It started with a breath. Trapped in an elevator, a young student from Brighton slowly inhaled and exhaled, using a simple exercise she had learned at school. Panic gave way to calm. For her parents, it was a revelation: a glimpse of what two educators were quietly transforming in classrooms, the ability for children and teachers alike to navigate life with resilience, joy, and self-awareness.
This small, profound moment encapsulates the mission of Luminology, a company co-founded by Carolyn Rabidoux and Heidi Kaufman. What began as a cutting-edge yoga pilot in 2008 has evolved into a movement reshaping how schools approach well-being in 2025, blending research-based tools from positive psychology, mindfulness, and strengths-based learning to create thriving educational communities.
Carolyn Rabidoux: A life dedicated to teaching
Carolyn Rabidoux grew up in Henrietta, New York, where a sense of responsibility for others was instilled early. By age five, she knew her calling was teaching. Despite her father’s warnings about the financial challenges of education, her mother’s encouragement propelled her forward. She pursued elementary education at SUNY Oswego and began her career teaching first grade first grade at Hillel School in Brighton. Over the course of her 36-year career, she became known for her dedication and intuitive understanding of children’s and educator’s needs. She spent 23 years in the classroom, including fifteen years in special education at Rush-Henrietta. Her thirteen years as an administrator in Brighton gave her a broadened perspective on the complex challenges educators face every day. It also strengthened her belief that when teachers are supported and valued, entire school communities can thrive.
During her time in administration, Carolyn reconnected with Heidi Kaufman, sparking a partnership destined to transform classroom and school culture. Together, they secured a grant to launch a yoga program at French Road Elementary — an initiative unusual for its time, met with cautious curiosity from parents.
“We had to answer questions from parents worried it might be religious,” Carolyn recalls. For her, yoga was never about religion; it was about cultivating energy, focus, and emotional regulation. She viewed it as a universal tool for managing feelings and helping both children and adults navigate life’s challenges.
Heidi Kaufman: From experiential learning to mindfulness pioneer
Heidi’s journey into education and well-being was equally unique. Growing up, she attended a small progressive school in Rochester called “Our School”, founded in the 1970s. Students baked bread, went on camping trips, and spent time journaling under trees — experiences that left a lasting impression on Heidi about the power of engagement and connection in learning.
Though she initially pursued accounting, her passion emerged in mindfulness and physical activity, particularly running, which became her anchor while raising four children close in age. Yoga entered her life as a natural extension of her interest in body awareness and stress management. Wanting to bring these tools to kids in her community, she trained under Marsha Wenig, founder of YogaKids International, a pioneer in children’s yoga whose work influenced thousands worldwide.
Heidi began teaching yoga to kids in 2005, opened the first Family & Kids yoga studio in Rochester in 2007, and continues some part time instruction to this day. Between 2008 and 2012, Heidi collaborated with Carolyn to bring the first-of-its-kind comprehensive yoga curriculum into Brighton classrooms, teaching educators and students alike the power of breath and movement to enhance self-awareness, self-regulation, energy management, focus, and performance. Over the course of her career, she has taught the practices of yoga and mindfulness to thousands of students and hundreds of educators throughout the Monroe County area. “You don’t always see the impact immediately,” she reflects. “But you hope some kids and educators take these tools home and use them when they need them.”
From pilot to movement
The initial yoga pilot expanded rapidly, supported by Brighton’s progressive educational culture and a local health foundation grant. Initiatives like treadmill desks, bike desks, and “Tasty Tuesdays” encouraged healthy habits, while mindfulness and breathing practices became embedded in the school day. The significant impact of this program stuck with both Heidi and Carolyn as they continued to pursue their individual careers. A decade later, still feeling the passion for helping people through mind-body techniques, Heidi was searching for graduate programs to deepen her understanding and science behind the tools she had been teaching through yoga all these years. At a University of Pennsylvania alumni event, she overheard two people discussing a master’s in Positive Psychology program, and She knew instantly this was the program she had been seeking.
Upon graduating with her Master’s in Applied Positive Psychology in 2021, Heidi joined forces with Carolyn once again, this time as professional development consultants. Before designing their curriculum, they conducted informational interviews with teachers and administrators across multiple school districts. This research revealed crucial insights which they now call their “teacher first” methodology: teachers themselves needed support and resources — not just their students.
“Often times teachers are told to “just” eat an apple or go for a run-but flourishing is a mindset, a way of seeing and interacting with the world. Supporting teachers so they can thrive means their students thrive too,” Carolyn notes.
This realization shaped Luminology’s programs, combining practical tools, research-based strategies, and a holistic approach to well-being for educators to implement in their own lives as well as for them to create cultures of well-being in their schools and classrooms.
The science of flourishing
For Heidi, learning and teaching about flourishing is both a practice and a journey. She draws inspiration from Martin Seligman, one of Positive Psychology’s founders, who in the late 1990s noticed research often focused on what’s wrong with people rather than what’s right.
“Flourishing is about cultivating optimism, fortifying resilience, building mindsets, and implementing tools which we call ‘positive interventions’. Our well-being is something we can all influence,” Heidi explains.
Carolyn emphasizes that schools with limited training time require strategic professional development. “We designed courses so teachers can model flourishing. Showing administrators the value of thinking outside the box is essential.”
The founders are careful to clarify that Positive Psychology is not a panacea. “This isn’t ‘happiology.’ Negative emotions have a purpose. Well-being means understanding, learning from pain, and leveraging strengths to navigate life,” Carolyn says.
Heidi adds, “All emotions are useful. Even though we may not enjoy having them. Grief, sadness, and anger give us information. But at the appropriate time, with the appropriate tools, you can work towards shifting your state of mind. You can’t control everything, but you can control your response.”
Empowering educators, transforming schools
Luminology offers professional development courses, interactive workshops, and keynotes — both in-person and virtual. Their two core twelve-hour courses provide educators with hands-on strategies to cultivate resilience, strengths, and tools to bolster well-being, and then extend these skills to students. The programs empower staff, transform classrooms, and create environments where both educators and students flourish.
Heidi holds a Master’s in Applied Positive Psychology (MAPP), a certification in Positive Psychology Coaching, and has taught yoga and mindfulness to thousands of students and hundreds of educators nationwide. Carolyn brings 36 years of experience as a teacher, administrator, and school leader coach, co-authoring Life Beyond the Lesson Plan: A Guide to Becoming an Exemplary Teacher. Together, they guide professionals in supporting thriving educational communities.
Flourishing, one breath at a time
For Carolyn and Heidi, the vision is simple yet profound: flourishing in schools is not a fad or self-help trend. It is a transformative philosophy that ripples through classrooms, schools, and communities.
When teachers are supported, students thrive. When students thrive, communities flourish. And it all begins with a single breath — a moment of calm that can change the trajectory of a day, a classroom, or a life.
George Cassidy Payne is a Rochester-based nonprofit leader, educator, and advocate for sustainable economic development. With a philosophy and social work background, George has spent over two decades addressing issues of equity, public policy, and crisis intervention. His community development and environmental sustainability expertise informs his commitment to strengthening Rochester’s regional economy.