Chanda Williams
Trainer, Program Director (Bay Area-Sacramento)
Chanda Williams, MA, RYT 500, has a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and master’s degrees in Integrative Health and Depth Somatic Psychology. She is the Northern California Program Director for the Prison Yoga Project. Since 2015, she has facilitated classes inside San Quentin State Prison. Chanda is a Ph.D. candidate currently completing research that will describe the effects of mindfulness-based, trauma-informed yoga for incarcerated men and its impact on their interoceptive awareness, dispositional mindfulness, and psychological well-being. She also is a research specialist for a clinical research study sponsored by the University of California, San Francisco, and the Department of Veterans Affairs, evaluating the effects of mindfulness-based movement for veterans with post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD). As an African-American woman, she has been deeply impacted and affected by racism and sexism. Chanda is committed to dismantling systems of oppression that continue to cause tremendous harm and suffering. A yoga practitioner since 1996 and a certified teacher since 2005, she is dedicated to the application of Mind-Body approaches to improve the health of vulnerable populations.