Niroga Institute Staff

BidyutBose, Executive Director

Bidyut 'B.K.' Bose is the founder and Executive Director of Niroga Institute. Bidyut earned his Ph.D. in Computer Science from University of California, Berkeley and spent many years in research and development in Silicon Valley. He has multiple patents to his credit, and has presented at international conferences and at universities around the world. Having learned yoga and meditation from his father since he was a child, and later with monks in the Himalayas, he longed for greater integration of his personal and professional life. Inspired since childhood by the twin ideals of self-realization and selfless service, he founded Niroga Institute in 2005, and his research interests have now shifted to the scientific application of TLS and developing cost-effective architectures for lasting social transformation.

Judy Dunlap, Programs Director

Judy Dunlap has had a long time interest in Eastern philosophies, and in the East’s body/mind/spirit or holistic approach to healthful living and evolving consciousness. A student of the philosophy of Vedanta, she is currently on the Board of Directors of the Vedanta Society of Berkeley, Ca. Three years ago she was introduced to yoga through Bidyut’s classes, and has experienced the holistic therapeutic value of yoga first-hand. Judy enjoys the challenge of start-ups, and is a co-founder of Niroga. For over 10 years, she was Director of Operations for a small software company. She received her BA in Anthropology from U.C. Santa Barbara and her MBA from Golden Gate University.

Cynthia Carpathios, Operations Director

Cynthia Carpathios became interested in eastern philosophy while still in high school, and has maintained a regular practice of meditation for 30 years. With a graduate degree in counseling (University of Akron), she worked for a number of years in agencies and doing private psychotherapy. She has worked primarily in managing operations and finance, helping several organizations in young stages of development to develop the infrastructure and administrative capacity to allow a higher level of growth and stability.

Annika Hanson, Program Manager

Annika Hanson was born and raised in the Bay Area. At the age of sixteen an automobile accident left her with several spinal fractures and unable to live a normal teenage life. During her recovery a friend invited her to attend a yoga class, and she began to experience the self transformative properties of yoga and meditation. In her quest to empower others through the practice of yoga she continued her study, obtaining a certification from It's Yoga in Miami in 2004 and an additional certification from the Niroga Institute, with an emphasis in yoga therapeutics, in 2006. She is committed to raising awareness about the healing benefits of yoga and meditation. Annika coordinates the Niroga Institute programs in Alameda County Juvenile Hall, including the work of Niroga instructors and the research work being done to assess the impact of this work on the young people.

Hayley Parlen, Yoga Corp Coordinator

Upon taking her first yoga and meditation class in 1993, Hayley Parlen (program manager) knew that yoga would become a life long practice, both on and off the mat. Since then, Hayley has practiced and studied various styles of yoga, has completed numerous teacher trainings for both adults and children, including 4 months of training in asana and meditation at the Atma Vikasa Center Mysore, India and has completed two 10-day Vipassana courses with S.N. Goenka. Currently, Hayley is both a yoga Instructor and Program Manager for Niroga Institute and is also a yoga and meditation instructor at UCBerkeley. Hayley encourages her students to use their breath as an inner guide as they move with mindfulness through the asanas. Her classes offer opportunities for her students to realize their true nature as they are continuously challenged to delve deep into their energy bodies, and go beyond the thinking mind.

Antonia Fokken, Program Manager

Antonia Fokken is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist/Art Therapist, a Certified Yoga Therapist and an Anusara-Inspired Yoga Teacher. Antonia is happy to merge 12 years of experience in the field of mental health with her love of yoga and meditation, which started about 14 years ago. After completing a 200 hour Anusara Immersion/Teacher Training at Yogakula in Berkeley in 2004-2005, Antonia completed a 500 hr Advanced Teacher Training Program with an emphasis in Yoga Therapy, through Ananda Seva Mission in Santa Rosa. She is currently teaching weekly adult yoga classes at Mountain Yoga in Oakland, Yogakula in Berkeley, and the Albany YMCA. She has a BA from San Francisco State University in Psychology, an MA in Art Therapy and Marriage and Family Therapy, and 2 years of training in Bioenergetics, a form of somatic psychotherapy. Antonia is a program coordinator with Niroga Institute and teaches Niroga classes at Alameda County Juvenile Hall and other sites.

Lucia Gonzales, Program Manager

Lucia Gonzales began practicing yoga while still in high school, when she ran across an old yoga book and began trying things out in her room. With a background in dance, Lucia found it easy to learn the yoga asanas, but the meditation techniques took much longer to stick. Her curiosity about meditative practices and yoga philosophy developed into a personal interest in Eastern philosophy. In college Lucia became interested in understanding the ways in which religious practices might scientifically affect things around them, leading her to create her own major at UC Berkeley, where she studied the physical effects of human intention -- including the effects of meditation and prayer. After graduating, Lucia became a certified yoga teacher through the Yoga Teacher Training program at Mount Madonna Center in Northern California. She now works with Niroga Institute helping to teach and research the effects of yoga and meditative practices to underserved communities in her community.

Ellarae Miner, Niroga Center Coordinator

Ellarae Miner was introduced to yoga as a child and developed a personal practice as an undergraduate at UC Berkeley, where she studied English and Forestry. She started teaching informally in 2006, and was certified as a yoga teacher through the Niroga Teacher Training program in May 2008. In her work supporting the Niroga vision, she brings the fruit of many varied experiences, including skills as a musician, world-wide traveling, office assistant, mentor and more. With the many hats that she wears, her flexibility and strong sense of commitment keep her in an ideal place to help the new center development and thrive.

Olivia Cerf, Research Data Entry

Olivia Cerf has recently moved to the Bay area after graduating from Kenyon College in central Ohio. Having completed a major in Dance, Olivia has a special interest in healing through the use of yoga, movement and somatic therapies. She has experience in performing data entry with a number of organizations and brings a sharp mind and youthful enthusiasm to the work.