Student Profiles
Name: Ruth Harrington
Concentration: Somatic Psychology, Psychology of Health and Healing, Transpersonal and Humanistic
Psychology, and Psychological Science
Minor: Yoga
Where are you from and why did you choose Naropa?
I moved from Arkansas to Colorado in 1996, but was not aware of Naropa until 2002
when I was attending the Massage Therapy Institute of Colorado in Denver. I was intrigued
by the contemplative educational approach. Although perhaps more significantly, I
was inspired by the reverence and veneration I perceived as people spoke about Naropa.
As I learned more about the quality of Naropa's programs and instruction, I knew that
there was nowhere else I wanted to attend.
What is the best part about being a student at Naropa University?
The best part of attending Naropa has been the people. I have been fortunate enough
to have some amazingly gifted and compassionate instructors. I have been challenged
and inspired by my fellow students. Even Naropa's staff and administrators are warm
and supportive. I feel it is the people that are the life-giving breath and blood
of contemplative education.
How has Contemplative Education affected you and your world-view?
Before coming to Naropa, the most common statement I heard from alums was, "It changed
my life." Much to my delight, it wasn't long after I began here that I was able to
understand and share that sentiment. I have found that the pluralistic view of Naropa's
contemplative education model facilitates deep and holistic learning. As a result,
I feel that I am more personally connected with what I am studying, and thus more
prepared to enter the post collegiate world.
What has been your experience of the Naropa community including your fellow students?
The overall Naropa community is an evolving tapestry of personalities, values, and
views that fosters learning and personal growth by offering compassion, care, and
the occasional challenge. I have found it to be a safe and supportive haven where
our individual gifts may be explored and shared.
What are your plans after graduation?
After completing my undergraduate degree, I intend on continuing at Naropa for my
Masters where I plan to study Somatic Psychology.
Do you have any advice for prospective students?
In my experience, personal engagement is the key to getting the most out of a Naropa
education. What I mean to say is that you get out what you put in. Naropa provides
the tools and opportunities for growth and learning. You provide the passion and curiosity
that bring meaning and life to the journey.
Name: Sarah White
Concentration: Health and Healing & Somatic Psychology
Where are you from and why did you choose Naropa?
I was born and raised on the east coast and moved to Denver, CO at the age of 24.
Three years later, wanting more out of my life, I inquired into this small university
I knew very little about at the time. A lovely visit during a preview weekend for
potential students gave me an intuitive yet visceral sense that I would not be able
to finish my bachelor?s degree anywhere else but Naropa. I immediately felt, and witnessed,
that this was an institution that not only recognized the value of every dark and
luminous aspect of my personhood, but intentionally provided a safe, fruitful and
communal atmosphere with which to explore those paradoxical dimensions, at once infusing
the study and practice of Contemplative Psychology, and allowing the well of my career
as a human being to spring forth simultaneously from academic and personal growth.
What is the best part about being a student at Naropa University?
I have the possibility, in an educational setting, to refine my capacity to discover
and uphold what is meaningful to me. Being a student at Naropa has deepened my understanding
of how multi-dimensional education can be, how I am continuously in a working relationship
with it, and how valuable a learning process can be in relationship with others.
How has Contemplative Education affected you and your world-view?
Contemplative Education affects the inquiry I apply towards myself, which naturally
feeds into the views I have of others, my community, what is "collective", and my
world-view. I feel inspired to continue making shifts in my identity that enrich my
current understanding of my particular place in the world, while simultaneously invoking
an equal appreciation of where others stand in their world-view too.
What has been your experience of the Naropa community, including your fellow students?
I suspect it's the spiritual gravity this institution was founded on which has attracted,
in multiple ways, the inner drive of most students here. With this in mind, my experience
of the Naropa community is always changing, always unfolding a new story, and always
aware of the endlessly different paths which walk the ground of this institution.
My experience of the Naropa community is that above all else, and with infinite variety,
it is always shared.
What are your plans after graduation?
Knowing the richness I've experienced in my Naropa education thus far, having gained
a greater sense of how genuine, psychological health and inquiry is deeply needed
in our society today, I feel confident that I will continue my education in one of
the three Masters programs.
Do you have any advice for prospective students?
My advice is to simply cherish those innate uncertainties in your decision making
process, however apparent or subtle they may seem. No matter the depth of your intention
for pursuing the contemplative education of Naropa, whatever drop of curiosity you
do have, allow yourself to explore the chances and possibilities you intuit are lying
in wait for you here. Your arrival, if you so choose, will be an endless source of
transformation for you, as there is not one mere arrival you make here, but many,
and as the transformation is not just experienced by you but all of us who will potentially
be enriched by the opportunities you bring.
Name: Jor-El Zajatz
Concentration: Somatic Psychology
Where are you from and why did you choose Naropa?
Since it is a long answer, I'll shorten it by using my default response of Philadelphia,
PA.
What are you studying?
I am getting a double major in Somatic Psychology and Visual Arts.
What is the best part about being a student at Naropa University?
I would have to say the best part of being a student at Naropa is being encouraged
to locate, cultivate, and demonstrate the eccentric and quirky sides of my personality.
How has Contemplative Education affected you and your world-view?
Through Contemplative Education I have learned (and am continuing to learn) that so
much more knowledge can be elicited when one has the patience to remain with an experience/information
and allow for insight to develop. In regards to my world-view, I now realize that
my prior ignorance is no longer blissful.
What has been your experience of the Naropa community including your fellow students?
Approachability. I find the faculty, staff, students, and community to be so genuinely
supportive, inclusive, and warm that I feel the possibility of being able to connect
with anyone.
What are your plans after graduation?
I am feeling overdue to partake in a transcontinental, human-powered transportation,
two or three person expedition that challenges my ability to be resourceful and minimalistic
over the course of a year. Then I?ll possibly make a move in to a Graduate program.
Do you have any advice for prospective students?
I would say to always keep open your heart, your mind, and your schedule since I have
felt Naropa continually offer ways to fill all three.
contact
Juliet Wagner, Administrative Specialist
School of Natural and Social Sciences
303-245-4711
jwagner@naropa.edu
NAROPA UNIVERSITY
2130 Arapahoe Avenue
Boulder, Colorado 80302
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