Liz Michalkiewicz

Executive Director

Liz Michalkiewicz is a CPA, RYT-200 yoga teacher, and the interim Executive Director of Rise Above Yoga (RAY). She holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in accounting from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee and spent over a decade in external audit and corporate finance, specializing in compensation strategy and financial management. Raised by parents who immigrated from Poland to pursue their careers in science, Liz brings a perspective shaped by both diversity and evidence-based thinking. She has also built a strong track record in recruiting and mentoring, from leading intern programs to advancing more diverse hiring practices — a passion for inclusion and relationship-building that she continues to carry into her nonprofit leadership.

In 2024, following a loved one’s incarceration, Liz pivoted from finance to yoga service, recognizing the urgent need for healing practices in justice-impacted communities. As a Prison Yoga Project–trained facilitator and yoga teacher, she now leads classes in jails and community spaces while guiding RAY’s strategic growth and partnerships. Liz combines her organizational expertise with her personal experience of yoga as a tool for healing. Grounded in both lived experience and evidence-based practices, she is committed to expanding access to trauma-informed yoga across Wisconsin.

Contact Liz at: lizjmichalk@gmail.com