The contributors to this volume - educators, student affairs practitioners, and higher education staff - heartfully share a broad range of contemplative practices and acts of resistance used within the confines of shattered systems and institutions for themselves, their colleagues, and their students. The narratives in this volume broadly imagine, inspire, recount, and guide readers toward the fullness of their humanity and wholeness within institutions of higher education. At the same time, these accounts navigate the operational realities of daunting demands on the mind, body, and spirit, the growing turbulence of working on higher education campuses across the country, and a sense of urgency toward collective life affirmation within modern higher education institutions. Each chapter features critical framing of a concept, personal stories of this concept in action, and descriptions of contemplative practices for readers to use in their own contexts. Together, chapter authors demonstrate what it means to be a contemplative practitioner attentive to issues of power, racism, and marginalization in higher education today. With a deep breath and mindful awareness, this book invites faculty and staff at colleges and universities on a transformational journey with the contributors toward fullness in pursuit of becoming whole and inspiring change.

About the Author

Michelle C. Chatman is Associate Professor of Crime, Justice, and Security Studies, Director of the Violence Prevention and Community Wellness Program, and Founding Director of the Mindfulness and Courageous Action (MICA) Lab at the University of the District of Columbia, Washington, DC.

LeeRay Costa is Executive Director of Leadership Studies and the Batten Leadership Institute, and Professor of Gender and Women's Studies/Anthropology at Hollins University, Roanoke, VA.

David W. Robinson-Morris is former Executive Director of the Center for Contemplative Mind in Society (CMind), the Founder of The REImaginelution, and inaugural Executive Director of the Institute for Black Intellectual and Cultural Life at Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH.

Reviews

"This book is a wise and wildly creative guide to transforming higher education into a place where we can truly explore what it means to be human and work toward healing, toward becoming whole. Edited and written by some of the most experienced, committed, and grounded practitioners in the field, it includes fearless explorations of the contemplative to increase appreciation of interconnection, impermanence, community, the body, and pedagogies of love. It is the inspiration we need to meet the formidable demands of this time and turn the campus into a home where we all belong."

Mirabai Bush, Founder, Center for Contemplative Mind in Society and Association for Contemplative Mind in Higher Education, USA.

"In this beautifully written volume, the essayists generously offer their reflections and contemplative practices to academics feeling pressured to show up as fragmented, disembodied versions of themselves. With testimonials and a range of contemplative rituals, this guide can ground readers and bolster their capacity to (re)connect with and rely on their inner wisdom. Mindfully being in conversation with the authors' insights and engaging in their suggested practices positions academics to move towards wholeness and enhance the fortitude that is necessary to effect systemic change within our institutions and our society."

Veronica Womack, Associate Director, Inclusive Learning Communities, Searle Center for Advancing Learning and Teaching, Northwestern University, USA.

"This collection is a balm for an educator's soul. Full of practical and wise essays, it addresses current challenges in higher education through diverse stories and healing contemplative practices. The anthology offers ways to re-connect with ourselves and one another, re-invigorate our passion for educating, heal from the toxicity of systemic higher education, and re-imagine possibility. As I read, I felt my exhausted spirit re-integrate with hope. I found myself jotting down ideas for how to bring the wise insights of this collection into my life, teaching, and work. I will be sitting with this collection for a while with deep, deep gratitude."

Beth Berila, Director, Gender and Women's Studies, St. Cloud State University, USA.

Book Information
ISBN 9781032727318
Author Michelle C. Chatman
Format Hardback
Page Count 254
Imprint Routledge
Publisher Taylor & Francis Ltd