Calmer Choice Offers Community Scholarships

Two anonymous donors have granted Calmer Choice, a thought leader in secular mindfulness in education, funds for teens and adults to participate in the organization’s online, eight-week program, “Cultivating Resilience & Well-Being.

Individuals can apply for the scholarships on the organization’s website via a short form for 50 percent reduced registration fee. The application requires a brief written description for the need and reason for wanting to participate. 

“Calmer Choice was created out of crisis 10 years ago and supporting the community is what we do best,” said Emily Smalley, Calmer Choice COO. “The scholarships allow us to reach more people and provide them tools to manage during these unparalleled stressful times.” 

The Calmer Choice signature course for adults provides skills and tools to support personal stress and emotional health. Participants can expect to learn foundational practices in mindful awareness and social-emotional learning coupled with discussions and self-reflective practice that support self-compassion, kindness, and emotional regulation. Individuals will complete the course having developed their own mindful awareness practice that they can utilize for a lifetime.

Current research studies show the benefits of using mindfulness practices to settle the mind, create clarity, attention, and focus and widen perspective, all leading to a greater sense of well-being. As a non-profit thought-leader in mindful awareness, Calmer Choice partnered with researchers from Massachusetts Institute of Technology to do the first ever brain scans on students who practiced mindful awareness through the organization’s programming curriculum with positive outcomes. 

The scholarship gifts were instigated by their participation in the course, finding it effective for self-care during the time of social distancing and feelings of isolation. One donor shared, “I feel so blessed and grateful to be able to support the Calmer Choice scholarship fund.  A mindfulness practice has been life changing for me and giving people the tools they need to be happier and healthier has never been more important than it is now.”

The next series of Calmer Choice courses begin the week of Oct. 20 with morning and evening sessions. Details on scholarship information can be found on www.calmerchoice.org