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Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment (MSAE or Maharishi School) is an independent, non-denominational, college preparatory school located in Fairfield, Iowa, USA. The school has an open admissions policy and its curriculum includes the practice of the Transcendental Meditation technique.

Maharishi School is one of seven college preparatory schools in the state of Iowa.

History

Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment began in 1974 as an elementary school with 12 students. It provided education to the children of the faculty of Maharishi International University (renamed Maharishi University of Management). Enrollment was then opened to children from the community and in 1981, the Upper School was formed.

In 1986, the school received accreditation from the Independent Schools Association of the Central States. In 1987, grades K-6 also received accreditation from the Iowa Department of Education. Grades 7-12 then received accreditation in 1987 from the Iowa Department of Education as a college preparatory school due to the high percentage of graduates being accepted at four-year colleges and universities.

In 1989, the school began to offer single-gender classes whenever class enrollment was sufficient. In 2003, MSAE split into three schools with gender divisions that included the Boys‚ Middle and Upper School, the Girls‚ Middle and Upper School and the Lower School, grades K-6.

In 1996, after eight years of single-gender classes, MSAE and two Iowa school districts were advised to “discontinue gender-segregated classes”. MSAE school officials rejected the state Department of Education’s order. The issue came under the review of the Iowa Attorney General who sent a letter warning MSAE of a violation of Title IX and of state civil rights laws. Despite possible loss of public accreditation and state tax money for textbooks and local services, the school decided to continue single-gender classes the following school year. The school's website indicates that they continue to use the single-gender classroom format and are accredited by the Iowa State Board of Education.

Campus

The Maharishi School campus consists of 10 acres (40,000 m) located on the main campus of Maharishi University of Management (MUM).

The Maharishi School has buildings designed according to the design principles of Maharishi Sthapatya Veda architecture. The main, three-story building houses the Lower School and the Girls School. There is a large courtyard in the center of the campus, and the Boys School, Foster Hall, is on the northern side.

There are two school libraries, three computer labs, three art rooms, a digital and a conventional photography lab, and two music rooms. There is also an auditorium for performances and community gatherings. There is a large greenhouse on the west side, which produces organic vegetables and serves as a living classroom for environmental science.

Maharishi School has access to the recreation facilities at MUM including a climbing wall, indoor track, cardio and weight training, tennis courts and a swimming pool. It also has a field house for state-wide, inter-school, sporting events.

The school's facilities are geared towards sustainability and include a productive greenhouse where four-season gardening methods are taught; a rainwater catchment system; a solar panel and solar-powered water system for the greenhouse; edible landscaping in the school courtyard; and recycling and composting programs.

In 2004, the greenhouse won the Organic Silver Award from the Rodale Institute for their permaculture style of gardening. In 2009, the school received a grant from the Iowa Department of Management to construct the first Arbor Day certified Nature Explore classroom in southeast Iowa. A Nature Explore classroom is a model outdoor classroom for nature-based learning, designed to connect children to nature.

Academics

Maharishi School has an open admissions policy and any child who has at least one of their parents practicing the Transcendental Meditation technique may enroll. Standardized test scores or Grade Point Average (GPA) are not a factor in admission. Financial aid is offered to families with demonstrated need.

The Upper School curriculum includes the traditional core subjects of math, science, English, and social studies. The curriculum also includes speech, art, music, writing, senior thesis, photography, History Fair, physics, sculpture, painting, world history, and yoga. Students may study Sanskrit, which is offered as a foreign language.

Students also study the curriculum known as the Science of Creative Intelligence (SCI), which is said to be the study of universal principles of natural law governing the universe. The principles of SCI are integrated into all academic course content. The school describes its curriculum and educational philosophy as “consciousness-based education”.

Awards and competitions

MSAE students have won a number of awards in state-wide, national and International competitions.

Students have also won several championships at Destination ImagiNation competitions. At the 2005 global finals, MSAE students took more first and second-place awards than any other school, according to a Maharishi School press release. At the state competition in 2009, the Maharishi School team was number one in its category and moved up in competition to the regional tournament.

In 2009, Maharishi students also won 11 awards and honorable mentions at the Eastern Iowa Science and Engineering Fair. In addition, five Maharishi School students were asked to move on in competition to the Iowa Junior Academy of Science at Des Moines University, and three of the students, were selected to join the Iowa state team in the INTEL International Competition in Reno, Nevada.

School officials said that more than 95 percent of all its graduates went to college in 1996 and again in 2004. In 2004, they also said that "the school graduates 10 times the national average of National Merit Scholar finalists". Critics say that most private schools that charge $12,000 in annual tuition would have similar student results. A MSAE student was named as a semifinalist in the 2010 National Merit Scholarship Program.

In 2010, the MSAE robotics team won first prize in the First Tech Challenge (FTC)-Iowa. They share the championship title with a school from Collinsville, Illinois. Two MSAE students were awarded the "top prizes" during the 2010 Eastern Iowa State Science Fair and the State Science and Technology Fair of Iowa.

Fine arts

The Arts Department consists of Visual Arts and Music. Vocal and instrumental music are offered during school hours and as extracurricular programs.

Maharishi School is a member of the Photo Imaging Education Association (PIEA). Middle and Upper School students have won awards in many of the PIEA International Student-Teacher Photo Competition and Exhibition events, including Grand Prizes in 2002 and 2004.

In 2009, students won seven out of the eleven awards available in Iowa's Second Congressional District in the Congressional Art Competition, a nation-wide event sponsored by the members of the U.S. House of Representatives.

In 2010, Maharishi students again "dominated" the competition in the Congressional Art Contest by taking the first and third place awards as well as "three of the six honorable mentions" in Iowa’s Second District. Senior Kenzie Wacknov received the top award.

Athletics

Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment competes in the south division of the Southeast Iowa Super Conference. School sponsored sports include cross-country, basketball, track, tennis, golf, boys’ soccer and girls’ volleyball. Any student can be a member of an interscholastic sports team. Varsity coaches attribute the success of their teams to the players’ practice of Transcendental Meditation.

Tennis

Maharishi School tennis program began in 1988. Since then, the boys’ tennis team has won 16 state singles, doubles and team championships, a state record. The team won consecutive triple crowns in 1999 and 2000, taking the singles, doubles and team championships in both years.

MSAE's tennis coach, Lawrence Eyre has been featured in Sports Illustrated and was the Iowa Tennis Association's Coach of the Year in 2000. Eyre was the 2007 Central Sectional Coach of the Year selected by the National Federation of State High School Associations and the United States Professional Tennis Association (USPTA) 2008 Missouri Valley Coach of the Year in 2008. Eyre was selected by the USPTA as National High School Coach of the Year in 2009.

Student Life

Students learn various practices designed to promote good health. The schools natural health program includes self-pulse assessment, yoga postures (asanas), breathing exercises (pranayama) and guidelines for a healthy diet and daily routine. The school also serves organic vegetarian food and has a tobacco, alcohol and drug-free campus policy.

MSAE students participate in a variety of athletic, performance and visual art programs. The school also offers a summer day camp program for children 5-10 yrs old.

Students are required to wear a school uniform, which consists mainly of a white shirt and tie for boys and a white blouse and plaid skirt for girls.

Reception

Parents of students support the mission of the school and the concept of consciousness-based education. Some families have moved to Fairfield so their children may attend Maharishi School. The school has been showcased as a "Cool School" by Teen People magazine.

The May 2004 issue of Worth Magazine featured Maharishi School, along with seven other private schools, as representing some of the "finest alternative private education options".

Maharishi School was featured in a 2006 edition of the television show, CBS Sunday Morning.

Notable alumni

• Ben Foster, actor
• Claire Hoffman, journalist

Maharishi School, United Kingdom

There is also a "Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment" in Skelmersdale, UK.

External links

• Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment - Homepage
• Consciousness based Education Programs
• Mead, Rebecca (March 22, 2004). "Maharishi Prep". New Yorker.

References

1. "Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment". Independent Schools Directory. Retrieved September 18, 2010.
2. ^ Independent Schools web site
3. ^ "Admissions". Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment. Archived from the original on September 11, 2010.
4. MSAE website FAQ
5. ^ "Student Edge: Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment". Peterson's. Archived from the original on September 11, 2010.
6. ^ "Maharishi School to Defy Rule on Same-Sex Classes". Omaha World - Herald. Omaha, Neb. Associated Press. June 12, 1996. p. 1.
7. "The gender enforcers". Wall Street Journal. New York, N.Y. June 25, 1996. p. A14.
8. "Single-gender classes again available at Maharishi school". Cedar Rapids Gazette. Associated Press. August 30, 1996. p. 8.
9. "Single Gender Classes". Maharishi School. Archived from Gender Classes the original on September 17, 2010. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
10. "Accreditation". Maharishi School. Archived from the original on September 17, 2010.
11. ^ "Facilities". Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment. Archived from the original on September 11, 2010.
12. "Gallery of Gardens". Archived from the original on 2005-02-17. Retrieved 2009-01-30.
13. Self-Study Report for the Independent Schools Association of the Central States. April, 2006.
14. ^ Private Secondary Schools 2008
15. "Maharishi School: Consciousness-based education". Archived from the original on September 11, 2010.
16. Heartland Connection, Senior's science skills rewarded, May 19 2011, KTVO Newsdesk,
17. IndiaWest.com,three Win Best of Category Awards, May 27 2011, Richard Springer
18. "Maharishi School: Highlights of Achievements". Archived from the original on September 9, 2010.
19. Destination Imagination Globals: 2007 Results, Challenge B
20. Destination Imagination Global Finals 2006
21. Destination Imagination Global Finals 2005 Live! Results: It's Radio DI!
22. 2005 Results: Sudden Serendipity
23. Destination Imagination Globals: 2004 Renaissance Awards
24. Destination Imagination Globals: 2002 Results, It's Your Move
25. Destination Imagination Globals: 2002 Results, Dual Dilemma
26. Destination Imagination Globals: 2001 Photo Gallery
27. Past Achievements
28. Maharishi School Tops Honours The Press Trust of India Ltd. June 10, 2005
29. Destination Imagination Iowa Tournament Results
30. Eastern Iowa State Science Fair Awards List
31. MSAE student achievements student achievements
32. ^ Condon, Patrick. Spokesman Review. Associated Press TM in Schools http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=uAAzAAAAIBAJ&sjid=4fIDAAAAIBAJ&pg=2690,3629043&dq=maharishi+school+iowa&hl=en TM in Schools. Retrieved September 17, 2010. {{cite news}}: Check |url= value (help); Missing or empty |title= (help)
33. Local Students Named National Merit Finalists Sept 26 2009 Heartland Connection, retrieved Sept 16 2010
34. http://sites.google.com/site/ftciowa/
35. Heartland Connection, KTVO, Heartland students advance in science fair, Matt Buhrman,April 30, 2010
36. Photo Imagery Education Assn. 2002 Results Summary
37. Photo Imagery Education Assn. 2004 Results Summary
38. "Press Release: Congressman Loebsack Announces Winners of 2009 Art Contest". April 21, 2009. Retrieved December 11, 2009.
39. Heartland Connection, KTVO, Maharishi students shine in art competition, Alex Halfmann, May 7, 2010
40. ^ Fairfield Iowa Radio web site, Sept. 24 2009
41. Gray, B: "School Spirit: A Boys Varsity Team Claims a Winning Mantra", Tennis Magazine, April, 2003
42. Lidz, F: "Different Strokes", Sports Illustrated, December 23, 1996
43. ^ MSAE Official Web Site, Student Life retrieved Sept 16 2010
44. MSAE Official Web Site, Uniforms retrieved Sept 16 2010
45. Shanley, M: "A School Like No Other", The Iowan Magazine, Fall, 1998
46. Rabinovitz, K: "Cool School of the Month," Teen People Magazine, April, 1999
47. "Alternatives in Private Education". Archived from the original on September 28, 2007. Retrieved 2004-04-08.
48. CBS Sunday Morning, Getting Into Our Minds, Sean Alfano, April 9, 2006
49. Abel, Jude (November 15, 2009). "Exploring Lifes Darker Corners". The Boston Globe.
50. "Under God: Maharishi's Mortality". Washington Post. January 18, 2008. Retrieved July 25, 2010.
51. Atkins, Lucy (April 14, 2009). "Should our schools teach children to 'dive within'?". The Guardian.

41°00′55″N 91°58′02″W / 41.0153°N 91.9671°W / 41.0153; -91.9671

• Preparatory schools in Iowa
• Private schools in Iowa
• Transcendental Meditation movement
• High schools in Iowa