Program Philosophy & Competencies

Program Format

Opening Retreat
The Certificate begins with a five-day opening retreat at Naropa University in Boulder, CO, March 14–18, 2022. This retreat focuses on community building and includes Right Use of Power™ training, which we believe is essential to training ethical psychedelic-assisted practitioners. The Opening Retreat will also include lectures from contemplative leaders and experts in the field, and the opportunity to engage with integration groups, which will continue for the duration of the training.

Intensive Seven-Day Retreat
A seven-day residential clinical skills intensive, led by MAPS senior trainers in collaboration with Naropa faculty, will be held at Drala Mountain Center (DMC) in Red Feather Lakes, Colorado, July 31–August 7, 2022. Trainees will deepen their therapeutic skills through role-plays, didactic training, contemplative practice, group discussions, and observing video sessions from MDMA clinical trials. Trainees will have the opportunity to join in a series of Non-Ordinary States experientials following the required retreat.
Synchronous Online Content Delivery Dates & Times
Trainees will move through the 10-month program with a series of monthly modules, in addition to the two in-person retreats. Attendance is required. Please see the program’s attendance policy below for instances of needing to miss sessions. As we confirm presenters, we will update lecture dates.
Live Lectures: Second or Third Saturday of each month on zoom, 9 a.m.–3 p.m. U.S. Mountain Time: April 9, May 14, June 18, July 9, September and beyond TBD.
Integration Groups: Fourth Wednesday evening of each month.
Curriculum Learning Modules
The Certificate’s online course components include 50 hours of asynchronous learning accompanied by five hours of live sessions each month. Trainees also spend two hours per month in facilitated small groups with a cohort integration leader. This combination of asynchronous learning, live instruction and small group integration allows trainees to fully engage with the themes and objectives of each course module.
Non-Ordinary States Immersive Experience Requirement
The Certificate curriculum requires trainees to complete a minimum of 10 hours of approved Non-Ordinary States Immersive Experience. Because Naropa values individual commitments as well as diversity in practice and experience, trainees are permitted to select their preferred Non-Ordinary States Immersive Experience from a range of options. Trainees will select one Non-Ordinary States Immersive Experience; more than one is optional. Please note that the cost of these options is not included in the Certificate program tuition, and that some immersions may require an additional time commitment beyond the required 10 hour minimum.
Naropa recognizes that trainees may have prior experience with psychedelic substances and/or non-ordinary states and associated modalities. Trainees are required to complete one of the following Non-Ordinary States Immersive Experience concurrent with the Certificate program in order to expressly facilitate intentional engagement within the context of the full program training arc and dynamic cohort-based learning process.
Full details will be provided as 2022 opportunities are confirmed. Non-Ordinary States Immersions in development include:
- Online or In-Person Transformational Breathwork Workshop
- Maitri Space Awareness Retreat
- Wilderness Fasting Solo Retreat
- Ketamine Training Retreat in collaboration with PRATI
- Psilocybin Training Retreat in collaboration with The Synthesis Institute (Netherlands)
- Other opportunities to be announced
Transformational Breathwork is a powerful therapeutic technique that uses a combination of breathing practices and immersive music. One modern form was created by psychedelic researchers Stanislav and Christina Grof after LSD research was shut down, and was specifically designed as a non-pharmacological method of achieving non-ordinary states of consciousness. Studies indicate that some forms of breathwork have the following benefits: reduced death anxiety, increased self-esteem, and higher levels of self-awareness. Participants in the Certificate who choose this modality will work with trained breathwork practitioners in a workshop setting.
What is Maitri practice? “Maitrī” is a Sanskrit word meaning loving-kindness, friendliness and good will. Maitri Space Awareness is a contemplative practice based on the Buddhist mandala principle, and uses five differently colored rooms to intensify different emotional and psychological states in both their “wisdom” and their "constricted" aspects. This unique embodied practice enables meditators to experientially recognize their own patterns and become friendly toward themselves in different states of mind. Maitri Space Awareness bears some similarity to color therapy, and can help practitioners cultivate relaxed spaciousness and fearlessness in working with others.
Ketamine is a dissociative anesthetic and a neurophysiologically diverse medicine with psychedelic properties when used at low doses. All trainees will go through substantive curricular modules in Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy, which is a legal practice for patients or trainees with a doctor’s prescription. For those seeking additional training that includes an experiential component, we are currently developing an Immersive Experience retreat add-on, which will be announced shortly.
Psilocybin is a naturally-occurring psychoactive tryptamine found in more than 200 species of fungi, commonly known as “magic mushrooms.” Despite recent FDA breakthrough therapy status and decriminalization in a number of cities, psilocybin generally remains illegal under all U.S. state and federal laws beyond the narrow context of FDA-approved clinical trials. Naropa is exploring a safe, legal, medically supervised Immersive Experience option for experiential psilocybin training. Psilocybin in an intentionally guided context can catalyze creative breakthroughs, exploration of consciousness, and transpersonal experience.
Consistent with its obligations under the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 and the Drug-Free Schools and Community Act Amendments of 1985, the Naropa University Certificate in Psychedelic-Assisted Therapies does not require the use of psychedelic substances by certificate program participants in order to successfully complete the training. As described above, there are several options for Non-Ordinary States Immersive Experiences available to program participants. Trainees will be educated in the competencies required for Federally-approved medical treatment and psychedelic research. Participation in Immersive Experience opportunities involving ketamine or psilocybin shall be entirely voluntary, and all reference to such options will be to clinics or facilitators located in jurisdictions where the use of these substances for therapeutic or educational purposes is legal under both foreign and domestic laws.
Staff Leadership Team
Rob Colbert, MA, Ph.D, LPC
As a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), Dr. Rob Colbert specializes in working with young adults, persons experiencing major life transitions, and persons using or considering using psychoactive substances. As a social artist, Dr. Colbert is passionate about professional education and training, community organizing, and acting as a social change agent. He is a founding member of the Nowak Society, a nonprofit whose mission is to connect and organize psychedelic communities, and give voice to the essential values and pressing issues of the psychedelic movement, and he is actively involved in the Psychedelic Research and Training Institute in Fort Collins.
Belinda Eriacho
Belinda is of Dine’ (Navajo) and A:shiwi (Pueblo of Zuni) descent. Her maternal clan is One-Who-Walks-Around and she was born for the Zuni Pueblo people. Belinda was born and raised on the Navajo reservation, located in Arizona, United States of America.
She is the wisdom carrier, healer, and founder of Kaalogii LLC, focused on cultural and traditional teaching, inner healing, and an international speaker on various topics impacting Native American communities in the United States.
Belinda holds degrees in Health Sciences, Technology, and Public Health. In addition, Belinda has participated in the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, MDMA People of Color, and Eye Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy Training Programs.
Belinda is also a Founder and Board member of the Church of the Eagle and the Condor, a Program Advisor for Naropa University, and a Native American Traditional Advisor for SoundMind.
She is the author recent articles that are available on charuna.net: “Considerations for Psychedelic Therapist when working with Native American People and Communities”, “ Guidelines for Inclusion of Indigenous People into Psychedelic Science Conferences” and “This is not Native American History, this is US History with Belinda Eriacho”. In addition, a contributing author to the recently published Psychedelic Justice: Toward a Diverse and Equitable Psychedelic Culture.
Website: www.kaalogii.com
Diana Quinn, ND
Diana Quinn ND (she/her) is a queer Chicana naturopathic doctor with a focus on integrative mental health, somatics, and mind-body medicine. Her work is grounded in healing justice, a framework that aims to intervene on generational trauma and bring collective healing practices to transform the consequences of oppression. Dr. Quinn is a graduate of the CIIS Psychedelic-Assisted Therapies and Research program. She co-founded Psychedelic Liberation Collective, recipient of the 2021 Source Research Foundation Community Grant and BIPOC Award. Dr. Quinn sits on the Board of Psychedelic Medicine and Therapies, is a member of the Chacruna Institute Racial Equity and Access Committee, and has provided support for psychedelic-assisted therapy training programs at CIIS, Naropa University, and Alma Institute. She serves on multiple advisory boards dedicated to building ethical integrity, equity, accessibility, and structural competency in the field of psychedelics.
Collaborations
Naropa has formed ongoing collaborations with the following organizations to provide programmatic and advisory support that enhances the depth and efficacy of our offerings.


The Synthesis Institute is a global leader of the modern psychedelic movement, advancing scientific research, training and education to create access to safe, legal psychedelic experiences for integrative healing and expansion.



Acknowledgements
Naropa University is honored to work with many individual and institutional contributors whose expertise helps strengthen the ongoing development and integrity of our certificate training program. Contributors include members of our faculty, staff and leadership teams, as well as prominent leaders in the field of psychedelic studies. Naropa wishes to publicly thank Maya, PBC and Ligare for their generous financial support of 2022 Certificate cohort participant scholarships.