Won Institute of Graduate Studies

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[edit] Introduction

The Won Institute of Graduate Studies is a small, specialized professional education institution that was granted approval on December 5, 2001 from the Pennsylvania Department of Education to offer two graduate-level programs: Won Buddhist Studies, leading to a Master of Won Buddhist Studies degree, and Applied Meditation Studies, leading to a Master of Applied Meditation Studies degree. In March of 2005, the Pennsylvania Department of Education granted approval for a third program, Acupuncture Studies, which commenced in September of 2005. The Won Institute has thus been approved as the first school in Pennsylvania to offer a program in Acupuncture Studies, leading to a Master of Acupuncture (M.Ac.) degree. The Won Institute is a duly formed non-profit organization with 501(C)3 status.^{[citation needed]}

The campus currently consists of one building, Samsung Hall, located at 137 South Easton Road in Glenside, Pennsylvania – a suburb of Philadelphia. Samsung Hall contains classrooms, a library, a meditation hall, bookstore, faculty and student acupuncture clinics, and administrative and faculty offices.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Mission and Philosophy

[edit] Mission

The mission of the Won Institute of Graduate Studies is to provide quality graduate-level professional education and training in the practical applications of spirituality and the healing arts for the well-being of individuals and society. It is guided by the conviction that meditation is essential to spiritual cultivation, and that spiritual cultivation is necessary to balance material and technological advances.^{[citation needed]}

To fulfill the mission, the following are the Institute's goals:

• To create an institutional environment committed to excellence in teaching, learning and research^{[citation needed]}
• To become a center for education and research on Won Buddhist Studies in the United States^{[citation needed]}
• To foster spiritual cultivation and contemplative practices based on Buddhist principles and enhance human well-being through their application in various fields^{[citation needed]}
• To provide quality graduate-level professional training in acupuncture to prepare graduates for licensure and competent professional practice^{[citation needed]}
• To pursue institutional growth by promoting local, national and international recognition and awareness of its mission^{[citation needed]}
• To achieve financial stability and strength for expansion and for operation^{[citation needed]}
• To strengthen and promote Institutional and Board governance^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Philosophy of Graduate Education

Won Institute of Graduate Studies offers graduate programs devoted to the systematic study and practical application of the mind/body/spirit connection within Buddhist perspective and theory.^{[citation needed]}

The goal of the Won Institute of Graduate Studies is to prepare graduates to actualize their spiritual development and to use it for the benefit of society. Building upon the academic foundations laid by a baccalaureate education, the faculty provides the advanced theoretical underpinnings that prepare graduates to ask questions and methodically seek answers about how to apply their spiritual growth in practical fields.^{[citation needed]}

The Won Institute of Graduate Studies is committed to a strong faculty who are willing to harness their collective wisdom and to increase their collective knowledge in order to support one another's learning and to build an effective curriculum. Through faculty and student interaction, a higher level of analysis, synthesis, and advanced practice is incorporated into the curriculum so that the graduates develop professional standards and behaviors on which to base their professional development.^{[citation needed]}

Through the integration of didactic and process education, the Won Institute student develops the leadership, management, and teaching abilities necessary for the application of academic learning and spiritual practice. Students are required to communicate the results of their discovery, analysis, and synthesis of advanced knowledge both orally and in writing to prepare them for their increased responsibility in making contributions to their disciplines. Graduate education is promoted through intensive study and practice not only in the specifics of a Buddhist perspective, but also through the investigation and integration of other spiritual and philosophical perspectives.^{[citation needed]}

The educational process at the Master's level is designed to promote independent, self-directed learning and self-evaluation. This is accomplished through intensive skill development and practice sessions and through real-world practicum experiences. Students are supported in their learning with group and individual supervision and information technology resources. The learner is stimulated to embrace a lifetime of personal and professional development.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Enrollment

As a small, specialized graduate school, the Won Institute has limited enrollment. The Won Buddhist Studies (WBS) program attracts those students who are seeking ministry within Won Buddhism. The Applied Meditation Studies (AMS) program attracts professionals who seek to incorporate meditation practice into their working lives for themselves and their clients. The Acupuncture Studies (AcS) program attracts students who seek to be professionally trained and certified as acupuncturists, who will be trained in a broader approach to healing that allows the practitioner to focus on the whole-person: body, mind and spirit.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Faculty

The Won Institute faculty consists of six full-time instructional staff, five at the Ph.D. level and ten adjunct staff.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Historical Roots

The Won Institute of Graduate Studies was born 30 years ago with the vision of the Venerable Taesan (also spelled as Daesan), the Third Head Dharma Master of Won Buddhism.^{[citation needed]}

Master Taesan believed that cultivating spirituality through education and training would benefit society, by acting as a balance to society's increasing materialism and reliance on technology-based advances, especially in the more advanced West.^{[citation needed]}

Won Buddhism’s reliance on education led to the founding of the Won Kwang University in Korea, a full-scale university now serving more than 20,000 students and one of the leading universities in Korea. Won Kwang University has an undergraduate program in Won Buddhism that prepares students for the Won Buddhist ministry. Undergraduate education for the Won Buddhist ministry is also provided by Youngsan University, Korea. Won Buddhism requires a master’s degree for its ministers. Graduate Won Buddhist education in Korea is provided by the Won Buddhist Graduate School.^{[citation needed]}

Master Taesan's dream was to bring high-quality spiritual education to the United States to train the Won Buddhist ministry within the United States. With the strong support of Won Buddhist headquarters, Dr. Bokin Kim and Bok Hyae Koh, daughters of the Third Dharma Master Taesan, began several years of planning within the United States in order to fulfill the legacy of continued reliance on education as the keystone of spiritual change. Their work ultimately led to the establishment of the Institute.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Homepage
• Applied Meditation Practice Group