BecoME a Certified Mindfulness Teacher through Mindfulness Northwest


This 9-month intensive cohort-based program is designed to prepare individuals and professionals from diverse backgrounds to design and lead clear and compassionate mindfulness programs in a variety of settings. It is also a foundational training for the delivery of mindfulness-based programs and interventions.


On January 1 of each year, we begin accepting applications for the new year's 9-month cohort. Applications will be reviewed and prospective applicants will be invited for an interview. Those selected to participate in our MTTP program will then be  notified in the Spring and can expect to begin classes in September of that same calendar year.


All important dates for the 2020-21 program are now available here!


Do you have some training already as a mindfulness teacher and looking for training specifically in how to teach Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction? Please see our MBSR Teacher Training.


Program Details * Key Dates: Current Cohort * Key Dates: Next Cohort * Syllabus * Further Details * Testimonials * Application


 A mindfulness teacher training program for the Pacific Northwest.

  • Cohort-based: work closely over the 9-month period with a small group of dedicated mindfulness practitioners moving together towards teaching. 
  • Local: all are welcome but our structure works best for those who live and work in the Pacific Northwest. You must be able to travel to the Bellingham, WA area 8 times during the program.
  • Collaborative: we've seen this local & cohort-based program lead to lasting relationships with regional colleagues for ongoing support and collaboration.
  • Hands-On: practice teaching and facilitating skills from the beginning of the program; complete a Practicum Project creating and delivering a mindfulness workshop; finish the certification process through an insightful portfolio review process.
  • Practice-Based: practice each of the mindfulness practices deeply, daily, with reflection and connection with peers, and with the support of a qualified meditation teacher.
  • Diverse: spend time in person and in distance learning, in retreat settings with the cohort, in classroom / seminar settings, and in informal settings.
  • Study: learn about the Buddhist roots of mindfulness, psychology & neuroscience, group facilitation, the history of mindfulness, and much more.
  • Practical: learn how to develop mindfulness programs that fit your institution or community.
  • Accessible: we have done our best to keep costs reasonable. Don't expect the Ritz for our in-person sessions, but do expect high quality, immersive training!

What

The Mindfulness Teacher Training Program (MTTP) provides a deep training in the skills, personal presence, and background knowledge needed for a deeply embodied, thoughtful and skillful presentation of mindfulness to diverse audiences.

The MTTP is a highly integrated experience including retreats, home practice, distance learning, weekend seminars, regular peer contact, experiential exercises, practice leading mindfulness and creating a mindfulness program, and strong cohort relationships.

We will meet in person 8 times in the Bellingham, WA area over the 9-month program and interact extensively over distance learning in between meetings.

Who

Those devoted to mindfulness practice who have established a practice and wish to share mindfulness with others. 

We are especially interested in serving those already in a position to offer mindfulness classes or workshops in their own institution, community, or practice who are seeking support and guidance in how to do so effectively.

The MTTP is also a powerful foundational training for those moving into, or already teaching, mindfulness-based classes and interventions such as Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT), Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC), or Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention (MBRP).

Examples of excellent reasons to take MTTP:
  • I'm running groups or leading trainings at work already and want to integrate mindfulness and compassion cultivation exercises into the training.
  • I'm a psychotherapist and I want to add mindfulness to my individual work or group work
  • I did the training, or I'm planning to do the training, to facilitate MBCT and I want to feel more solid about mindfulness.
  • I want to offer a weekly meditation practice group in my community.
  • I'm an MBSR teacher already and would love to deepen my understanding and enhance my teaching skills.
  • I'm a spiritual teacher and would like to add the depth and universal language of mindfulness to how I work with people in my group or beyond my group.

Pre-requisites and selection criteria include having taken Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (as this is the template and root expression for this style of mindfulness), having a daily practice of mindfulness/meditation, and having attended a silent, teacher-led meditation retreat of at least 5 days in length (some exceptions and / or concurrency may be granted at our discretion). See the Program Details page for more details.

Where

The in-person portions of this program will be held in the Bellingham area (retreats are held at two different centers in Skagit County). All are welcome but you must be able to travel to the Bellingham area 8 times. Much of the learning and interaction also happens through flexible distance-learning in between in-person meetings.

How Much

The per-person cost is $6,900 for the 9-month MTTP program including all retreats, seminars and ongoing instruction and support. Note that the tuition covers room and board at the 4 retreats, but not at the 4 seminar weekends in Bellingham. Payment is usually made in monthly installments.

There is an additional $500 fee to review for Teacher Certification if participants accept the invitation to move forward towards certification after satisfactory completion of the program. 

With

Lead instructor Rev. Tim Burnett brings his diverse experience creating and delivering mindfulness classes and workshops together with his knowledge of the Buddhist roots of mindfulness, his work in the sciences, and his experience as an educator and facilitator to provide a rich, experiential education for trainees. 

Tim is certified in three of the major mindfulness-based interventions: Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (certified by the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Healthcare, and Society at the University of Massachusetts), Compassion Cultivation Training (certified by Stanford University's Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education (CCARE)), and Mindful Self-Compassion (certified by The Center for Mindful Self-Compassion (CMSC)). 

Tim also brings his grounding in 30 years of Zen Meditation where he is a Soto Zen Priest and teacher. He received Dharma Transmission from his long-time mentor Zoketsu Norman Fischer in 2011 and was installed as Guiding Teacher of the Red Cedar Zen Community in Bellingham in 2017.

For more on Tim see his full bio, watch him deliver an introductory hour on mindfulness - or watch a funny story about mindfulness. You can also learn more about Tim's Zen work at the Red Cedar Zen Community website.

Additional instruction on specialized topics of science, philosophy, and yoga will be provided by an expert adjunct faculty to be announced soon.

Visiting instructors to earlier cohorts included:

  • Karen Schwisow, EYRT - teaching mindful yoga
  • Barbara Lehman, PhD - Psychological research on mindfulness
  • Kelly McGonigal, PhD - The upside of stress
  • Brennan Gilbert, PsyD - understanding mindfulness and projection

Outcomes

The intended outcome from this training is a high degree of comfort, expertise, and flexibility teaching mindfulness classes and workshops and also the ability to adapt and design programs for the communities and organizations you are most familiar with. Mindfulness training is not one size fits all. This program prepares you to assess the needs of a target population and provide a suitable mindfulness training that maximizes engagement and benefit for participants.

Upon satisfactory completion of the 9-month program you will: receive a Certificate of Completion indicating your thorough training in mindfulness practice and teaching.

Optionally: Upon successful review of your teaching portfolio, developed in a supervisory process during the year after the 9-month program, you will receive Mindfulness Northwest's Mindfulness Teacher Certification and become a Certified Mindfulness Teacher.

MTTP is also great preparation for teaching MBSR, which requires further training. Please see our MBSR Teacher Training for information.

"I am thoroughly enjoying Tim Burnett’s Mindfulness Teacher Training Program. I feel inspired and challenged. Tim’s program supports growth in my own meditation and mindfulness practices, as well as my teaching skills. I like the breadth of required reading, which has ranged from translations of ancient Buddhist texts to reviews of contemporary mindfulness neuroscience.  The weekly reading and practice assignments are totally doable and keep me honest (I like homework!).

Tim fosters an atmosphere of freedom and flexibility in how we incorporate the lessons – we are encouraged to develop our own system and style of teaching. I greatly appreciate how he empowers me to explore and experiment with the material to find what is true for me."

- Beth Glosten, MD



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