Hawn Foundation Coming to Marian University

MindUP Regional Workshop Indianapolis 2011 | The Hawn Foundation

“Getting it Right! The Transformative Power of Neuroscience in Education”

1. Mind-Up Curriculum through the Hawn Foundation is a large and significant aspect of developing a brain based neuroscience strand inside our graduate and post graduate courses.  Recognizing that chronic stress of students, teachers, and parents is the disorder of the 21^st century dictates the urgency of initiating and integrating a holistic focus on the emotional and social skills needed to live inside and outside of school.
2. While academics is the essential component of educational work, when students are not feeling successful, the best, most well planned and efficient lessons mean nothing if the there is not an emotional and relational connection to teacher and subject matter. Mind-Up Curriculum is the core component allowing our students to embrace optimism, self-regulation, self-reflection, and resiliency. When we look at the repetitive behavioral and classroom management issues and the concerns our teachers bring to their coursework at Marian, the overall angst and frustration lies with the students consistently bringing a victim mentality to their school and home life, as well as their relational skills with peers and teachers. Their boredom, lack of engagement and “chronic stress” becomes prevalent for educators and students inhibiting their potential and choices for learning and living in and out of the classroom.
3. In the Leadership Academy and our expanding graduate programs through ITF, TFA, Project Bridge, and Summer Learning Institute we continue to successfully address, communicate and instruct through  data driven methodology that closes the achievement gap, as well as providing strategies and tools that enhance  formal and informal assessments through our two dominant intelligences of Math and Linguistics. This has enabled our teachers and leaders to give   their students an open door to enter higher education providing a vehicle for enhanced opportunities and success.

Research demonstrates that a positive classroom culture addressing the multiple, holistic  needs of the student are crucial and defined by :

1. Clarity of thought
2. Focused Attention- which enhances short and long term memory
3. Broadened perspectives -increasing positive emotion and feelings of success
4. Increased secretion of dopamine and lessened amounts of the hormone of cortisol, which is a hormone that is and has been chronically secreted when students feel unsafe, unsuccessful, bored and educated by subject matter that feels irrelevant. This in turn is killing neurons, suppressing neural connections, inhibiting novel ways of problem solving and reflective thought processes.
5. Students and educators  who are exposed and taught the skills of Mind Up will be able to respond through a  more productive reflective pathway (cortical) verses a reactive impulsive pathway (thalamic)

These areas of intelligence are a small portion of the child and adolescents’ innate strengths, as there are seven other intelligences we need to enhance by providing our teachers with the groundwork that builds the social-emotional skills. These skills are sorely missing in the urban settings where students are most at risk for school failure.  Building relationships, self-reflection and assisting our students in critical thinking skills where perspective drives learning is an enormous aspect of the Mind Up curriculum.  When we are able to teach our students to perceive a problem as a challenge through a relaxed and focused mind, their perspectives open and clarity of thought is present along with enhanced memory skills.  Research shows time and time again through the work of Dan Goleman and others, that professions, jobs skills and life satisfaction is acquired and embraced through the ability to relate to others – NOT on academics and IQ scores.

Research shows that IQ accounts for only about 20 percent of a person’s success in life. …

Lori L Desautels, Ph.D.

DISCOVER, CARE, EDUCATE, LEAD

The Hawn Foundation and Marian University are pleased to announce two days of professional development opportunities for educators and school leaders.

The Hawn Foundation’s signature educational program is MindUP, a set of social, emotional, and self-regulatory strategies and skills developed for pre‐kindergarten through eighth-grade students to cultivate wellbeing and emotional balance. Published by Scholastic, Inc., The MindUP Curriculum (2011) helps children reduce stress and anxiety, improve concentration and academic performance, gain greater self-awareness, reduce peer-to-peer conflict (“bullying”), and secure greater happiness, optimism, and resiliency. A leader in teacher education and practice, Marian University is collaborating with The Hawn Foundation to bring MindUP to the Greater Indianapolis area and promote innovative approaches to teaching.

WHEN

The MindUP™ Workshop for Educators and School Leaders will take place on October 21 & 22, 2011,

WHERE

All sessions of the workshops will be held on the campus of Marian University, Indianapolis, Indiana.

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT

While focusing on the theoretical and pedagogical foundations of MindUP and how to implement the program in the classroom, this two-day workshop is designed to give educators, child advocates, and other interested people the capacity to sustain the growth of the MindUP program, while working in close collaboration with The Hawn Foundation. This is accomplished through interactive learning and presentations by experienced MindUP consultants and guest experts in the fields of cognitive neuroscience, mindful education, social emotional learning, and positive psychology.

The MindUP Workshop for Teachers and School Leaders, participants will:

• Learn how to implement MindUP in the classroom;
• Become familiar with the theoretical and pedagogical foundations of MindUP;
• Experience first-hand the MindUP curriculum through interactive learning;
• Develop an acquaintance with how MindUP supports children’s acquisition of skills to
• recognize and manage emotions, develop concern for others, make responsible decisions,
• and maintain positive relationships;
• To integrate the principles and concepts of MindUP into your regular curriculum;
• Meet our MindUP consultants, other like-minded educators, and Keynote Speakers.

The Advanced Workshop for Teachers and School Leaders, participants will be given the opportunity to follow one of two tracts in workshops designed either for school leaders or teachers. (Please note that the Workshop for School Leaders requires participants to be a currently active school administrator or preparing to become a school administrator and enrolled in a college, university, or district-sponsored school leadership program.)

This Workshop for School Leaders will allow participants to:

• Delve deeper into a variety of topics and issues focused on SEL, mindful education and The MindUP Curriculum;
• Develop strategies for implementing SEL programs in schools;
• Evaluate and manage the efficacy of MindUP;
• Engage the wider community in vital aspects of school culture.

This Workshop for Teachers will allow participants to:

• Delve deeper into a variety of topics and issues focused on SEL, mindful education and The MindUP Curriculum;
• Begin to develop the skills and acquire the tools needed to conduct on-site MindUP Teacher Training Workshops in a “brain-friendly” fashion;
• Build comfortable rapport with teachers during the training and orchestrate the optimum environment for a teacher training workshop;
• Engage an audience in multi-faceted, interactive ways to facilitate learning and understanding.

COST

The MindUP™ Workshop for Teachers and School Leaders fee is $125.00.

The MindUP™ Workshop for Consultants/Teacher Trainers fee is $250.00.

WHO SHOULD REGISTER
It is the policy of The Hawn Foundation and Marian University that all persons planning to attend our Workshops are required to register. Registration is not transferable. Please note that enrollment is limited for these workshops.

HOW TO REGISTER

A link to our online registration is available at www.thehawnfoundation.org beginning 10 September 2011.

HOW TO PAY

Registration may be completed online>

For more information, please call (424) 253.4296.

TRANSPORTATION AND HOUSING

TBD

WORKSHOP FACULTY

FEATURED SPEAKERS/PRESENTERS

Dr. Marc A. Meyer is the Director of Educational Programs and Initiatives. He received his B.A. from Arizona State University, B.A. and M. Phil. in medieval history from University College Dublin, National University of Ireland, and Ph.D. in history from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Dr. Meyer has taught at a number of colleges and university, including New York University, Columbia University, University of Hawaii in Hilo, Berry College in Rome, GA, University of Rochester, and Colgate-Rochester Divinity School. At Berry College in Rome, GA, Marc was Professor of History and department chair and founder of the College’s Honors Program. He was also on the faculty the Dalton School in NYC and Director of Academics and Acting Head of the Ross School, East Hampton, NY. His most recent administrative post was Acting Head of School at Brown School, Schenectady, New York. Marc was creator/developer of The School at Columbia University’s integrated curriculum architecture and many of its institutional structures, and subsequently became The School’s first Director of the Center for Integrated Learning and Teaching. He has also worked as a teacher trainer at Columbia University’s Center for Environmental Research and Conservation, whose mission is in part to help transform New York City schools through the development and implementation of integrated ecology-based science curriculum. Dr. Meyer has published numerous books, including the two-volume The Search for Order: Landmarks of World Civilizations, Medieval Europe, and The Culture of Christendom as well as over three-dozen scholarly articles, papers, and reviews. He has also served as an educational consultant to many schools in New York, Colorado, Texas, California, and Vermont. Marc has also directed a number of on-stage productions for college theater, including A Thousand Clowns and Antigone. At Columbia University’s Miller Theatre, he produced An Epiphany of Grace, an evening of original one-act plays that combined the talents of New York’s theater community and students from some of the City’s public schools. Marc has been working with The Hawn Foundation since 2003 as a teacher trainer and consultant.

Dr. Kimberly Schonert-Reichl is Professor of Human Development Learning and Culture and Special Education at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. She taught middle school and then high school at an alternate school for “at risk” adolescents. For over 20 years Dr. Schonert-Reichl has been conducting research in the area of the child and adolescent social-emotional development with an emphasis on discerning the developmental processes/mechanisms associated with positive development across childhood and adolescence. For the past several years, Dr. Schonert-Reichl has worked in collaboration with educators across British Columbia in the area of social and emotional learning and, in 2004 she was awarded the Vancouver School Board Recognition Award in acknowledgment of her support for district initiatives regarding social responsibility and social and emotional learning. Dr. Schonert-Reichl has served as a consultant to The Hawn Foundation since 2003, having helped to guide the development of the MindUP™ curriculum as well as conducting research for the Foundation in the area of social emotional learning.

Dr. Patricia Jennings is the Director of the Initiative on Contemplation and Education at the Garrison Institute and Research Assistant Professor in Human Development and Family Studies and the Prevention Research Center at Penn State University. Dr. Jennings received her Ph.D. in human development from the University of California, Davis and completed postdoctoral training at the Health Psychology Program at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). She leads the faculty team in the development of Garrison Institute’s Cultivating Awareness and Resilience in Education (CARE) and she is conducting research to examine how CARE may improve teacher-student relationships, increased student pro-social behavior, a more positive classroom atmosphere and improved student academic performance. She is the Principal Investigator on a federally funded study to complete the development and preliminary evaluation of CARE. In addition to psychological research, Dr. Jennings has over 22 years of research and teaching experience in the field of education. After receiving a master’s degree in education, she founded and directed an experimental school where she developed and field-tested curriculum for children from infancy through 5th grade, applying a variety of contemplative approaches that come from alternative educational methodologies such as Montessori and Waldorf in her work. She later served as Director of Intern Teachers at St. Mary’s College Graduate School of Education in Moraga, California, where she taught education courses, supervised student research, developed teacher-training curriculum, and supervised student teacher training.

Dr. Shefali Tsabary received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Columbia University, New York. Dr. Tsabary was exposed to Eastern philosophy at an early age and integrates its teachings with Western psychology. It is this blend of East and West that allows her to reach a global audience, and establishes her as one of a kind in the field of mindfulness and positive psychology. Dr. Tsabary has worked with a varied demographic: survivors of the Tsunami, women from economically disadvantaged countries, inner city youth, suburban families, and corporate leaders. She lectures extensively on mindful living and conscious parenting around the world and currently has a private psychotherapy practice in New York City. Her first book, It’s a Mom: What you should know about the early years of motherhood debuted on the Indian bestseller list for four weeks. The Conscious Parent is her second book. Shefali also consults for The Hawn Foundation.

CONSULTANTS/WORKSHOP FACILITATORS

Dr. Jill Jakulski is the principal of Burke School, Fairfax County Public Schools in Virginia. She received a B.S. in elementary education from Kansas State University, an M.A. in education and human development from George Washington University, and a Ph.D. in special education and educational leadership from George Mason University. Jill has spent 22 years in education, including two years in the Peace Corp. She has been involved within MindUP for a year and counting.

Dr. Charlene Myklebust has been practicing MindUP for four years in Minnesota. She is currently the Director of Mental Health and Partnerships for a consortium of 13 Minneapolis area suburban school districts. Charlene received an M.A. in Counseling Psychology from Adler Institute in Chicago and then went on to obtain a Psy.D. in Clinical Psychology from Adler School of Professional Psychology in Chicago. Charlene has worked in the field of education for 38 years as a regular and special education teacher, principal, and district administrator. She comments, “MindUP is the ideal program to help students relax and focus their attention throughout the day. It is teacher friendly, as it is easy to use, cost-effective, and can be integrated into any subject matter. An additional serendipitous benefit is that it helps educators to be in the moment with their students.” Dr. Myklebust is The Hawn Foundation’s Associate Director for the North Central Region.

Rebecca Calos has been implementing MindUP in her classroom for four years. She is currently a middle school social studies and language arts teacher at Brown School in Schenectady, New York. Becky received a B.A. in history from the University of Vermont and a M.A. in social sciences from SUNY Albany. She was appointed a James Madison Fellow in 1999. She has taught for 17 years. Becky is also a producer and director of the Young People’s Theater Company at Brown School. She writes, “I have been so impressed by the positive impact mindful practice has had on our Middle School students, especially in enabling them to experience greater success on assessments, on the athletic field, and on stage.” Rebecca serves as The Hawn Foundation’s Associate Director of the Northeast Region.

Heather Bryant has worked in education in Dallas, TX for over twenty years. She is the Associate Director of Education at the J. Erik Jonsson Community School, which is a part of the non-profit organization Salesmanship Club Youth and Family Centers. Heather received her M.Ed. from the University of North Texas with a focus in early childhood education and reading. She has been personally committed to mindful education for over five years, and recently completed a week-long training in Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction at the Omega Institute with Jon Kabat-Zinn and Saki Santorelli. As J. Erik Jonsson Community School implemented the MindUP program, Heather developed a blog to document the teachers’ and students’ experiences using the curriculum (www.brainchildblog.com). Heather is The Hawn Foundation’s Associate Director for the South Central Region.

Sandy Nobles is a thirty-two year veteran in education. Nobles began working with the Salesmanship Club Youth and Family Centers in 2006 as the J. Erik Jonsson Community School Principal. She came with public school experience as an Elementary School Principal, a Central Administration Director of K-12 Instructional Initiatives, as a K-6 Master Teacher and classroom teacher. With her insight into building and sustaining successful schools and by working side by side with all teachers and staff, Nobles has positively impacted the educational programs in the SCYFC.

Naomi Wimberley-Hartman is a dancer, choreographer, and educator. She is a dance educator and advocate who over the past decade has taught dance and wellness to children and young people in many public and private schools around the Capital District. Naomi holds many certificates, including a BA from Mount Holyoke College, an MFA in dance from the University of California, Irvine, a MAT in elementary education from Bennington College, and is a Power Pilates certified instructor. She has also danced professionally for over 15 years and continues to direct the innovative Equine Dance Company. The company explores horse and human movement training, history, and artistry. For the past three years, Naomi has been working with mindfulness and creative movement.