Teachers

Justicia DeClue (E-RYT 500) is delighted to be living her dream by sharing her love of yoga. A native of St. Louis, she has been teaching since 2005 and is the founder, owner and director of Maha in Philadelphia. She is known for detailed alignment instruction and her openhearted teaching style.

Justicia teaches from her steady personal practice, offering classes that are challenging and playful, fun and accessible. A formerly Certified Anusara Yoga instructor, she has a deep commitment to the therapeutic potential of yoga, and its relevance for each practitioner at every skill level. She offers deep gratitude to all her teachers, especially Zhenja La Rosa. She lives southeast of Ithaca with her three rescue dogs Sammy, Winston and Kermit.

Desiree Sparrow is a Yoga Therapist and Yoga Instructor (500hr E-RYT/YACEP/RPYT) who has been teaching yoga since 2001. Desiree was the former owner & director of The LI Kula Yoga & Wellness Center in the Long Island, New York area. A native New Yorker, she moved to Philadelphia in 2022 with her wife, two cats and dog.

Desiree has been formerly trained in many styles of yoga which include Ashtanga, Sivananda and Anusara Yoga. Some of Desiree’s teachers and influences are Beryl Bender Birch, Doug Swenson, Lois Neisbitt, Zhenja La Rosa, and Pattabhi Jois. Desiree’s classes are playful and heart-centered, with concepts of alignment and Tantric philosophy.

Deepthi Rao (E-RYT500) is a certified yoga teacher, originally from India with over 800 hours of training. She has a MS degree in Yoga from Swami Vivekananda Yoga University, India. Until the early 2010s she worked in finance, and asana practice was a small part of her training for long distance running. After 2 years as a practitioner she began to discover the effect it had on both her physical and mental health. Around this time she met her teachers Pradeep Sattwamaya and Sandeep Manur and began her formal yoga studies under their mentorship.

She transitioned to teaching yoga full time in 2014 and there’s been no looking back! She has led sessions focussed on Asana, Pranayama and Yoga Nidra. She primarily practices and teaches Hatha & Yin styles and has trained in Yoga Nidra (Sleep Meditation) under her teacher Swami Yoga Ratna of Shankar Prasad Ashram in Gokarna, India. She also teaches Yoga-centered Anatomy for teacher trainings. She is passionate about research related to Mind-Body practices, Sleep and Health Tech. She hosts a wellness themed podcast called The DeepThings Podcast. Deepthi truly believes in democratizing health & wellness through education.

When not in the studio, she’s out exploring new ways to brew her coffee or practicing her pen(wo)manship.

Susannah (EYT 500/YIN 100) has been teaching yoga in Philadelphia since 2015 and her classes reflect her combined training of vinyasa and alignment-based yoga. Her classes tend to be active with plenty of focus on connecting to our deeper selves through breath and movement. Susannah enjoys exploring many facets of yoga and adding them to her practice, including breathwork, chakras and meditation.

Susannah completed her Yin Yoga studies with Sally Miller in Doylestown in 2017 and is delighted to offer yin at Maha. Yin Yoga has helped her own personal practice and relationship to the greater world in a profound and meaningful way and she looks forward to sharing this practice with others. She gives her deepest gratitude to all her teachers, especially Chae Yang who has inspired her since the beginning.

Suzanne Leona is a Philadelphia based yoga and movement teacher. She was introduced to yoga through a college course, which ended up being the most influential class she ever took. After leaving her finance career on Wall St., she pursued her passion to combine her love of yoga with her desire to help others.

Suzanne is both a 500-hr and prenatal registered yoga teacher. She is passionate about making yoga accessible to everyone, which is why she teaches classes such as gentle yoga, yoga basics, prenatal/postpartum yoga, and yoga for Parkinson’s.

No matter the class, expect a thought-provoking yet playful practice with plenty of movement options to choose from. She aims for her classes to be an opportunity for you to acquire a deeper understanding of yourself. Her hope is that each class will help you live more mindfully.

Suzanne is thankful for the Maha community and all the teachers who have influenced her practice and teaching. She looks forward to practicing with you soon.

A lifelong explorer of movement, Alan came to yoga in their early 20s as a compliment to an already active and curious lifestyle. What started as a way to stretch quickly evolved into a deeper study of the workings of their body and breath.. After a mostly solitary practice Alan found his way to Maha Yoga, and dove into a more functional, science-informed approach to yoga and mobility. Known for their grounded presence and down-to-earth vibe, Alan has a gift for making complex ideas digestible and practices feel inclusive. They’re endlessly grateful to the teachers and mentors who’ve shaped their path—especially the dogs.

Stemming from her work in diversity, equity, and inclusion, and personal battles with chronic illness, Gabriella pursued a 200 hour yoga teacher training at Three Queens Yoga in 2018. Her gentle classes explore taking the practice of yoga off the mat and integrating additional space into day to day life. Her offerings lean on trauma informed training and she welcomes both newcomers and regular practitioners to her classes.

Haley found yoga in 2013 as a means of self care after the birth of her first daughter. After more than 10 years in the corporate marketing world, she soon decided that her career path and soul path were not in harmony. She completed her 200-hour teacher training at Maha Yoga. Today she is a mom of three kids and an English Bulldog, Bodhi, all die-hard Eagles fans.

As a champion of self care, Haley encourages her students to use their time on the mat to get out of their heads and into their bodies. Haley follows the motto, “You can’t pour from an empty cup.”

Jill Ivey believes that the profound benefits of yoga should be available to everyone, regardless of body type, level of health, physical fitness, or financial ability. She is particularly passionate about the ways in which a regular yoga practice can help heal the body and promote peace of mind, and credits her regular practice to her ability to both get through most days relatively pain free, and to focus on non-yoga related tasks.

A former dancer who practiced yoga on and off for a decade before deciding to make it a constant in her life—first as a practitioner and then as a teacher—Jill completed her teacher training here at Maha in 2019. In addition to her alignment training, Jill regularly practices Iyengar yoga, which has given her a healthy appreciation for the use of props in her practice and teaching. Many thanks to Justicia, Gabi, and Lucy for the yogic inspiration.

Jordyn found her love for yoga in 2016 as a way to get out of her brain and into her body. She completed her 200-hour teacher training at Yoga Vida in NYC and moved to Philadelphia shortly after where she found a welcoming local yoga community and began her journey as a teacher. Jordyn has a background in dance and has practiced primarily in the Vinyasa and Ashtanga lineages, all of which are a source of inspiration for her classes. In her class, you can expect dynamic movement, a focus on alignment, and an awareness of how the breath can empower the physical practice. 

Kim, PhD, MPH, RYT-200 is a trauma-informed wellness practitioner who is passionate about helping people become their best and healthiest through holistic self-care. She grew up on a small farm in Sumter, South Carolina and has always been interested in health. Kim’s sore muscles and curiosity about what her body was potentially capable of doing led her to try yoga in 2015. Although her introduction to yoga was physical, the positive impact on her spiritual and mental health kept her coming back to her mat.

Kim’s desire to share the multifaceted health benefits of yoga and help others deepen their practice led her to complete a 200-hour Registered Yoga Teacher Training Program at Maha Yoga Studio in Philadelphia in 2022 under the tutelage of Justicia DeClue. Kim specializes in alignment-based Hatha yoga through a trauma-informed lens. She is a kind, creative, and fun teacher who enjoys helping others grow! Her classes will invigorate your mind, body, and spirit, and help you tap into layers of yourself that you may not know exist or have lost touch with due to trauma, stress, injuries, or other challenges.

During her self-care time, Kim enjoys practicing yoga, strength training, spa activities, reading books, traveling, and spending quality time with family and friends.

In addition to being the Yoga Advisor at Maha’s front desk, Michael also teaches yoga. Michael loves bike riding through Philadelphia and Fairmont Park, and dancing at park parties. He lives in South Philly with his five dogs. He is a yoga instructor who completed his 500 hours of teacher training in 2021 and has been teaching regular classes in Philly since June 2022.

After over a decade of being an irregular, drop-in practitioner at 20+ yoga studios around the country, Avery found a home at Maha in 2021 first as a student, and now as a teacher having completed their 200-hour teacher training with Desiree Sparrow and Justicia DeClue in 2025.

Growing up with a physically-disabled single mother while attending strict ballet classes taught them from a young age how varied movement can be. They come to the mat to focus on their own fine-tuning, and are looking forward to guiding others to do the same. They view practice through a lens of both grief and joy, and would like to thank dogs for teaching them how to regulate their nervous system and their flip phone for keeping them present.

Sue Yee is passionate about helping others build strength and ease—on and off the mat. She first discovered yoga after an injury and her practice has remained a steady source of support for joint health, resilience, and overall well-being. A seasoned Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner and teacher, she brings a unique movement perspective to her classes, with a deep curiosity about how our bodies move when we engage them with intention.

Sue Yee is committed to creating an inclusive and supportive space where students can explore their practice, build resilience, and carry the benefits of yoga into daily life. Her teaching style is lighthearted yet grounded, blending precise attention to alignment with a strong emphasis on mobility and functional strength. She is a graduate of Maha Yoga’s 200-Hour Teacher Training program.