Haridas Chaudhuri’s Integration of Meditation into Higher Education

Haridas Chaudhuri’s Integration of Meditation into Higher Education,
with Joseph L. Subbiondo, President of California Institute of Integral Studies

The talk will focus on an emerging aspect of the current day mindful movement: meditation in higher education. It will examine Haridas Chaudhuri’s founding vision of integral education for CIIS and its relevance to the study and practice of mindfulness today. Dr. Chaudhuri developed an extensive model of integral education that was inspired by Sri Aurobindo and that connected meditation to compassion, knowledge, and action. He intended that his version of integral education provide (in his words) “a well rounded program for balanced personality growth of the human individual.”

Joseph L. Subbiondo, president of CIIS since 1999, has an accomplished background in both administration and academics. He brings over 30 years of achievement in higher education and he has been active on many accreditation teams for the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. Prior to coming to CIIS, he served as Dean of Arts and Sciences at Santa Clara University, Dean of Liberal Studies at St. Mary’s College of California, and Academic Vice President at the University of the Pacific. His scholarly publications have been on the history of English linguistic theory, and he is presently publishing and presenting papers on spirituality and interreligious dialogue in US higher education.