Rhonda Myozen V. Magee, M.A., J.D., is Professor of Law at the University of San Francisco and a leading innovator in the integration of mindfulness practices, multicultural education and social justice advocacy. She has spent more than twenty years exploring the intersections of anti-racist education, social justice, and contemplative practices. She is an internationally sought-after public speaker, mindfulness teacher, practice innovator, storyteller, and thought leader on integrating Mindfulness into Higher Education, Law and Social Justice. A practitioner and lay teacher of Zen Buddhism, she is a student of Buddhist teachers Roshi Joan Halifax, Norman Fischer and Venerable Bhikkhu Analayo, and of a range of traditions.

Rhonda is a Fellow of the Mind and Life Institute, where she has served as an advisor, and has likewise advised a range of leading mindfulness-based professional development organizations, including the University of Massachusetts Center for Mindfulness, and the Center for Contemplative Mind in Society. Rhonda’s award-winning book, The Inner Work of Racial Justice: Healing Ourselves and Transforming Our Communities Through Mindfulness (Penguin RandomHouse TarcherPerigee: 2019), was named one of the top ten books released for the year by the Greater Good Science Center, and received similar recognition by Psychology Today and the editors of Mindful.org.

Rhonda’s teaching and writing support compassionate conflict engagement and management; holistic problem-solving to alleviate the suffering of the vulnerable and injured; presence-based leadership in a diverse world, and humanizing approaches to education. She sees embodied mindfulness meditation and the allied disciplines of study and community engagement as keys to personal, interpersonal, and collective transformation in the face of the challenges and opportunities of our time.

Rhonda has served as a guest teacher in a broad range and variety of mindfulness teacher training programs -- from the UCLA Mindfulness Awareness and Research Center to Spirit Rock -- and is the author of numerous articles on Buddhism as a support for the problems of our time.

Mushim Patricia Ikeda is a socially-engaged Buddhist teacher, community activist, diversity, equity and inclusion consultant, parent and author based in Oakland, California. She has a background in both monastic and lay Buddhist practice and is a Core Teacher at the East Bay Meditation Center.

Mushim is well known for her down-to-earth, humorous, and penetrating approach to Dharma and social transformation. She has taught residential meditation retreats for people of color, social justice activists, and women nationally, and her work is based in values of cultural humility, acknowledging the wisdom that is ever-present in individuals and collectives, and the need for expression, empowerment, and co-creative self-determination in marginalized communities. She has been featured in the award-winning documentary film Between the Lines: Asian American Women’s Poetry and as one of three subjects in the documentary Acting on Faith: Women’s New Religious Activism in America, distributed by the Pluralism Project at Harvard University.

As a writer, Mushim is the recipient of multiple awards, including the 2014 Gil A. Lopez Peacemaker Award from the Association for Dispute Resolution of Northern California, recognizing her innovative one-year program, Practice in Transformative Action (PiTA), mindfulness training for social justice activists, at East Bay Meditation Center. In September 2015 she received an honorary Doctor of Sacred Theology (sacrae theologiae) degree from the Starr King School for the Ministry.

Crystal A. Johnson, Ph.D. is a retired clinical psychologist and a Community Teacher at the East Bay Meditation Center (EBMC) in Oakland, CA, where she also serves on the Leadership Sangha (Board) and as a member of the Radical Inclusivity Committee. She completed the year long Commit2Dharma training at EBMC, as well as the 2-year Dedicated Practitioner Program and the 2-year Community Dharma Leader Program at Spirit Rock Meditation Center. In her teaching, she focuses on creating/co-creating programs for white dharma practitioners seeking to build awareness, knowledge and skills to challenge the dynamics of white privilege and race-based oppression, and create truly inclusive sangha. Her courses include White and Awakening in Sangha at EBMC, Unpacking Whiteness: Reflection and Action at the San Francisco Zen Center, White and Awakening Together at Spirit Rock Meditation Center, Unpacking Whiteness for the Soto Zen Buddhist Association and Unpacking the Whiteness of Leadership for Branching Streams. She offers consultation to individuals and organizations seeking to disrupt the practices of white supremacy culture and support change toward racial equity.

As a longtime lay practitioner, Anna was drawn to her current position as the SZBA Operations Coordinator by the opportunity to serve Soto Zen Buddhist priests and their communities. She is a member of Kannon Do Zen Meditation Center and enjoys visiting surrounding practice centers. She is currently exploring ways to expand access and equity in Soto Zen practice.

Anna will be available throughout this course for those who have questions, concerns, or need for support. You can contact her at info@szba.org or through the chat function available in Zoom.