Tag: arts & sciences

ATHERTON, Calif. — Menlo College Arts & Sciences Lecturer Lakiba Pittman is helping students engage more deeply with learning through mindfulness, creativity, reflection, and community-building. As part of completing the Morning Altars Teacher Training certification program, Pittman recently introduced a nature-based experiential learning project into three Menlo College courses, reaching approximately 60 students.

The project was incorporated into two sections of DEIB in the Workplace (HUM 307) and one section of Cultural Expression in Media (MCM 308). Through guided observation practices, mindful wandering, reflective dialogue, and collaborative outdoor altar-making using natural materials found on campus, students explored how attention, perception, and connection shape the way they understand themselves, others, and their surroundings.

In the DEIB courses, students connected the experience to the Iceberg Metaphor and themes of identity, assumptions, and belonging, examining how visible and invisible aspects of identity influence workplace interactions and inclusion efforts.

“What we overlook isn’t always unimportant; it’s often just unnoticed,” said student Rachel Brans. “Just like I overlooked parts of my environment, it’s easy to overlook people or make assumptions without really noticing them.”

In Cultural Expression in Media, students explored how attention and perspective influence media, storytelling, and representation. Through mindful observation and collaborative creation, they experienced how meaning can emerge through intentional focus.

Student Bat-Orgil Yaruukhan described the experience as both creative and connective.

“It created a shared rhythm, almost like everyone was participating in the same invisible conversation with the environment,” Yaruukhan said. “Sometimes what seems small or ordinary becomes meaningful when we pay closer attention, finding the extraordinary in the ordinary.”

For student Taliyah Thornton, the activity encouraged a different kind of classroom interaction while reinforcing course concepts. “Usually, everyone is focused on schoolwork or just trying to get through class, but this activity allowed people to show more of their personalities,” Thornton said. “Media and society often focus on certain people or stories while overlooking smaller details, just like how we overlook things in everyday life.”

The project reflects Pittman’s commitment to experiential and healing-centered education. Her work is informed by her participation as a Fellow in the Acosta Institute’s Healing-Centered Education program and her ongoing studies in compassion and mindfulness education through Stanford University’s Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education (CCARE) and the Compassion Institute.

Insights from the Morning Altars project will help inform a Future Forward grant-supported belonging workshop planned for Fall 2026, expanding opportunities for students, faculty, and staff to explore community-centered approaches to learning and engagement.

As she prepares to begin her 15th year at Menlo College, Pittman continues to explore innovative ways to integrate mindfulness, reflection, creativity, and belonging into higher education.

“I believe these experiences help students develop the awareness, empathy, and adaptability that serve them both during college and throughout their lives and careers,” Pittman said.

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About Menlo College:

Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, Menlo College is a small, residential liberal arts and business college dedicated to preparing students to be Future Ready Now. Through a highly personalized educational experience that combines rigorous academics, applied learning, mentorship, and direct access to one of the world’s most innovative economies, Menlo College helps students convert education into measurable career and life outcomes. For more information, please visit our website or contact 650-543-3753.