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A Global Approach

The Center for Compassion, Integrity and Secular Ethics at Life University makes an impact

By Life University

Life University, located northwest of downtown Atlanta, is known primarily for its flagship Doctor of Chiropractic program, which boasts the most chiropractic students on a single campus in the world. Others may be familiar with its top-ranked men’s and women’s rugby squads, which have won numerous national championships against much larger D1-A competition. Or perhaps, people are familiar with its annual holiday Lights of LIFE display that lights up the Marietta campus for more than a month from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Eve. However, one of many things you may not know about this small, private university is the significant global impact it is making through its Center for Compassion, Integrity and Secular Ethics (CCISE) and the initiatives that the center has implemented. Two of the most notable initiatives from the center include the Chillon Project and Compassionate Integrity Training.

Chillon Project

The Chillon Project provides high-quality, credit-bearing degree programs to people in prison and formerly incarcerated people in Georgia. Life University offers two degree programs through Chillon at Arrendale State Prison, a maximum-security women’s facility in Alto, Georgia. Currently, 17 students are earning their Associate of Arts in Positive Human Development and Social Change (A.A. in PHDSC) at Arrendale; eighteen have completed the A.A. in PHDSC

EDUCATION

Compassionate Integrity Training (CIT) is a multi-part training program that cultivates basic human values as skills for the purpose of increasing individual, social and environmental flourishing. CIT is based on cuttingedge developments in the fields of neuroscience, psychology, traumainformed care, peace and conflict studies and contemplative science.

and are now earning their Bachelor of Science in Psychology. Additionally, eight students who have been released from Arrendale are currently taking Life University classes online. Chillon also includes full scholarships for correctional staff and formerly incarcerated students who began Life University degrees while in prison. These scholarships enable students to complete a Life University undergraduate degree of their choice.

The degree programs offered at Arrendale reflect Chillon’s aims to empower students to be compassionate leaders and agents of social change. Courses emphasize critical analysis of systems, an understanding of our interdependence and common humanity and the development of inner strengths such as resilience, compassion, emotional intelligence and ethical mindfulness. Thomas Fabisiak, PhD, director of the Chillon Project, says the program embodies Life University’s guiding principle of Lasting Purpose: “Give, Serve, Love and Do.”

“No matter our circumstances, we all share a longing for a loving community, for chances to create and grow and for ways to give generously of ourselves,” Fabisiak says. “There are a lot of people in prison who are not just smart and talented, but who want to excel and give back to their communities, inside and outside of prison, and will gladly do so when offered the opportunity.”

In October 2020, Life University began providing online classes to students at Arrendale because of the pandemic and thanks to technological and staff support from the Georgia Department of Corrections. The school plans to move back to an in-person model of instruction as soon as it is safe to do so.

Compassionate Integrity Training (CIT)

Compassionate Integrity Training (CIT) is a multi-part training program that cultivates basic human values as skills for the purpose of increasing individual, social and environmental flourishing. CIT is based on cutting-edge developments in the fields of neuroscience, psychology, trauma-informed care, peace and conflict studies and contemplative science. The development of CIT has been aided by the collaborative work of a team of experts with both academic and applied backgrounds in these fields.

By covering a range of skills from self-regulation and self-compassion to compassion for others and engagement with complex systems, CIT focuses on and builds towards compassionate integrity— the ability to live one’s life in accordance with one’s values with a recognition of common humanity, our basic orientation to kindness and reciprocity. And although CIT deals with the development of pro-social values, including compassion and integrity, it is based on a secular approach to universal ethics based on common sense, common experience and science, rather than a particular culture or religion. The skills taught in CIT are useful to people of any or no religious background while not conflicting in any way with particular religious values.

The CIT program has skyrocketed in popularity since its development, going from small-scale local groups taking its courses to now being all over the United States and the world through partnerships with groups such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s Mahatma Ghandi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development (UNESCO MGIEP); Charter for Compassion; Karanga; and the City of San Antonio, among others. The partnerships cultivated have led to exciting endeavors that have turned CIT into one of the world’s foremost programs for social-emotional learning. On September 21, 2020, the U.N. International Day of Peace, nearly 4,000 people participated in Skill One of CIT’s Global Lesson in Social Emotional Learning, focusing on “Calming Body and Mind.” It received overwhelmingly positive feedback worldwide. “Everyone can benefit from a calm body and mind,” one participant said. “Sometimes I feel like I let stress overcome my goals, and when I strive for better in rough times, I do better for my overall health and future.”

In 2020, CIT set new records for enrollment and participation, with participants from more than 60 countries, according to Dr. Michael Karlin, LIFE Assistant Professor of Psychology and the Associate Director of CCISE. The world’s current state of affairs has brought many opportunities for CIT to expand its reach through virtual avenues, for which Karlin is grateful. CIT graduates now number in the thousands worldwide, and numerous translations of CIT are underway to continue reaching more people.

“Naturally, CIT lends itself to being a very personal course with the ability to connect emotionally with the facilitators and fellow participants,” Karlin notes. “It’s been a joy to see that those connections can carry over through virtual interactions as well.”

As one student in the new SelfDirected Learning version of the course (CIT-SDL) said, “I’m so glad that I enrolled in this course. Learning about self-compassion has been amazing. Often, I treat others with lot of love and care, but now I realize that I need it too. The videos by Mona and Maurice [CIT hosts] are so refreshing and thoughtful. I hope I could meet them someday. They are so warm, and I feel a connection with them. This skill has definitely helped me a lot by giving me strength to look for my happiness within me. [I am] feeling so calm and clear now.” n

The Right Touch

Sensory machines calm and assist in therapy at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta

By Ken Abramczyk

When children with special needs or sensory processing issues face long hospitalizations and recoveries after surgeries, worry and anxiety can overwhelm parents. Their children may fear the new, unfamiliar surroundings of a hospital and the medical staff there, and the experience can be a challenge. However, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta has a unique way to help ease their minds and calm the children down.

Sensory machines, featuring fiber optic lighted strands, a lighted bubble tube and a projector and stereo, assist therapists and parents in nurturing children through their recovery with interaction designed to engage the child’s senses of touch, smell, sight and sound. Both the interaction and sensory play are critical in assisting children through their therapy and recovery, according to Amanda Roberts, childcare specialist in The Zone at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at Scottish Rite. Roberts hosts sensory playtime sessions every Wednesday in The Zone for the patients, most of them aged 2 to 5 years old, from the inpatient

rehabilitation unit. “These pa- helping the children relate to tients benefit the most because and communicate with other they are patients with the most patients; in fact, the sensory significant physical injuries or machine assists in developing brain injuries, and they are socialization and communicareceiving significant therapy,” tion skills through the child’s she says. senses.

The Zone gives patients “a “As the projector shows difbreak” from their hospital beds ferent pictures, [the patients] as they participate in activities can talk through what they involving art, games and see on the machine,” Roberts video games. “During sensory says. “The stereo plays music, playtime, we let the little ones so we can play a CD and they take over The Zone. We set can sing.” A diffuser also emits up some sensory art activities smells of various scented oils on smaller toddler tables with for patients. Overall, she adds, Play-Doh and finger painting. “The sensory machines make [And] we turn on the sensory things a little less scary and less machine in our Xbox room, intimidating for them, especialso that room transforms into a ly with this age range, which space of relaxation,” Roberts is important. And at the end continues. “Every child learns of it, it’s awesome to see when best when they engage with [the patients] accomplish a something. Critical brain Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Sensory Machine lot by themselves. You can see development helps build the progression over time, and connections of nodes in the that’s pretty powerful.” brain, which supports cognitive growth, mat or do the art activity by themselves Parents are touched by what Roberts fine and gross motor skills, language without the hand-over-hand help from calls the “overwhelmingly amazing” care development and problem solving skills. the therapist.” patients receive from therapists on the It helps them experience that important Therapists work directly with the rehab floor. “When they come to The social interaction. It transforms the children on the machine, and parents Zone, they see that they are in a totally hospital environment into a fun place. It interact with them as well. The machine different environment away from the gives them a different view of the hospital features fiber optic lighted strands that floor, and they have an escape,” she says. and helps them meet those important are synced through an interactive switch “Parents are so grateful for it and so therapy goals in a fun, personalized way.” with a soft-sided multi-colored cube. appreciative.” The patient can toss the cube, and when Today, children are assisted with two Technology Meets the Personal Touch it lands, the strands light up, matching sensory machines at the Scottish Rite The sensory playtime program began in the color of the top of the cube. The location before, during or after proceJanuary 2017 when a childlife specialist weighted fiber optic strands go across the dures or medical routines, ranging from created developmentally appropriate patients’ lap, and therapists work with placing IVs to MRI scans, and they help and therapeutic activities for young patients on their movement and even them cope by changing the stimuli in the patients. Located on the lower level at verbalizing the colors they see. The cube room to create a more relaxing environScottish Rite, The Zone was created can be synced with the fiber optics, the ment. Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at to provide space to allow for physical bubble tube or both simultaneously. Egleston has three machines. therapists to work with patients, many “Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta’s of whom are recovering from brain or Impressive Results mission is the make kids better today and other injuries and often are hospitalized Sensory play on the machine is critical healthier tomorrow, so these machines at the Children’s Scottish Rite location to patients’ recovery and development, do such a great job going above and for three to five weeks. Typically, they Roberts says. With the assistance of ther- beyond that,” Roberts concludes. “We give visit The Zone once a week. According apists, children work with the machines specialized care to patients and families to Roberts, “When they arrive for their to ultimately get into wheelchairs, learn through these machines in different ways. first visit, they may not be able to make to walk again or crawl around on the play We see their needs and use these maeye contact with us and require more mats. Additionally, occupational thera- chines as a tool to help reach their goals, work with their therapist to participate in pists, working on fine motor skills, explore to make them healthier and better to play. activities. In a couple of weeks, they may different textures with the children, who That’s what makes it special. These kids be able to tell us their name, verbalize can press buttons and play music. Speech can relate and learn while they are in the what activities they want to do and take pathologists say specific words or sounds hospital and be more comfortable.” n more of a lead. They may be able to walk to develop speech. A recreational theraaround the sensory machine on the play pist may have socialization goals in mind,