTQ youth. Founded in June of 2002 in response to the lack of safe shelter for these youth, their mission is to protect them from the harm of homelessness and to support them in becoming safe and independent as they move from adolescence to adulthood.

The Chinatown YMCA provides free and safe community access to a wide variety of educational, recreational and counseling services. Their goal is to create a safe haven and nurturing environment for neighborhood youth and adults in Lower Manhattan with an emphasis on the Chinatown / Lower East Side area. They serve nearly 2,000 individuals each year.

The Columbia University Day Treatment Program is a comprehensive clinical service that provides structure and support to normally high-functioning adults in crisis. Located in midtown Manhattan, it is designed as an adjunct to private individual treatment. It is well suited to individuals who have interrupted their educational or professional pursuits because of mental illness and/or addiction.

Common Ground builds and operates a range of housing options for homeless and low-income individuals. The housing is attractive, affordable, and linked to the services people need to rebuild their lives. All of the residents are supported with on-site social services designed to help them maintain their housing, address health issues, and pursue education and employment. The specific facility proposed to us is a senior home in Brooklyn called The Domenech. Thirty-five percent of the residents there have a history of severe mental illness and chronic homelessness, and the others meet certain low-income criteria.

Goundwork, Inc. is an organization committed to strengthening communities through after-school education programs that give young adults the support they need to graduate high school and succeed in college. Based in East New York, it is their mission to support the development of powerful youth, powerful families and powerful communities so that all young people in the communities where they work have access to a full range of opportunities to lead a rewarding and fulfilling life.

M285 Harlem Renaissance High School provides a nurturing learning environment for students who were not successful in other high school settings, but who are ready to begin anew among a community of learners.  The majority of the students who attend Harlem Renaissance are “Over Aged, Under Credited” and qualify for the Federal Free Lunch Program.

Validus Preparatory Academy is a public non-charter high school dedicated to academics, health, and fitness. Located in the Bronx, their mission is to develop students who understand the importance of health and fitness, who demonstrate the character traits of responsibility, collaboration, compassion, and commitment and who achieve mastery in academics to prepare them to be successful in life after high school.

M610 The Young Women’s Leadership of East Harlem is dedicated to addressing the developmental needs of young women by providing a dynamic and participatory environment in which to learn. They strive to work with families to instill in their students a sense of community, responsibility, and ethical principles of behavior – characteristics that will help make them leaders of the next generation.

*** We also offer a limited number of private sessions to individuals with debilitating conditions that prevent them from attending regular community classes.