Will You Stand With Us, Colorado?
January 23, 2015
Since December 2014, Yoga Alliance, its Colorado members and its Colorado lobbying team participated in several meetings with DPOS officials to advocate for DPOS to reverse its recent actions to regulate YTT schools in Colorado as occupational schools. While DPOS staff remains accessible, their position has not changed regarding their perceived need and authority to regulate YTT schools. Here is the current status:
To date, the DPOS has notified 82 YTTs that they may be subject to regulation, pending the information they provide in an initial letter of determination and an accompanying questionnaire that the YTT is directed to send back to DPOS for review.
If the questionnaire was returned by the YTT to the DPOS, the YTT received another letter identifying whether or not DPOS considers them subject to regulation. We understand that 3 YTTs have been determined not to fall under the regulation.
DPOS plans to send another letter to the YTTs who did not respond to the initial letter by filling out and returning their questionnaire. This letter has not been sent out yet.
Make your voice heard!
On Tuesday, January 27, the DPOS’ Governing Board will hold its regularly monthly meeting. Although YTT regulation is not an agenda item, the DPOS staff advised representatives of the Yoga Alliance that people may use the public comment period to express their views. The comment period will come at the end of the meeting at “Other Business”. The comment period will probably last 30 minutes and each person making a comment will probably have two minutes to speak.
We anticipate the media will be present for the meeting to cover the YTT controversy, so it is important for the Yoga community to show a strong presence.
Yoga Alliance will have several representatives present to speak on behalf of the yoga community at the meeting, including Roger Rippy, a Yoga Alliance board member who was instrumental in the successful effort by Texas yogis to advocate for passage of legislation to exempt YTTs.
Although the DPOS board will not discuss the YTT regulation and they will not be voting on anything related to the YTT regulation, this an extremely important time to raise the DPOS Board’s awareness of the adverse effects of the YTT regulation. Please make the effort to attend the DPOS meeting to demonstrate just how many YTTs are concerned about this issue and to share your comments, time permitting.
The meeting starts at 9:30 a.m., so please be sure to get to the Tivoli in Downtown Denver by 9:00.
Below is the meeting location:
Auraria Higher Education Campus
Tivoli Student Center, Room 320
900 Auraria Parkway
Denver, CO 80204
The DPOS meeting agenda can be found here, and here are directions to the Tivoli Student Center.