community collaboration IN Schools
We are happy to report that, through the hard work of many people, JMP completed five years of commmunity-wide mindfulness support in the Sausalito Marin City School District, at Bayside Martin Luther King Jr. Academy.
We began slowly and intentionally, listening to teachers, parents, students, and community members, seeking to understand needs and strengths, working to learn from the community, and to discover if mindfulness-based services might be a good support.
We then began working alongside students, supporting staff and faculty, slowly and deliberately integrating mindfulness-based practices for well-being into each classroom, community-wide.
Bayside Martin Luther King Jr. Academy is a small a Pre-K through 8th Grade school, where 91% of students identify as people of color. Located within the otherwise affluent community of Marin County, Marin City has historically been excluded from access to resources.
As we worked to spread the word about BMLK, we learned that many people were unaware that a community of color exists in Marin County. We hope you will take time to learn about the history of Marin City and how children and young people are working together to cultivate lasting strengths within the community.
While we wish for all people to have access to resources, our priority is disrupting systems of harm by working in solidarity with people and communities where access to resources has been limited by injustice.
To everyone who was involved in this project — the students, teachers, staff, donors, volunteers, and community… the Sausalito Marin City School District and the Whole School Implementation team at Mindful Schools — thank you for helping us work towards collective liberation, in solidarity with our greater community and with the world.
Warmly,
Chelsea True, MA, LMFT
Founder & Director, Joyful Mind Project
“As the Principal at Bayside MLK, I can’t say enough good things regarding the work that Chelsea has provided to our school in the area of mindfulness. I am seeing evidence of the skills she is teaching our students and staff throughout our school – in the classrooms, in our multipurpose room, in our school office, and even in our hallways.
We are starting to deepen our understanding of the positive impact mindfulness can have with our children and adults simply by paying attention to the results. We couldn’t be more grateful for the support of this highly impactful program for a student and community population that needs it more than anyone.”
Special thanks to the following people and organizations that made this project possible:
Mindful Schools
Rick Hanson, PhD
Christine Durbin
Elizabeth Vaughn
Barbara Sapienza, PhD
Linda Graham, MFT
Rebecca Stoddard
John Koch
Stephanie Elliott
Patricia Kearns
Quin Cowmey
Marleen Roggow
Diosa Arbusto
Joan C. Butcher
Alf Watt