Updated January 31, 2012
Upcoming Events
Webinar: Sentipensante Pedagogy and Contemplative Practice
with Laura Rendón, Professor of Leadership and Educational Policy Studies, University of Texas San Antonio and Vijay Kanagala, Postdoctoral Associate, University of Texas San Antonio
Thursday, February 23, 2012, 3:00 - 4:00 pm EST
Free and open to all
Sentipensante pedagogy offers a transformative vision of education that emphasizes the harmonic, complementary relationship between the sentir of intuition and the pensar of intellect and scholarship; between teaching and learning; between formal knowledge and wisdom; and between Western and non-Western ways of knowing.
Laura I. Rendón is Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies at the University of Texas-San Antonio. Her current research focuses on access, retention and graduation of low-income, first-generation college students and the transformation of teaching and learning to emphasize wholeness and social justice.
Rendón earned a Ph.D. in higher education administration from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. She holds a M.A. in counseling and guidance and psychology from Texas A&M University-Kingsville (1975). She earned a B.A. in English and journalism from the University of Houston (1970) and holds an associate of arts degree from San Antonio College. Rendón also attended Laredo Community College.
Rendón is the author of Sentipensante (Sensing/Thinking) Pedagogy: Educating for Wholeness, Social Justice and Liberation
About the ACMHE Webinars:
Our webinars allow you to view a live presentation online; you can listen to the presenter over your computer speakers, headphones, or over the phone. Questions may be submitted via online chat during the webinar. To register, simply submit the registration form (ideally, by noon on the day of the webinar); instructions for connecting will then be emailed to you automatically.
We record our webinars and post them for public viewing on acmhe.org after the original airdate.
If you have any questions, please email beth@contemplativemind.org or carrie@contemplativemind.org.
System Requirements:
PC-based attendees
Required: Windows® 7, Vista, XP or 2003 Server
Macintosh®-based attendees
Required: Mac OS® X 10.5 or newer
Mindfulness: Foundation for Teaching and Learning
The 5th Annual Mindfulness in Education Network Conference
Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, PA
March 16-18, 2012
The Center for Contemplative Mind in Society/ACMHE is a co-sponsor of this event.
Register online at http://www.mindfuled.org/conferences/2012-conference-information/
Register by February 15th to get early bird rates!
Mindfulness meditation has been practiced for thousands of years as a way to reduce suffering and cultivate inner peace. Research shows that mindfulness also enhances learning and attention. There is growing interest in the possibility that this ancient meditative practice can support education and learning for both children and adults. Many educational institutions, including UCLA, Stanford, UCSF, and PENN have embraced mindfulness as an educational intervention by introducing it into their curricula and conducting research in the field. This three-day event will explore the uses of mindfulness in education.
Program of Events:
Friday, March 16
Improving Attention and Working Memory with Mindfulness Training
Keynote Address by Dr. Amishi Jha
Saturday, March 17
Mindfulness in Education Conference
Sunday, March 18
A Day of Mindfulness: Alive and Awake
Much more information on guest speakers, breakout sessions and logistics, plus tickets for the entire 3-day conference or individual events, are available through mindfuled.org.
2012 International Symposia for Contemplative Studies
April 26-29, 2012
at the Hyatt Regency, Denver, CO
The Center for Contemplative Mind in Society/ACMHE is a co-sponsor of this event.
For registration and more information: http://contemplativeresearch.org/
The inaugural 2012 International Symposia for Contemplative Studies, facilitated by the Mind & Life Institute, is a collaborative effort among Centers and Laboratories around the world to explore the correlates and consequences of contemplative practice.
The International Symposia for Contemplative Studies will bring together academics and other interested attendees for presentation, discussion, and collaborative networking in the emerging field of contemplative studies, which includes contemplative basic science, contemplative clinical science, contemplative philosophy and humanities, contemplative education, and those domains of contemplative practice that relate to and interact with these fields of research and scholarship. These distinct though overlapping fields each focus on advancing our understanding of the human mind and how training the mind through the use of contemplative practices can lead to a reduction in suffering, enhanced health and cognitive/emotional functioning, and increased social harmony. It is also increasingly clear that a multidisciplinary approach is critical for understanding the mind and its effects on health and society at large.
The International Symposia seeks to encourage and help shape a cohesive interdisciplinary field of contemplative studies in which basic and applied science, scholarship, education, and contemplative traditions collaboratively develop an integrated way of knowing in which first- and third-person perspectives are equally and synergistically included.
For registration and more information, visit http://contemplativeresearch.org/.
Contemplative Environmental Studies: Pedagogy for Self and Planet
July 1-7, 2012
Lama Foundation, San Cristobal, NM
$850 (includes all meals, workshop fee, and workshop materials)
For more information, visit:
http://www.american.edu/sis/gep/Contemplative-Environmental-Studies-Workshop.cfm
The Center for Contemplative Mind in Society/ACMHE is a co-sponsor of this event.
Environmental challenges call into question not simply our technological, economic, and political capabilities, but also our fundamental understandings of who we are as a species, and how we fit into the more-than-human world. This Summer Institute aims to develop tools for teaching and researching environmental dilemmas with this broader sensibility in mind. It focuses on the interface between environmental challenges and contemplative practices with the understanding that the latter can provide access to inner resources for understanding and responding meaningfully to environmental issues. Through discussions with distinguished scholars, focused conversations among colleagues, artistic exercises, and regular contemplative practices (meditation, yoga, journaling, nature walks, etc.), participants will collectively deepen higher education’s orientation to Environmental Studies. Part workshop and part retreat, the Institute seeks to widen our own capabilities as university and college teachers committed to education on a fragile and wild planet.
To apply, please submit a short statement (a single paragraph is fine) about how your work relates to Contemplative Environmental Studies, and a brief biographical sketch. Email applications to: gep@american.edu (with subject line: Lama Workshop). Please include contact information (postal address, telephone number, and email address).
Do not address any questions regarding your application to the Center for Contemplative Mind in Society or the ACMHE; our colleagues at American University's Global Environmental Politics department are managing the application process and logistical details and may be reached through the email address above.
Event Faculty:
David Abram,* director of the Alliance for Wild Ethics and author ofBecoming Animal: An Earthly Cosmology, andThe Spell of the Sensuous. *David Abram will be in residence for two days.
Nicole Salimbene, visual artist whose work explores themes of sustainability, intimacy, political voice, and devotion, and leader of workshops that use art to deepen political and vocational engagement.
Paul Wapner, professor of Global Environmental Politics in the School of International Service at American University and author of Living Through the End of Nature andEnvironmental Activismand World Civic Politics.
Jeff Warren, interspecies consciousness theorist, writer, and author ofHead Trip: Adventures on the Wheel of Consciousness
For more information, please visit http://www.american.edu/sis/gep/Contemplative-Environmental-Studies-Workshop.cfm.
8th Annual Summer Session on Contemplative Pedagogy
July 29-August 3, 2012
Smith College, Northampton, MA
Regular registration is $800 for ACMHE members/$850 non-members (includes accommodations and all meals at Smith College); for commuters: $500 for ACMHE members/$550 non-members (includes lunch and dinner Sunday through Thursday and no accommodations).
Learn more at our Summer Session info page
Online applications are accepted at acmhe.org through May 1, 2012.
The Summer Session prepares participants to return to their institutions with a deeper understanding of the practice of contemplative pedagogy and methods adapted for classroom and co-curricular use.
Summer Session Participants will devote the week to rigorous investigation, reflection, writing, and discussion, guided by distinguished scholars and experienced contemplative educators.
We invite educators from all disciplinary and inter-disciplinary perspectives in arts, humanities, sciences, humanities-related sciences, and social sciences, and higher education professionals in mental health, counseling and administrative offices to apply.
There will be sessions on the design principles of contemplative pedagogy; the relation between course content and contemplative practice; and the benefits of stabilized attention and other qualities of mind fostered by meditative exercises. We will explore the rationale for contemplative approaches and how to communicate with students and colleagues about their inclusion. Practical issues such as evaluation and grading will also be considered. There will be a presentation of recent research on the effects of meditation and discussions on how contemplative practices affect teaching, learning and campus culture. Each day will also include contemplative practice time, and will introduce participants to a variety of practices that have been adapted successfully for secular educational settings.
To Apply:
Complete the 2012 Summer Session Online Application. This form requires the following attachments:
1) A brief professional biography (up to 300 words), and
2) A brief statement of how you would like to apply contemplative methods to your work on campus and your experience, if any, with contemplative practice (up to 300 words).
Applications will be reviewed upon completion.
If you have any questions, please contact Beth Wadham, Academic Program Associate, at beth@contemplativemind.org or at 413-582-0071.