Meet Our Founder.
Upward Inertia was founded by Kaelyn Rogers, an occupational therapist, therapeutic yoga provider, and Ayurvedic health coach.
Prior to founding UI, Kaelyn spent more than five years working under the medical model, specifically in neurological rehabilitation. Kaelyn saw the need for a more holistic approach to health and easier access for the most vulnerable in our community. From this need Upward Inertia was born.
Kaelyn has been practicing various styles of yoga for over 15 years. She has found tremendous benefits to her own physical and mental health from this practice and has built her life around yogic principals. She completed her 200-hour therapeutic yoga teacher training for healthcare professionals from the Holistic Yoga Therapy Institute and has subsequently engaged in mindfulness, meditation, and yoga training programs in the United States, India, Nepal, and Thailand.
Kaelyn has been providing weekly classes at ISCI since July 2018, has taught acroyoga workshops and intensives both nationally and internationally since 2013, and teaches one on one and group yoga sessions for both able bodied and differently abled individuals. Kaelyn designed and implemented a therapeutic yoga wrap around service at Woodrow Wilson Rehabilitation Center and provided similar offerings at St. Luke’s Rehabilitation Hospital. Kaelyn’s teaching focuses on finding strength within range of motion in order to improve stability within the joints and prevent injury. She utilizes her knowledge of body mechanics from her Occupational Therapy background to both breakdown poses in an easy and accessible way and also provide cues to prevent injury and protect the body.
Board of Directors
+ Executive Director and Program Developer: Kaelyn Rogers
+ Research Collaborator: Jacoba Rock
Jacoba Rock, Ph.D., L.C.S.W., is a clinical faculty member in the School of Social Work at Boise State University, as well as a BUILD Program faculty associate and Critical Theory affiliate faculty member. As a practitioner-scholar, her work focuses on incarcerated young people serving lengthy sentences, with a particular interest in pathways, assessment and treatment mechanisms, and implications for systemic change. She is a leader in policy initiatives and program development efforts related to trauma-informed care and restorative approaches, as well as the inclusion of criminal legal system issues in social work education.
+ Research Collaborator: Linsey Belisle
Linsey A. Belisle, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice in the School of Public Service at Boise State University. She is an applied correctional scholar emphasizing research among populations disproportionally impacted by the criminal and juvenile-legal system. Her recent work focuses on advancing the treatment of justice-involved youth and adults through evidence-based correctional practices, gender responsivity, and harm reduction. Her recent work appears in Child Abuse & Neglect, Criminal Justice & Behavior, Feminist Criminology, and Victims & Offenders.
+ Research Collaborator: James Beauchemin
Dr. James Beauchemin is an Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work at Boise State University. He received his PhD from Ohio State University and MSW from the University of Vermont. Dr. Beauchemin’s research interests include wellness promotion, integrated mind-body-spirit interventions, and Solution-Focused Brief Therapy. He has numerous publications and has presented papers and conducted trainings at local, regional, national, and international conferences. He is a practicing Licensed Clinical Social Worker and certified Health Coach specializing in health-related behavior change. In addition, his interest and expertise in wellness promotion has led to opportunities such as serving as a Subject Matter Expert for the American Council on Exercise, and providing wellness-focused training for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
+ President: Karen Gentilman
Karen holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in social work from California State University of Long Beach. She has worked 30 years in health care, currently as a Medical Social Worker at St. Luke’s Rehab Hospital. She previously served as a US Peace Corp Volunteer in Liberia, West Africa from 1987-1989. Karen believes in taking a holistic approach to health and wellness that include severals aspect of personal health: physical, emotional, social, spirit and intellectual with the emphasises of the connection of mind, body, and spirit.