Rooted in two decades of healing-centered work with students and incarcerated populations, Micah Anderson and Mark DiPerna invite us to explore what becomes possible when education is grounded in awareness rather than authority. Drawing on the core teachings of the Mind Body Awareness Project (MBA), they reflect on the fractures within systems and self—and how, through those very cracks, the gold of our wholeness is never lost, only hidden. In a time of urgency and disruption, presence and compassion are essential elements of a truly transformative education—one that restores connection, interrupts cycles of harm, and makes healing possible.

This session is one of a three-part series by Mark DiPerna, Micah Anderson, and/or Oscar Medina in the Contemplation By Design Summit. The other sessions include an interactive workshop with Micah and Oscar titled Presence as Practice: Cultivating Connection, Resilience, and Transformational Education on October 21 and a guided practice with Oscar titled Uncovering the Gold: A Guided Journey for Educators, Justice Advocates, and Community Leaders on October 22. 

Mark P. J. DiPerna is an Assistant Vice Provost and Deputy Dean of Students at Stanford University. Since joining Stanford, Mark has made it his purpose to teach students that failure is an essential part of the human experience. Mark also serves on the board of the non-profit Mind Body Awareness Project (MBA), where he facilitates weekly mindfulness-based transformative programs with incarcerated youth and adults in California.

Micah Anderson, MA, LMFT is a mindfulness teacher and is the Clinical Director at the Mind Body Awareness Project, where he leads trauma-informed contemplative programs for incarcerated youth and adults, educators, and first responders. With over two decades of experience, he helps design and deliver mindfulness-based programming nationally and internationally to underserved communities and the professionals who support them.

His work integrates transpersonal psychology, somatic trauma healing, and mindfulness—both in his private psychotherapy practice in the Bay Area and in broader systems transformation—to foster resilience, belonging, and the inner resources needed to meet suffering with courage and care.

This sessions is part of the FREE Contemplation by Design Summit, Oct. 15-27, 2025.

The full summit schedule is posted at: https://med.stanford.edu/contemplation/summit.html.

Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/stanford-contemplation-by-design-summit-2025-online-oct-15-27-registration-1520413249959