Summer School for Designing a Society
Note: This event is past. For the 2012 Summer School for Designing a Society, visit http://patchadams.org/summer-2012
An Education in Desire and Design
June 29 – July 20, 2011
Gesundheit! Institute, Hillsboro, West Virginia
The School for Designing a Society, Patch Adams MD and the Gesundheit! Institute invite you to join us this summer on our land in rural West Virginia.
We're offering a 3 week educational program called "An Education in Desire and Design". We'll explore desire and design as an approach to slippery problems in care systems—health care systems, education care systems, ecological care systems, labor care systems.
This 3 week program is for those people, like ourselves, who feel stuck in un-caring systems, and who want time, tools, and new ideas to figure out "what next?" Anyone with a stake in care is welcome to participate. Along with teaching presentations and workshops, there will be design work and small work groups.
The program takes place at the Gesundheit Institute's 320 acres in the Blue Ridge Mountains with mountain trails, waterfalls, extensive gardens, and large pond.
The schedule is designed so that participants can take advantage of the setting. Thus the three weeks are both a 'retreat' and a 'forward': we'll re-charge our batteries in nature and in play, then move forward on our designs of desirable care systems.
In the company of sympathetic conspirators and constructive challengers, we invite you to
* Formulate your desires—what do you want?
* Notice how the language we speak, speaks us—try changing it
* Rescue language from its old connotations and give it a new sound.
Take a break from your current routine for 3 weeks and join the School for Designing a Society on the beautiful land and inspiring project of the Gesundheit Institute in West Virginia. We'll offer just enough distance from normal to help us all make up something better.
Who is invited?
You are! No prior background is required, just concern for the welfare of others and willingness to try things out.
Who is offering this?
Organizers and presenters include: Melanie Hinojosa, Patch Adams, Jacob Barton, Elizabeth Adams, Mark Enslin, Dario Solina
How do I apply?
Cost: $1200 for tuition, room, board and transportation pick up & return.
Limited partial scholarships available.
To apply fill in the form with your contact information and statement of interest and send a $200 non-refundable deposit, either online with the secure payment button or by mailing a check made out to School for Designing a Society to Box 7, Independent Media Center, 202 S. Broadway, Urbana, IL 61801. We are only accepting 20 participants and we suggest you submit your application as soon as possible to guarantee your spot.
The School for Designing a Society does not discriminate against anyone on the basis of race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin, age, ability, gender identity, or sexual orientation.
General Information
Facilities Gesundheit! consists of a 300-acre pristine tract of farm and mountain land in rural West Virginia, with gardens, a multi-story workshop, mountain hiking trails, creeks, a lake, and clean air and water. The dacha, with its onion domes and Russian architecture, serves as a residence and meeting place, and has won awards for its unique design. Gesundheit! offers wi-fi
Travel Information
Arrivals, Sunday, July 1:
AMTRAK: the westbound train arrives in White Sulphur Springs, WV at 5pm; the eastbound train arrives at 11:25am.
BY AIR: the Greenbrier Airport in Lewisburg is served by Delta Airlines connecting from New York JFK airport arriving in Lewisburg at 12:23pm and from Atlanta, GA arriving in Lewisburg at 3:35pm
Departures, Wednesday, July 25
AMTRAK: the eastbound train departs White Sulphur Springs, WV at 11:25am, the westbound train at 5pm.
BY AIR: Greenbrier airport departure times are 12:56pm connecting in Atlanta and 5pm connecting at New York JFK airport.
It's also possible to drive to Washington DC (5 hours) or take the AMTRAK train to Washington DC and fly from there.
Gesundheit staff will shuttle people to and from the train station in White Sulphur Springs and the airport in Lewisburg on Wednesday, July 25.
BY CAR: on I-64 at Lewisburg, WV exit onto 219 going north. After about 40 minutes, turn right on Locust Creek Road (veers sharply down opposite a sign for quarter horses, 2 miles south of Hillsboro. The turn is easy to miss—if you find yourself in Hillsboro, you've driven 2 miles past the turn!). Take Locust Creek Road for about 10 minutes, over a bridge; the Gesundheit sign will be on the right. Follow the gravel road all the way past the workshop to the parking area near the farmhouse and Dacha. Gesundheit is located in a rural, mountainous area, so the roads are narrow and winding. It's good to make travel plans in advance. Please plan to arrive at dinner time on July 1 and to leave after breakfast on July 25.
