The students in the primary school in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, USA, are happy with the results of their practice of Maharishi's Transcendental Meditation Technique.

Satisfied school director wants to spread Maharishi's Transcendental Meditation
by Global Good News staff writer
19 January 2009

An article in the 'Steamboat Pilot & Today' Steamboat Springs, Colorado, starts out, 'Nancy Spillane wants to spread the serenity.' Only days after beginning what she thought would be a two-year trial of bringing Maharishi's Transcendental Meditation to Lowell Whiteman Primary School in Steamboat Springs, school director Spillane started to see a difference. 'It's doing exactly what the research said it would,' she commented to the local news reporter.

Spillane, in education for about three decades, first heard about Transcendental Meditation when viewing a television show on which school administrators from Detroit, Michigan and Fairfield, Iowa were being interviewed. She was inspired to find out more about the Transcendental Meditation Programme with the idea of introducing it in her school.

Investigating on her own, Spillane sought out studies on Transcendental Meditation in medical schools and journals. A review of the research shows the Transcendental Meditation Technique's many benefits for students as well as others—optimization of brain functioning, increased IQ, improved academic performance, higher level of moral reasoning and decreased incidence of disease being just a few of the findings of the over 600 studies performed in 200 research institutions in 35 countries on the effects of Maharishi's Transcendental Meditation Programme.

Spillane also took one further step in considering Transcendental Meditation for Lowell Whiteman, visiting Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment in Fairfield, Iowa, the flagship school of Consciousness-Based Education, which utilizes the Transcendental Meditation Programme. Her conclusion was, as reported in the 'Steamboat Pilot & Today', 'I felt that if we didn't do this in school, it would be a disservice to the students.'

She plunged ahead, taking advantage of funding from the David Lynch Foundation, an organization established by film director David Lynch, to make Maharishi's Transcendental Meditation Programme available to students worldwide.
 
Spillane's experiment has yielded rewarding results. She reports that the students are scoring better on tests, and parents notice lower stress at home. The students themselves are also happy with what they have gained from their practice of Transcendental Meditation.

The 'Steamboat Pilot & Today' quotes a few students:
Patrick Mill, in seventh grade, explains, 'It's definitely helpful when you sit to relax . . . you forget about your school problems or after-school problems,' he said. 'You get all the stuff off your mind, and you feel more energized, but not in a crazy energized way.'

Aly Bemis, an eighth-grader, expresses benefits at home. 'My mom and I argue a lot anyway, but (now) it's a lot easier to slow down and understand her side.'

And seventh-grader, Quinn Cain, notices the results of his Transcendental Meditation practice in sports. 'It helps me in sports; you feel more energized, and you understand (the game) better,' he said. 'I'm a better hockey player.'

Nancy Spillane's delight in making Transcendental Meditation a part of the life of her school was clearly expressed when she flew to New York City in October to speak about the programme at 'Quiet Time in the Classroom, National Summit on Student Health and Education', as well as in her plan to share her find locally. She told the 'Steamboat Pilot & Today', 'One of our goals really is for this to spread to as many children in Routt County as possible because, boy, it's really a great thing for children.'

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