The Gift of True Presence

This is a Wake-Up Schools Level I Retreat.

Dharma Teachers Richard Brady, Fern Dorresteyn, and Wake Up Schools Educator Elena Cardo are teaming up to offer an Educators Retreat at MorningSun Community. We invite you to join these longtime educators and wonderful Dharma Teachers from the tradition of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh for this special retreat. Classroom teachers, administrators, social workers, others in the educational field, and anyone who works with youth is encouraged to apply.

The retreat will offer participants a chance to refresh themselves and cultivate their own personal mindfulness practice as a base for any sharing of mindfulness with others. It will support them to have an experiential understanding of the practices, and develop the language and skills needed to bring the practice back to the communities they serve. They will also learn effective methods to enhance presence and connection with others, attention, kindness, and emotional well-being inside and outside the classroom.

The retreat center at MorningSun offers an intimate setting in nature that pleasantly supports our communal practice of mindfulness. The modest retreat size is a precious and powerful opportunity that allows for every participant to have personal contact with the Teachers.

We are excited to welcome you to our community of practice!

This retreat is a Wake Up Schools Level I retreat. For more information, visit wakeupschools.org

Practices during the retreat will include:

• Sitting Meditation
• Mindful Eating
• Walking Meditation
• Deep Relaxation
• Circle Sharing
• Loving speech & deep listening
• Beginning anew (conflict resolution)
• Stopping, Pausing, and Looking Deeply
• Bells of Mindfulness in Daily Life

The retreat will also include:

• Workshops for sharing mindfulness practice with youth
• Ways to develop mindful communication
• Inspiration to support mindfulness practice among co-workers and school staff
• And more…

Teacher Bios:

Richard Brady is a retreat leader, writer, educational consultant, and coordinator of the Wake Up Schools Level II Program in North America.  He is a founder of the Mindfulness in Education Network, an international organization with 1,700 participants. In 2001, he received lamp transmission from Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh to be a Dharma teacher in his tradition with a special focus on cultivating mindfulness in young people.  Richard has lead retreats and offered workshops for educators in the US, Italy, and Germany. He is an editor of Tuning In: Mindfulness in Teaching and Learning (2009). Other writings are available at www.mindingourlives.net.

Fern Dorresteyn is a Dharma teacher in the Plum Village tradition, a founder of the Morning Sun Mindfulness Community, and a mother of three.  She lived in Plum Village monasteries for nine years, training in the meditative arts as a nun for seven. While in Plum Village she worked with the Plum Village community and Ven. Thich Nhat Hanh to organize and offer meditation retreats around the world. She has been organizing and leading children’s programs and mindfulness retreats for families in  the Plum Village tradition since 1996.  In 2006 she completed a training at Sophia’s Hearth Family Center for caring for young children and families.

Elena Cardo is a public school teacher and retreat leader who began practicing mindfulness in the Plum Village tradition in 1998. A high school art teacher for 23 years, Elena has infused mindfulness into her classroom, and ultimately into her school. Since creating a mindfulness room where students and staff are invited to breathe, Elena has taught Mindfulness classes to students and offers professional development workshops to teachers and staff.
Now a Wake Up Schools Level II facilitator, Elena has led retreats and workshops for educators. She is inspired to support  educators to embody a peaceful, happy presence through the practices of mindfulness, so they may in turn share these practices with colleagues and students in their school communities.

This is a small retreat and spaces are limited. Booking early is highly suggested as the retreat will likely sell out. The intimate nature of this small retreat size is rare for educators retreats, and registration will likely be closed well before the retreat begins.

You will receive confirmation of your space upon registration and receipt of payment. (see registration form below)

Cost: There are two parts to the program cost:

1. The program itself (offered on an affordable sliding scale: $220 – 420)
2. Accommodations (costs vary from camping ($40) to dormitory rooms ($160))

Please begin to fill out the registration form to calculate your total retreat cost.

Please remember that if you are currently employed as a teacher you may be able to have your retreat cost covered by your employer as this is an accredited CEU program. For more information, please email Bobbi at bobbi.schnorr@gmail.com.

Financial Assistance: Anyone who wishes to attend the retreat will be welcomed, no matter of financial ability. If the lowest tier is still too high for you you can self select some financial assistance from within the registration form.  If you need a full scholarship you will need to fill out the separate Financial Assistance Application.

Accommodations: We have several rooms available in “The Barn” (beds for 7-12 people depending on whether folks are alone, or couples, or in a ‘pod’), and also camping.  Our campground is primitive, with flat sandy sites, outdoor showers and outhouses.  You must provide your own tent and camping equipment.  Campers will also have access to the first floor toilet and laundry in The Barn.  You may also choose to commute in and out if you live locally.

Schedule: The program begins Sunday at 5 pm with dinner included, and closes Wednesday at 2 pm with lunch included. The schedule details will be released soon. It’s important and beneficial to be present for the entire retreat, and not to have any work, family, or personal obligations.

For more questions, please email us at morningsunoffice@gmail.com

2022 Educators Retreat Registration

2022 Educators Retreat Registration

Educators Retreat June 26-29 2022

Plan to arrive at 5pm on Sunday and to depart at 2pm on Wednesday.

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