Sangha Education Center

Join us at the Sangha, a community where everyone is welcome and free to be you and me! Learn from nature and one another! This week, we will begin Summer at the Sangha on Wednesday due to the Monday holiday. See some scheduling adjustments: https://sanghacenter.org/schedule/.

Final REGISTRATION for Summer at the Sangha is taking place this week. It is a 4-week program but you may register for 1, 2 or 3 weeks, if unable to do all 4. Come learn and grow with us through workshops, activities and games! Fun, relaxed environment with project-based learning, socialization and team-building experiences. Feel free to contact us to discuss your specific situation. And, REGISTER HERE: https://sanghacenter.org/sch/category/summer-at-the-sangha/.

Latest Photos - Our Project Stewardship [young adult program] Summer Solstice gathering at Malcolm House including Forest Bathing for our young people and creation of a pollinator house / insect hotel! Then some former photos from this month's outing to Sweetbriar Nature Center, one of our community partners. Biophilia Wellness

Our last Forest Bathing session of the Spring 2021 season with Stephanie Gaglione Biophilia Wellness will be this Sunday, June 27th from 1-3pm paired with our Summer Solstice gathering for our Project Stewardship young adult group (1-4pm). We will have a couple of other outdoor activities that day toward education and well-being of program participants. REGISTER FOR FOREST BATHING: https://sanghacenter.org/workshop/forest-bathing-4/. Two additional Forest Bathing sessions will be offered during Summer at the Sangha in July (for young adults ages 13-23) and then Forest Bathing will resume in September for the general public (all ages). Some details about the benefits of Forest Bathing: https://www.natureandforesttherapy.org/about/science.

Happy Father’s Day to all of the Sangha DADs! Your support of your families and kindness to all has great impact. Enjoy your day!!

My childhood through young adulthood memories in NATURE live within me and have influenced all that I do on behalf of our young people. NATURE touches our lives in more ways than we realize and at a minimum, educates, reconnects and calms the body and mind. Join us for Summer at the Sangha: https://sanghacenter.org/sch/category/summer-at-the-sangha/. Come to understand that diversity in nature and human nature are interdependent.

Looking forward to welcoming our current program participants and NEW community members to Summer at the Sangha this July 2021! We are posting a 2-page flyer here for those who would like to pass on to others who may be interested! This program is for young people with a range of abilities and needs ages 13-23. Please contact us for details or with any questions. We have been building a collaborative community where our young people can flourish... JOIN US: https://sanghacenter.org/sch/category/summer-at-the-sangha/.

Last year our young people had an amazing time reconnecting with self, others and nature on the premises of historic Malcolm House on the Jericho Preserve! Excited to announce Summer at the Sangha 2021 offered during JULY on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 11am-3pm for young people (ages 13-23) with a range of abilities and needs. REGISTER for the full 4-week program or weekly hands-on, outdoor education and wellness experiences. Feel free to contact us with any questions. REGISTRATION OPEN: https://sanghacenter.org/sch/category/summer-at-the-sangha/.

Our last Project Stewardship [teen/young adult program] outing of the Spring season is this Saturday, June 12th from 1-3pm. Join us at one of our wonderful community partner locations... Sweetbriar Nature Center in Smithtown to visit animals and be in nature. The butterfly vivarium is now open. Sangha peer-mentors accompany our young people and enable a fun experience with natural skill-building opportunities (education and socialization). REGISTER HERE: https://sanghacenter.org//sweetbriar-nature-center-annual/.

We at Sangha Education Center ensure this for all of our program participants. Learn about our philosophy: https://sanghacenter.org/different-abilities-developmental/ and stay tuned for the announcement of Summer at the Sangha which runs for four weeks in July (Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 11am-3pm) for young people ages 13 and up!

Latest Photos - Plant Identification Workshop - So grateful to arborist, Frances Reidy (https://www.dryadtreeandshrub.com/) for the time she spent with our young adults educating them about the beautiful, diverse and, in some cases, very old plantings surrounding historic Malcolm House. Appreciate the opportunity to learn from Frances in order to take care of our natural surroundings while cultivating new "stewards" for Earth.

Our monthly Forest Bathing session is upon us... this Sunday, May 23rd from 1-3pm with Stephanie Gaglione Biophilia Wellness. Come relax on the property surrounding historic Malcolm House on the Jericho Preserve! Explore nature and come back to yourself! Minimize anxiety and experience a sense of well-being. All welcome! For DETAILS and to REGISTER: https://sanghacenter.org/workshop/forest-bathing-3/.

Latest Photos - Young adult outing to The Center for Science Teaching and Learning at Tanglewood Preserve in Rockville Centre. Wonderful dinosaur exhibit and live animal education inside and out. Walked preserve and located eagle nests! Thank you to our tour guide, Brandon!

Please read and consider signing the petition to cancel the June NYS Regents Exams and waiver for 3rd-8th grade high stakes testing. This is a time for change... to minimize anxiety for students. Now with the pandemic and remote learning, we do not support the unnecessary mandates that have already been impeding on meaningful educational experiences for our youth. Be the change: https://actionnetwork.org//for-equitys-sake-eliminate-rege

SAVE THE DATE(S) for Forest Bathing at Sangha Education Center this SPRING 2021, Sundays from 1-3pm: 3/21, 4/18, 5/23 & 6/27 (discount coupon will be offered to support our Long Island community during the pandemic). ALL welcome! SPRING 2021 Program Schedule to be posted later this month! In alignment with the post below, this article can provide some insight on the therapeutic impact of NATURE: https://www.psychologytoday.com//evo/201608/nature-therapy.

As do we all!! And, luckily did during one of our Forest Bathing sessions... light rain creating a lovely feeling (inside and out!). Look forward to inviting the ENTIRE COMMUNITY (young people and adults alike) to our Nature & Wellness Connections outdoor experiences this Spring 2021! Education & well-being combined! Much needed during the COVID-19 pandemic and always: https://sanghacenter.org/progr/nature-wellness-connections/!

Grateful for the Sangha... community! Spring will bring many wonderful things! Nature & Wellness...

Our Project Stewardship young adult group had the privilege to work with Spirit of Huntington Arts Center for an Artists Come Alive - Zoom session as our last workshop of the season. Ed Heck was the artist whose work was the focus. Watch "The World of Ed Heck" to learn more about this local artist as well as his "Random Acts of Art": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cq7Y2G1cCrM. And, view our young people's art pieces which duplicated or were inspired by Heck with the option of creating something else of their own. Amazing work! Yet, as Diane, of Spirit of Huntington mentioned, it is the process of art, not the final product that is most important. Project Stewardship resumes again in February. Please feel free to LEARN MORE and join us in 2021: https://sanghacenter.org/programs/project-stewardship/!

As Sangha Education Center expands, we are in need of additional volunteer staff to handle operational functions related to our program organization and administration. To learn more, please complete our volunteer form: https://sanghacenter.org/volunteer/. We look forward to hearing from you and helping you to find and follow your bliss as part of a positive community environment offering "heart-centered programs inspired by nature" for young people with a range of abilities and needs, their parents, professionals and the community at-large!

Our next Project Stewardship [young adult program] outing for a Halloween Spooktacular... on Saturday, October 24th with one of our amazing community partners, Sweetbriar Nature Center. We will be there from 6:30-9:30pm (event is 7-10pm): https://sanghacenter.org/workshop/sweetbriar-spooktacular/. Join us on Saturday or attend on Friday evening to support this native wildlife rehabilitation and education organization! And, enjoy time with friends and family!

This Additude Magazine article can be helpful in viewing our young people (and ourselves!) through new lenses... It is important to realize that many individuals with ADHD find it: "... painful to accept that they’re working twice as hard, for twice as long, to achieve half as much". But, the good new is "Those who dwell at that random intersection of the genes for high IQ and ADHD have abilities that, properly channeled, define our entrepreneurs and our leaders. There is no ...shortage of successful people with ADHD! What makes the difference is the lens through which you view yourself relative to the rest of your world". Learn more about Sangha Education Center programs... where our youth can find meaning in learning, grow at their developmental pace, are valued for who they are and how they learn, preparing them for new chapters in their lives. Contact: https://sanghacenter.org/contact/. Article: https://www.additudemag.com/high-iq-and-adhd-high-function/ See more

Join Christine Pellegrino and Emily Ladau tonight! If not already familiar, find more about issues facing those with "disabilities" in New York State.

We have another wonderful Nature & Wellness Connections session upcoming on Monday, October 19th from 3:30-5:30pm... An introduction to Meadow Farm Plant & Learn with Farmer Regina. World history, health benefits, recipes, planting activity and community craft related to GARLIC. Come participate in organic hands-on experiences that develop as we are together on the Jericho Preserve. REGISTER HERE https://sanghacenter.org/works/meadow-farm-plant-and-learn/.

Join our Project Stewardship young adult group for The Happy Movie and "strategies" activity developed by those in the field of Positive Psychology - this Friday, October 16th form 7-9pm. Weather permitting, we will embark on this "movie night" outdoors at Sangha Education Center. If inclement weather, we will meet via Zoom. REGISTER HERE: https://sanghacenter.org//movie-night-and-strategies-work/.

So proud of Sangha Education Center's interns and mentors, Jasmine Hall: https://www.etsy.com/shop/amethystastrology/ and Steeve Sproul: https://www.sortingspace.com/, who started their own internet businesses! Take a look at both websites and support our young people as they work to guide others! Inspiring and creative!

Forest Bathing began with a meditation... Photos are mostly of Malcolm House side yard as we make our way from "community circle" to invitation to explore our grounds and locate nature in motion, textures, feelings, etc. All felt connected and content. Could have stayed there for days... Beautiful experience! Thank you, Stephanie Biophilia Wellness

REMINDER..., We are offering "Forest Bathing" as part of our Nature & Wellness Connections program this season. If you are not familiar with the term, feel free to read this article to learn more: https://www.rei.com//h/theres-no-running-in-forest-bathing. This mindfulness practice of connecting with nature through organic experiences can be transformative. JOIN US on Wednesday, October 7th, 3:30-5:30pm, to explore Forest Bathing at historic Malcolm House on the beautiful Jericho Preserve. REGISTER HERE: https://sanghacenter.org//forest-bathing-at-malcolm-house/.

Cleaning, organizing and preparing for use of our Meadow Farm on the Jericho Preserve. Shed for storage and new, donated tools.

Cleaning and organizing Sangha Education Center's shed at Malcolm House in preparation for a donation of tools to be used at our Meadow Farm. Thank you to Farmer Regina who is arranging the donation, helping to lay tarps and prepare the soil. And... thanks to our volunteer staff member, Jesse, who cleaned out the shed and put shelving together. And, of course, thanks to my husband, Craig, who has been helping with everything! Grateful! See photos: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/

Photos of our Project Stewardship [young adult] program outing to Masks on Main Street, participating with our community partner, Spirit of Huntington Art Center. Wonderful event concept and human connections made! Let us all stay safe and unite. Project Stewardship offers group workshops, outings, and volunteer placements for young adults to explore, learn, and create while making friends. Our youth are able to cultivate leadership skills which enable opportunities with community partners in caring and advocating for people and planet.

Ways to meet each learner where they are through 21st Century Digital Reading & Writing tools. Two one-hour introductory sessions with Chava Blitzer, AT Specialist on 9/30 and 10/7 from 7-8pm via Zoom. REGISTER here: https://sanghacenter.org//21st-century-digital-reading-wr/. We highly recommend watching this short video clip about the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework which is the environment one is creating when utilizing these tools effectively in alignment with the curriculum: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDvKnY0g6e4. Look forward to assisting students, parents and professionals! A 10-week in-depth series will be offered in the Spring 2021.