about
Kaila June Keliikuli
Kaila June Keliikuli (she/they) is the Creative Director of the School for Somatic Groundwork. With a background as a performing artist, personal trainer, somatic movement educator and curriculum designer, Kaila’s movement pedagogy has emerged through her interest in somatic patterning. Somatic patterning is a creative way to shift movement limitations and embodied behaviors through bottom-up learning and bodily-based inquiry. Kaila advocates for a movement movement to maintain body connection with land and to encourage joy in our aliveness.
As a lifelong student and teacher of movement practice, Kaila has earned a BFA in Dance & Choreography, MS in Rehabilitative Science and multiple certifications in professional fitness training. About 25 years ago she began developing the movement system Somatic Groundwork (or they began developing her). She mentors other practitioners to guide Somatic Groundwork in synergism with their unique offerings in the 2-year teacher training program Interdisciplinary Movement & Somatics, an ISMETA Approved Training Program.
Kaila June Keliikuli is a daughter, sister, mother, spouse and auntie whose ancestors arrived and settled Turtle Island, aka USA, beginning in the early 17th century. Born and raised in the Rocky Mountains, her last name is Hawaiian and is gifted through her wife, Maile Kahealani Keliikuli. Maile’s father Gene was born Kānaka Maoli (Native Hawaiian). As a young man, he moved to the mainland to play professional football and met Carolyn, Maile’s mom. Eventually they moved to Boise, ID- Shoshone/ Bannock lands to raise Maile and her 2 older brothers. Gene was a paniolo (skilled cattle rancher) and Carolyn was a talented gardner. Over Maile’s childhood, her family developed a 1 acre plot into a small farm, garden and hale ‘ohana (home). The Keliikuli hale ‘ohana also became a gathering place for the annual lu’au that hosted other islanders and their families for traditional Hawaiian music, dance and food. Kaila and Maile now live in the family home and continue to host the annual lu’au through the spirit of her parents.
Beginning in Kaila’s early childhood her mom, Fran, owned and directed a dance studio with a speciality in creative movement, ballet and jazz. Under her mom’s wing, one filled with passion to help students of all ages find their inner creative voice, Kaila learned both the technical and relational skills to teach children, teens and adults. After high school, Kaila’s movement research expanded through the study of contemporary dance, improvisation and somatics. Eventually she found her way to rehabilitative science and performance enhancement through professional fitness training. She has designed and implemented curriculum for collegiate, vocational and studio programs for fitness professionals, yoga teachers and dance educators and has worked 1:1 with clients since 2010. Over the course of her career as a performing artist, Kaila traveled to Venezuela and Brazil with La Caravana Arcoiris por La Paz, performed in Montana with Headwaters Dance Company and Open Field Artists and in Colorado with Daughter Cells Dance.
