Â鶹´«Ã½

Spring 2025

•  8 Week Program: Dates & Times TBD
•  All-Day Retreat (mandatory)
• Tuition:
  • $75 (Need-based scholarships are available)
  • $150 staff/faculty (a limited number of spots are open for staff/faculty)
• Class size is limited.

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For more information contact e-budzynski@northwestern.edu.

Tuition includes a yoga mat and a copy of Jon Kabat-Zinn’s Full Catastrophe Living.  Supplemental materials will be provided in class.

Attendance at each 2.5 hour session is critical for immersing yourself into the practice of mindfulness and also in completing the home practice. Expect 45 -60 minutes of practice each day during the program. 

However, “life happens” and participants may miss one session due to illness or an emergency. If a participant needs to miss two or more sessions they will be allowed to re-take the course at another time with no additional charge. All absences should be communicated to the instructor.

MBSR includes the practice of walking meditation and mindfulness movement (a gentle form of yoga) and is well-suited to most ability and age levels. Please consult the instructor for any considerations you may have and if you have any difficulty engaging in any of the techniques at any given time, you are under no obligation to do so.

MBSR is an educational curriculum for personal use and development but not a substitute for medical treatment or psychological intervention. If you have recently or are currently undergoing treatment for addiction, psychosis, PTSD, clinical depression, anxiety, or other psychological conditions you should consult with your therapist or counselor to determine if MBSR is the right setting for your individual needs.

Eric Budzynski ’01 is most importantly a human being and also serves as the Associate Director of Religious & Spiritual Life at Â鶹´«Ã½ where he’s been an integral part of the community for nearly 15 years. A Â鶹´«Ã½ alum of the Bienen School of Music, Eric’s career began in parish music ministry at the age of 12, where he combined his love of music with a dedication to contemplative prayer and ritual practice.

Raised in a devout Catholic family, Eric’s early experiences in church life sparked a passion for sacred music and spiritual experience. However, as a gay man, he encountered challenges in reconciling his identity with his role in the Church. These experiences led Eric to seek new ways to integrate his spiritual life with his personal truth, eventually finding a new kind of vocation through his role at Â鶹´«Ã½.

Eric has expanded his focus beyond music to include spiritual direction, mindfulness, and contemplative practices into the core of his work at Â鶹´«Ã½, guiding students, staff, and faculty to discover their own journeys of spiritual well-being. His spirituality doesn’t claim one identity over another but continues to cultivate an evolving path of interspiritual growth. This is grounded in the belief that spiritual practice is a path to healing, self-acceptance, and transformation.

Outside of his professional life, Eric is an America’s Test Kitchen enthusiast, an avid video gamer, lazy gardener, burgeoning accordionist, and a daily peripatetic.  

Master of Music, Â鶹´«Ã½ 
Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) Certified Teacher, University of California San Diego
Certificate in Interspiritual Guidance, Spiritual Guidance Training Institute
Clinical Pastoral Education (1 unit), Condell Medical Center