During a three-week internship with Father Gabriel Mejia’s Fundación Hogares Claret in Colombia, Andrea learned about how the children are overcoming their circumstances to change their future.

Entrepreneurship, leadership, and sustainability
by Maharishi University of Management, Fairfield, Iowa, USA, Achievements
16 February 2016

Andrea Zapata was attending college in Southern California, but she was looking for a school with a commitment to sustainability and a focus on personal growth. Then one night her mother had a dream which led them to discover Maharishi University of Management (MUM). Two weeks later Andrea was attending a Visitors Weekend.

“It was my first time in Iowa, but I had this settled feeling of being at home,” said Andrea. “When I went back to California, I felt really peaceful for several days, and I knew I wanted to return.” She enrolled in MUM in the fall of 2013 to study Sustainable Living.

At the end of her first year, Andrea learned the TM-Sidhi program and wanted to find out more about how the Transcendental Meditation program can help disadvantaged children. During a three-week internship with Father Gabriel Mejia’s Fundación Hogares Claret in Colombia, she conducted a sustainability evaluation of his center for displaced street children in Cali. There she learned about how the children are overcoming their circumstances to change their future.

“It was a really powerful experience and it helped deepen my appreciation for Transcendental Meditation,” Andrea said. “I saw first-hand how it affected these kids.”

In addition to the TM and TM-Sidhi programs, Andrea discovered other activities that can help her thrive as a student, including regular exercise, a healthy diet, free writing, and spending time with like-minded friends.

Andrea is now majoring in business administration and minoring in Sustainable Living. She has graduated from the Enlightened Leadership Program (ELI) and represents the College of Business on the MUM Student Government.

Andrea’s interests include entrepreneurship, leadership, and sustainability, and she hopes to combine these to create a business that will facilitate the increase of renewable energy. Another of her goals is to inspire her generation to engage with causes they are passionate about.

“This university attracts people who think outside the box and have lots of ideas that they would like to create, but often there is a lack of belief in themselves,” said Andrea. “Sometimes you just have to jump and build your wings on the way down.”

© Copyright 2016 Maharishi University of Management