Awakening the Dreamer, Pursuing the Dream

The only myth that is going to be worth thinking about in the immediate future is one that is talking about the planet, not the city, not these people, but the planet, and everybody on it. —Joseph Campbell

Joseph Campbell points out that our greatest challenge is how to live a humane existence in inhuman times. Awakening the Dreamer, Pursuing the Dream will focus on the individual's relationship to personal and cultural values, society, leadership and the creative process. This program is intended for students who seek to explore and refine their core values in a context where they can act upon them with increasing awareness and integrity.

The program faculty recognize that the social, ecological and psychological challenges of every era have required people to live their lives in the face of significant challenges and it is now widely recognized that crisis often precedes positive transformation. Therefore, this program will begin by focusing on how people in the past have worked to create a meaningful relationship between themselves and the world around them. We will explore music, dance, stories and images of various creative practices and spiritual traditions from ancient to modern times to discover their relevance in our own lives. As students gain knowledge and skills, they will develop their own multifaceted approaches to clarifying, prioritizing and pursuing their dreams.

Throughout the year, the program will work with multiple forms of intelligence, somatic practices and integrative expressive arts approaches to learning. Students will explore the practices of music, movement (such as dance or yoga), writing, drawing and theater in order to cultivate the senses as well as the imagination and powers of expression. These practices will help us understand the deeper aspects of the human experience, which are the source of self-leadership, intentional living and positive change. Students will also investigate the relationship between inner transformation and social change through engagement in community service. Students will read mythology, literature and poetry while exploring ideas that continue to shape contemporary culture. We will also look to indigenous cultures to deepen our appreciation of often-overlooked wisdom and values. We will seek to develop a broader understanding of contemporary culture as a stepping stone to thinking critically about how today's dreams can become tomorrow's reality.