Join this online gathering of educators as we seek, explore, and sustain the beauty in our work in higher education.
The Center for Courage & Renewal and its facilitators do not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender expression, age, height, weight, physical or mental ability, veteran status, military obligations, and marital status.
“Beauty is not optional. It’s a strategy for survival.” ~ Terry Tempest Williams
The Fourth Annual Heart of Higher Education 2022:
The Beauty that Sustains Us
A three-day online event, including time with Parker J. Palmer and Dr. Sherry Watt.
Demoralized, burned out, tired, anxious, stressed…
Are these words familiar? If they are, you’re not alone. These are difficult times. From the recent release of the UN report on climate change, to threats to our democracy, the swirl of ongoing concerns about human health and the consequences of racial injustice, many in higher education feel weary, as we continue to support the needs of so many people on our campuses. With our busy, complex lives, it is easy to lose touch with that which is most important to us, that which keeps us alive.
Beautiful, surprising, enjoyable, awake, aware….
Yet amid the pain and challenges, there lies beauty. It is often found in the ordinariness of our days – the simple joy of making a real connection with a colleague, the astonishing encounter in the natural world, a pause in the fullness of a day to watch a group of students laughing, the unexpected kindness of a stranger, the young person who returns to say that we were the one who made a difference.
Please join this online gathering of educators as we seek, explore, and sustain the beauty in our work in higher education.
While the event is designed for all who work in higher education, we also welcome anyone who considers themselves an educator. Dr. Parker J. Palmer and Dr. Sherry Watt will join us in this time of inner reflection and outer commitment to cultivating a renewed vision of education.
Details and Registration:
“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” – Howard Thurman
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***This optional event/series is now fully registered so there are no remaining spaces available. For future options please let the design team know of your interest (by emailing Judy.skeen@belmont.edu)
The Heart of Higher Education: Taking it Home to Others
An inaugural June 2022 opportunity for those who want to take the “heart of higher education” conversation back to your home campus.
An additional, optional day provides an initial foundation for facilitating circles in your higher education setting – a foundation intended to help you to support the kind of personal and institutional change necessary to bring a more humane perspective to your campus environment. Our aim is to help you reflect on skills to facilitate circles with an intention to nurture deep integrity and foster a more loving, equitable, and healthy environment among your peers.
In addition to receiving a guide which offers a detailed model of engaging your colleagues, this experience offers both community of practice and foundation setting.
We are seeking participants who are ready to embark on a journey that will involve:
What is required to participate in this “Taking it Home to Others” experience?
Enrollment is limited. We encourage you to register soon.
“The institution of higher education is notoriously slow to change. But many individuals within the institution have kept the vision of an integrative practice alive in their hearts – using heart in its original sense, not just as the seat of the emotions but as that core place in the human self where all our capacities converge: intellect, senses, emotions, imagination, intuition, will, spirit and soul.”
~ Parker J. Palmer, from: The Heart of Higher Education: A Call to Renewal – Transforming the Academy through Collegial Conversations.
This program will be offered online through Zoom.
Cancellations must be received in writing and are subject to a $25 administrative fee if received 30 days before the event is scheduled to begin. After that date the standard cancellation policy applies, see full cancellation policy here.
The Center for Courage & Renewal and its facilitators do not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender expression, age, height, weight, physical or mental ability, veteran status, military obligations, and marital status.
Find more highlighted programs here or dive deeper and explore our full slate of programs by visiting our program calendar.