Virgina Teen Retreat
July 8th – 13th, 2020
Seven Oaks Retreat Center in Madison, VA
Do something different
Take part in your life in a new way. Turn the page, try out new things, meet great people, be you and be accepted. Oh, and have some fun! You’ll go home with practical meditation and relationship tools that can help with school, friends, family, and life — AND a whole lot of love and vision for the year ahead.
Who is this retreat for?
Any teen with an open mind and heart who is willing to try something new and do their best to be themselves and accept everyone else in being themselves. We provide everything you need to make that happen.
You leave the incredible iBme Teen Retreat Experience with mindfulness practices and communication skills that you can practice whenever you want to, to restore inner balance and harmony, create focus and follow-through, or just because it feels good to develop your inner life (you won’t believe how good it feels!).
Learn the fundamentals
Meditation
Using a variety of formats and teaching frameworks, we impart lessons in self-awareness, compassion, and offer techniques to increase concentration and focus the mind.
Mindful Movement
Spend time each day with a small group of peers, connecting and deepening authentic relationships with other teens who are experiencing the world in similar and different ways from you.
Inner Stillness
Being on retreat offers a rare opportunity to experience a life without constant distractions. We create a technology-free environment that flows back and forth between silent and social times.
Suggested Age
15 to 19 years
Application Deadline
June 24th
All applications received after then date will be put on a wait list.
Number of participants
Capped at 37
Cost
Sliding scale. Learn More.
Duration
6 days, 5 nights
Virginia Retreat Staff
Joe Klein
Joe Klein, LPC, is the lead clinician of a mindfulness-based addiction treatment program in rural Virginia. He began practicing meditation in 2001, began staffing teen retreats in 2007, and is a co-founder of iBme. Since 2010, Joe has been teaching a graduate course at Radford University and leading retreats and workshops on mindfulness practice for college students, counselors, social workers, and education professionals. Joe brings playfulness, Earth connection, and whole person engagement to his ways of teaching and embodying mindfulness practice.
Charisse Minerva Spencer
Charisse Minerva Spencer brings to the Mindfulness arena a background in Arts, Science, and Youth Development. She earned a B.S. Degree in Medical Technology from the Medical College of Virginia/VCU. However, her love of the Arts led her to divert her path in order to live her passion for dance and choreography. Later Charisse returned to school to get a Masters in Performance Studies with a concentration in Dance Anthropology from Tisch School of the Arts/New York University. Her eclectic professional experience coupled with more than 30 years of practice in the Soka Gakkai International (SGI) Buddhist organization led to her interest in Mindfulness. Charisse brings a scientific and artistic approach to the field investigating the existence of contemplative practices, its individual and cultural significance, as well as how these practices can be introduced in ways that are broad-based. She has worked with Mindfulness in Schools Project (MiSP), Inward Bound Mindfulness Education (iBme), is Mindfulness Coordinator at Friends School of Virginia Beach, and has done workshops in schools, festivals, corporate offices, detention & treatment centers.
Mick Neustadt
Mick Neustadt is a long time mindfulness and meditation practitioner and clinical social worker. As a result of 20 years of personal practice Mick has experienced the profound benefits of mindfulness. He realizes that we have a great capacity to connect deeply with our full selves and others. Through dedicated practice we can transform the way that we relate to ourselves, those closest to us, and the world. With his rich background as a therapist, former school teacher and coach, Mick brings a wide range of skills and dedication to helping teens and adults on their journey of self exploration. Since 2011 he has formally taught mindfulness to teens in schools, on retreats and a weekly group. He has also taught teachers in schools, and teaches a weekly group for adults. Mick has completed numerous trainings for teaching mindfulness to teens and is also a Level 2 iRest Yoga Nidra teacher.
Seven Oaks Retreat Center
Seven Oaks Retreat Center is situated just north of Charlottesville, in Shenandoah National Park. Designed to support mindfulness and healing, it offers beautiful views of the Blue Ridge Mountains — plus 120 acres of woods and open fields. Seven Oaks serves great food, with meals three times a day and an abundance of options and deliciousness. Guest rooms are in little buildings throughout the retreat, with easy access to the program spaces and Dining Room.
Tuition & Payment Information
Tuition is 1% of annual family income, up to $2,500.
We offer this sliding scale approach to retreat tuition in order to accommodate a wide range of family incomes. The maximum fee reflects what it actually costs per student to run the retreat.
- Tuition includes all retreat costs, including accommodations and meals at the retreat center, and all sessions and activities and supplemental materials.
- iBme retreats feature a low ratio of adult staff per teen, providing high-quality care, expertise, instruction, and mentoring (this is our secret sauce!)
- Tuition does not include travel to and from the retreat location or any incidental/personal purchases.
Please note: A nonrefundable application fee of $35 is required and applied toward your tuition.
Tuition & Payment Information
Scholarships are available for this retreat.
Donations: We rely on tuition fees, supplemented by donations, to cover the costs of our retreats and make it possible for all teens who want to to attend. If you can, we invite you to consider making a donation when and if it feels right. Find out about our annual Commit to Sit fundraiser in the spring and end-of-year Mindfulness Challenge: iBme Fundraising page.
Deposit & Balance
A deposit of 30% of your total payment is required to reserve a space on a retreat. The deposit includes your $35 nonrefundable application fee. The balance of the retreat tuition must be paid two weeks before the retreat start date in order to hold your spot on the retreat.
Diversity
iBme welcomes and celebrates human diversity in all forms regardless of race, color, ethnicity, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, ability, personal appearance, or religious/spiritual affiliation.
Accessibility
iBme is committed to accessibility. This retreat welcomes teens from all racial/ethnic groups, sex and gender identities, abilities, and religions. Mindfulness creates a foundation for conversations that support understanding and deepen our connection to one another. We have developed our tuition structure to accommodate a wide range of family income.
What teens are saying
“At this moment I feel I have learned more lessons about myself and others in the past five days than I did in the last year of school.”
Ben, age 17
What parents are saying
“The day after he came home he asked to do yoga with me in our back garden, and we went for a bike ride together…connection I have been yearning for all summer.”
Parent
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