About

Roger Hauck

Roger Hauck is a Junior studying Psychology. He is fascinated by the connections between people’s social lives and health. He enjoys simple breath focused meditations and walking meditation. He loves the water and is a member of the club water polo and triathlon teams on campus.

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.

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.

Mariela Giraldo

Mariela Giraldo is an undergraduate student at UMass studying Sociology. At UMass, Mariela loves the scenery, student life, and the many opportunities, both academic and social. Outside of Meditation Club, Mariela is involved with UMass Acapella: Wicked Pitch, UMass LACC Center, and many other clubs. Activities that make her happy are singing, helping others, hanging out with friends, gaming, fashion, and watching TV. Mariela’s favorite way to meditate is using guided meditation, specifically meditation to cleanse, clear blockages, and enhance self-love and self-healing. She enjoys not only incorporating these aspects in meditation, but in her daily life, she is in awe with deep conversations about the world, different world views about certain phenomena, and truly connecting with those around her, both physically and metaphorically. She is excited to be a future meditation leader, to provide healing, connection, community, and guidance alongside her legacy.

Christine Ziadeh

Christine Ziadeh is a junior studying Natural Resources Conservation with a focus in wildlife ecology and a trumpet performance minor. Things that make her happy include birding, hiking, skiing, reading, baking, and swimming in ponds. Christine’s favorite way to meditate is with movement, including silent walks in nature and practicing yoga. In a big school like UMass, it is so important to find your community. Mindfulness and this club has allowed her to find her people and spread this energy to others around her. She is passionate about serving the community, helping others, and continuously learning about the world around her.

Olivia Brandi-Miller

Olivia is a junior BDIC student learning about practical ways of finding well-being. She loves when she feels relaxed enough to think clearly and feel fully. In those moments her personality can emerge and she can more easily play with life. What amazes her is the capacity everything as for well-being and understanding. One of her favorite things to do is become invisible and observe human interactions. As time goes on, she’s finding her own voice. She’s coming to terms with the fact that if she wants to connect more with life, she must be okay with being seen. Meditation is helping her to gain familiarity with and more consistently find the state of being that she strives for and wants to share with the world. Being part of the practicum has been a great part of this exploration and a really interesting experience overall.

Christian Daniele

Christian Daniele is a third year PhD student studying Epidemiology. Something that makes him happy is when his cat Maya gets zoomies and sprints around his apartment right when he’s going to sleep. His favorite ways to meditate are silent breath meditation and mettā. What fascinates him most about the world is thinking about the chain of events that all had to come together to create this moment. And this one. And this one too. Outside of school you can catch him playing video games, hanging out with his cat, reading, or teaching yoga. His favorite thing about UMass Meditation is the community and variety of practices people bring and take with them in order to improve everyone’s overall wellbeing.

Jake Fritz

Jake Fritz is a Sophomore studying Biochemistry at UMass Amherst. He’s at his happiest when he is exercising or having in depth spiritual conversations about the mysteries of the universe. His favorite way to meditate is outdoors! Ideally by a nice sunset or sunrise. He is fascinated by how music can influence people and how the level of availability of music has changed the way that we enjoy it. His favorite thing about UMass is the dining. After a good workout there Isn’t anything Jake enjoys more than a good meal!

Raina Haq

Jonathan Crowley

Jonathan Crowley is an educational and major gift fundraiser at UMass Amherst for a variety of academic and student affair service programs. He is a seeker and is interested in the integration of meditation, communication, service, community, social justice, and sustainability. Between 1987-2021, Jonathan was a student of vipassana meditation in the US, India and Myanmar and was previously appointed as an assistant teacher by S. N. Goenka in 2002. He conducted and facilitated Goenka’s teachings for the public, children, executives, and correctional inmates from 2002 – 2020. Jonathan introduced Goenka’s 10-day silent residential meditation retreats to three US correctional facilities, including at the highest maximum-security state prison in Alabama for 17 years, the subject of a 2008 award-winning documentary, The Dhamma Brothers. He is currently a student of Beth Upton. Jonathan is enthusiastic about Intergroup Dialogue and has been examining white supremacy with a white affinity group since 2014. Jonathan has a BA in Behavioral Science from Lesley University and an MBA in Managing Sustainability from Marlboro College Graduate School. A former Iyengar yoga teacher and triathlete, he grows vegetables, a fruit orchard, and flowers where he lives in Shelburne, MA with his spouse Carolyn, 12-year-old son, Julian, and cat, Luna. In his spare time, Jonathan studies astrology, ancient Buddhist Pali scriptures, natural home health remedies, loves long distance open water swimming and baking bread.

Dr. Kofi Charu Nat Turner

Kofi-Charu Nat Turner (Chair, Department of Teacher Education and Curriculum Studies and Professor, Language, Literacy and Culture at UMass-Amherst) is the grandson of distinguished civil rights leader Caffie Greene and has written the first biography about her Caffie Greene and Black Women Activists: Unsung Women of the Black Liberation Movement published by Routledge Press. Brought up by activist parents in the San Francisco Bay Area and alongside his grandma in South Central L.A., Dr. Turner first found a spiritual foundation to his activism as a student of Africana Studies studying abroad in Ghana. Today all his work seeks to engage and support historically underserved youth, pK-12 teachers and administrators utilizing mindfulness and other embodied practices to heal the intergenerational trauma associated with white body supremacy.