About

Beatrice Rogers

Beatrice Rogers is a junior studying Holistic Health. Her passions in personal development, commoning, mindfulness, psychedelic medicine, and herbalism makes her happy. Her favorite way to meditate is in a group! She meditates to strengthen her mind-body connection as well as to allow for deeper self-awareness. What fascinates her the most about the world are other people. Outside of Meditation Club, Beatrice loves to dance, eat delicious food, and spend time with friends. Her favorite thing about UMass Meditation has been learning about various contemplative practices in a group setting, and she really enjoys the community.

Roger Hauck

Roger Hauck is a junior studying Psychology, concentrating in Neuroscience. Something that makes him happy is playing water polo. His favorite way to meditate is silent, breath-focused meditation. He meditates to better serve his community. What fascinates him the most about the world is psychology and behavior change. Outside of Meditation Club, he enjoys playing water polo, swimming, and any kind of exercise. His favorite thing about UMass Meditation is the empathetic people here!

Aisha O’Boyle

Aisha O’Boyle is an undergraduate student at UMass studying Sustainable Food & Farming. She finds joy being outside in nature, hiking, and grounding in the wonderful nature and beauty of the world around us. She values deep connection with plants and people and having thoughtful and inquisitive conversations. Outside of the classroom she enjoys dancing, writing, spending time connecting with people, sharing laughter, creating friendships and helping to build a kind and supportive community. What she enjoys most about the Meditation Club is the amazing group of people that gather and have the intention to build community and connect with themselves and others in a meaningful way. She appreciated the group’s openness to deeper conversations, to truly seeing and accepting each other as we are, and supporting each other in both our mindfulness practices and journeys in life. She has found group meditations to be very beneficial to her own practice as well as allowing her to expand socially within the group and with people in general, finding meditation and mindfulness to be a daily practice to help remain more grounded and true to ourselves as we go about our days. There are many mindfulness practices she enjoys but particularly going outside in nature and simply observing the wonderful scenery; sounds, sensations, sun, breeze, air, birds, earth, soil under our feet, and attuning to what it is to be here on this earth, with gratitude for all nature has to offer and experiencing connectedness of self and the world.

Jahzara Nordeus

Jahzara is a senior, studying Plant & Soil sciences. She’s most happy when she’s listening to music & hanging with her partner/friends. Her favorite way to meditate is by journaling and chanting. She’s very fascinated with plants and how people interact with one another. Being a part of the meditation club gives her great joy as she’s given a space to be herself & an outlet to openly connect with her peers.

Mookie Richards

Mookie is a third year undergraduate studying English and Creative Writing. There’s nothing Mookie enjoys more than inner peace, and he is currently in the process of calculating, through various means, how to achieve eternal harmony with the world and himself. He imagines that he will have an answer by the end of the semester on how to do this, and may publish a book shortly afterwards to fund his other goals, such as traveling to Japan and tubing behind jet skis. Mookie thinks the meditation practicum is a lovely community builder and space to learn about different contemplative practices. 

Shlok Parekh

Shlok Parekh is a senior studying Kinesiology and Biology on the Pre-Med track. Things that make Shlok happy include but are not limited to being outdoors, photography, well-being, art, music, wildlife, fashion, and health. Some of his contemplative practices are creative writing, active listening, journaling, authentic relating games, being in silence, and practicing mindfulness. His favorite way to meditate is at vipassana retreats or with small groups of people. Shlok meditates to better understand his ways of thinking and to find within him the balance between purpose and desire. What fascinates him the most about the world is weather events, landforms, ancient civilizations, species diversity, unnatural phenomena, and human behavior. He finds mindfulness to be restorative to his well-being and he strives to implement meditation in his service to others. Outside of school and meditation, he enjoys playing sports, learning new languages, volunteering, exploring cultures, being a leader, urban exploration, eating nachos, community building, hosting events, spreading kindness, and dreaming. The harmony, affection, and simplicity of UMass Meditation is what appeals to Shlok and he hopes its purity continues to ripple across and beyond the campus forevermore.

Sophie Hauck

Sophie is a senior studying Political Science and Journalism. She’s a newcomer to mindfulness and appreciates how the UMass Student Meditation community nudges her to be more compassionate. Sophie writes fiction and nonfiction and is interested in reporting on religion and spiritual life as she develops a multimedia journalism project for her Honors thesis. You can hear her on WMUA X this fall, hosting “Sophchella,” a radio show about the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (Thursdays, 8-10 p.m.). In her free time, she enjoys baking, swimming, and going on walks with friends and family.

Tyler Westland

Tyler Thor Westland is a sophomore studying math and physics. He enjoys intentional walks around campus and is fascinated by the nature of things. His favorite way to meditate is alone, focusing on the body, but he finds value meditating with others in larger groups. Tyler meditates to remain grounded amidst life’s unpredictabilities, and his favorite part of UMass Meditation is the community. When he isn’t meditating, Tyler likes boxing, seeing live music, and eating Hot Tamales. 

Madeleine Charney

Madeleine has worked at UMass since 2004 and she is the Librarian for built/natural environment majors. Watching the Norway spruces sway from her bedroom window every morning makes her happy. Her favorite way to meditate is labyrinth walks, and she meditates to liberate herself from constructs. The world fascinates her most when she slows down enough to notice how EVERYTHING is in constant motion. Outside of meditating, Madeleine enjoys growing medicinal herbs, singing, and reading autobiographies. Her favorite thing about UMass meditation is the camaraderie with people on campus who are curious, open, and actively cultivating resilience for the Greater Good.