Kundalini Yoga Teacher and KRI Teacher Trainer Complaint Procedure

EPS Complaint Procedure for Kundalini Yoga Teachers and Teacher Trainers

1. Any oral or written complaint received by staff or board members of 3HO, IKYTA, KRI, or any NKYTA regarding the conduct of a KRI Certified Kundalini Yoga Teacher or KRI Teacher Trainer must be reported to the Office of Ethics & Professional Standards & Conscious Conflict Resolution (EPS) within five (5) business days of receipt.

2. EPS will notify the CEO of 3HO and the ED of the KRI Aquarian Training Academy and/or the CEO of KRI that a Complaint has been received within a reasonable amount of time after receiving the Complaint. SSSC will be notified as provided in its notification policy.

• All parties notified about a Complaint shall maintain confidentiality about the Complaint both during and after the Complaint Procedure.

3. Within a reasonable time after receiving the Complaint, EPS will contact the Complainant to provide him or her with the official Complaint Form.

• EPS will request the Complainant to complete and sign the Complaint Form and return it to EPS within 72 hours.
• If EPS or the Complainant feels the Complainant would be endangered if Teacher or Teacher Trainer read the Complaint or if the Complainant does not want EPS to send his or her Complaint, we will not send the letter to the Teacher or Teacher Trainer. EPS will keep the letter on file and EPS will write to the Teacher or Teacher Trainer using judicious language.

4. Within five (5) business days after receipt of a signed Complaint, EPS shall send the Complaint to the Teacher or Teacher Trainer by email.  (EPS will attempt to contact the Teacher or Teacher Trainer first by telephone so he or she is prepared to receive the Complaint.)

• After being notified of the Complaint, the Teacher or Teacher Trainer shall have not have contact with the Complainant. Such contact will result in discipline.
• The Teacher or Teacher Trainer shall maintain confidentiality about the identity and circumstances of the Complainant both during and after the Complaint Procedure.

5. The Teacher or Teacher Trainer must confirm receipt of the Complaint within 72 hours.

6. The Teacher or Teacher Trainer must send EPS a written, signed Response within ten (10) business days from the date of receipt of the Complaint.  (EPS will provide a Response Form to the Teacher or Teacher Trainer). This Response will be made available to the Complainant.

7. If the Teacher or Teacher Trainer does not respond in writing within ten (10) business days, EPS will send a Letter of Warning giving him or her an additional ten (10) business days to respond.

• For a Teacher, Indefinite Suspension means that a Kundalini Yoga Teacher cannot teach Kundalini Yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan®, cannot represent 3HO, KRI, IKYTA or any NKYTA and cannot host, administrate or teach at any KRI Level One, Two or Three Teacher Training Program.
• If the Teacher or Teacher Trainer still does not respond within five (5) business days, he or she will immediately be Indefinitely Suspended.
• If the Teacher or Teacher Trainer does not respond within the additional ten (10) business days, EPS will send a Notice to Take Action.
• This Suspension will remain in effect until the Teacher or Teacher Trainer is willing to participate in the Complaint Procedure and the Complaint Procedure is complete.
• For a Teacher Trainer, Indefinite Suspension means a Teacher Trainer cannot teach Kundalini Yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan®, or represent 3HO, KRI, IKYTA or any NKYTA, cannot host, administrate or teach at any KRI Level One, Two or Three Teacher Training Program and cannot act as a KRI Teacher Trainer or Mentor.

8. EPS will send the written Response from the Teacher or Teacher Trainer to the Complainant within five (5) business days of receipt.

• However, if EPS determines the Response would harm the Complainant or is otherwise inflammatory, EPS may discuss the Response with the Complainant without sending the Response to the Complainant.
• If the Complainant provides additional information to EPS, that information would be sent to the Teacher or Teacher Trainer for an additional Response as above.

9. After receiving the Response from the Teacher or Teacher Trainer in question, EPS (and/or members of the EPS Committee or the EPS Assistant) may interview persons with information directly related to the Complaint, including the Teacher or Teacher Trainer and the Complainant and any witnesses identified by either party.

• The EPS Committee may request a face to face interview with the Teacher or Teacher Trainer.
• EPS will ask the Complainant what course of action he or she recommends be taken.  EPS will clearly inform the Complainant that this recommendation will be conveyed to the EPS Committee to be included in its review, but the Committee will make its Recommendation independent of this recommendation.

10. All information gathered by EPS will be brought to the EPS Committee to review and make a Recommendation to EPS as to what resolution the Committee deems appropriate to remedy the situation.

• This process normally will occur within 60 day after all the written materials have been received. It may take more or less time depending on the scope of the investigation.  If there is an exceptional situation, all parties will be informed of the timeline.
• The final Decision lies with EPS.

11. EPS will communicate its Decision in writing to the Teacher or Teacher Trainer, to the Complainant, to the CEOs of 3HO and KRI, and to any local NKYTA (and SSSC as directed.)

12. The Teacher or Teacher Trainer or Complainant may appeal the Decision solely on the basis that the discipline imposed was not fair or in alignment with the core values of 3HO, IKYTA, and KRI.

• An appeal must be sent in writing to EPS within thirty (30) days of receiving the Decision.
• EPS will promptly submit the Appeal to the Appeals Panel.
• The Appeals Panel must issue its decision within thirty (30) days of the date the appeal was filed.

13. In the case of criminal charges or other serious circumstances involving a Student-Teacher interaction where the conduct involved, if true, would constitute a violation in the Code of Ethics & Professional Standards of a Kundalini Yoga Teacher, EPS may automatically Indefinitely Suspend a Teacher or Teacher Trainer pending conclusion of criminal proceedings.

14. In the case of the Teacher or Teacher Trainer resigning before the completion of the Complaint Procedure, the Teacher or Teacher Trainer is immediately Terminated, and is not eligible to reapply.

In order to maintain the integrity of the Complaint Procedure, EPS does not entertain Counter Complaints against the Complainant, EPS, or any of the Yogi Bhajan Legacy Organizations.

To File a Complaint, please click HERE.

If you have any questions about the Complaint Procedure or Appeal Process, kindly contact Guruka Kaur at eps@epsweb.org