Summer Writing Program 2026

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Metabolic Thrum // June 1–20, 2026

Program Information

Directed by Anne Waldman (Founder), Jeffrey Pethybridge, Swanee Astrid

Guest Artists: Dawn Lundy Martin, Carolina Ebeid, Lucia Hinojosa, Edmund Berrigan, Richard Siken, Anne Waldman, Selah Saterstrom, Karla Kelsey, Julia Seko, Kazim Ali, Tongo Eisen-Martin, Caroline Bergvall, Cedar Sigo, CAConrad, Vincent Katz & others!

Do you sense it? That buzz of life underground, in the air, across water, a part of and beyond every element? That vibratory connection of all things from the pollinator to the flower, the musician to their instrument, the train to the track, the machine to the word. This is about the artistic intelligence in all things and each moment ripe with translation, whether that is in the corn fields or the urban subway station. This year, we will put our senses out in the world with antennae tuned to the various frequencies and de/crescendos of Gaia and the people and places who call her home. What reactions must occur for our multi-organism to maintain life?

The Metabollic Thrum is about our mutual experience. To quote Patti Smith from an interview with Lisa Robinson 1/19/1979, “I feel a lot of anarchy, a lot of ecstasy, a lot of anger, sometimes paranoia, sometimes total madness, total abandon, and I hope to transmit these same energies, transmit them and have them transmit back to me.”

Our inquiries and innovations will seek answers for the repair, removal, regulation, and energy production of literature; a stasis between the anabolic and catabolic states to creative sustenance.

As part of a contemplative education project, and an experiment in community, the Summer Writing Program does not engage in gatekeeping, and all writers, artists, and interested or curious students are welcome to register—there is no application fee. Scholarships available.

Poetry / Fiction /  Meditation / Somatics / Dharma Arts / Contemplative Experiments / Divinatory Poetics / Letterpress Printing / Recording  Studio / SWP Audio Archive / No Application Fee / No Gate-Keeping / An Experiment  in Writing & Community / Scholarships Available /

Week 1 :: [filaments of verb and verve] [a window in thrums] [multiphonics above & below] :: June 1–6, 2026

Faculty

Week 2 :: [Animism, Auguries, and Artistic Intelligence] :: June 8–13, 2026

Anne Waldman, Selah Saterstrom, Karla Kelsey, Julia Seko, Kazim Ali,, & others!

Week 3 :: [Queer Shoulder To The Wheel] :: June 15–20, 2026

Tongo Eisen-Martin, Caroline Bergvall, Cedar Sigo, CAConrad, Vincent Katz, & others!

See Registration details and form ~ No Gatekeeping ~ No Application

YOU ARE READY.

This is where experiential learning meets academic rigor. Where you challenge your intellect and uncover your potential. Where you discover the work you’re moved to do—then use it to transform our world.

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Naropa University campuses are closed on 12/17/2025. 

Due to adverse weather conditions of high winds and planned power outages, all Naropa campuses will be closed today. 

 

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Spring and Summer Start Dates for the MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling Concentrations

In support of students and in response to federal legislation impacting financial aid for graduate students, Naropa University will be accepting applications for MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling for spring starts through January 10.

Graduate School of Counseling concentrations listed below will be offering online and low-residency courses to start their programs in January 2026 as well as our Summer 2026 terms.

Beginning a graduate program in Spring 2026 or Summer 2026 means that you will have access to apply for Graduate Plus loans as these loans will be eliminated at the federal level starting in Fall 2026.

Contact Admissions (admissions@naropa.edu) today to learn how you can begin the next step in your graduate education journey.

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