Fundamentals in Teaching MBSR

Program Overview

Fundamentals in Teaching MBSR is delivered live online. It is designed for people with an established personal mindfulness practice who desire to teach the 8-week MBSR course. Trainees must be willing to show up authentically within the training group, and to bring their unique wisdom as well as their full humanness to bear in learning to teach MBSR.

During this program, trainees with explore the ethos, underpinnings, mindfulness practices, and attitudes that are the basis of MBSR. Language, pedagogical methods, and skills for engaging participants, and more will be investigated and practiced.

NOTE: You can begin teaching MBSR after completing Fundamentals through ECM. When comparing various training programs, be sure to consider when those programs allow you to begin teaching MBSR (many programs require additional training beyond Fundamentals before you can start teaching MBSR). Being able to teach MBSR early on means that the earnings received from that early MBSR teaching can offset the cost of your continued teacher training.

The training has 2 components:

  1. MBSR Course: Participation in an 8-week course taught by your mentor. NOTE: Trainees will have graduated from an 8-week MBSR course prior to participation in this MBSR course, which will be taught by their MBSR mentor. During this second experience of MBSR, they will participate fully again for their own personal growth, as well as to experience the course from the vantage point of being a future MBSR teacher.

  1. Weekly Cohort Training Sessions: Participation in an additional 7-hour session each week with only your mentor and your small cohort of fellow teacher trainees.
This course will be taught by a Senior MBSR Teacher/Teacher Trainer.

Training Goals

During this training you will—

  • Participate fully in an 8-week online MBSR course taught by your mentor

  • Study the MBSR Curriculum, Protocols, and Program Standards

  • Guide other trainees in standard MBSR meditation practices

  • Practice-teach components of the MBSR course curriculum to your fellow trainees

  • Become familiar with the MBI:TAC rubric for assessing MBSR teaching

  • Give and receive feedback to yourself and other trainees

  • Investigate the ethos of teaching MBSR

  • Explore your personal practice of mindfulness and how practice impacts your teaching

  • Explore principles of trauma sensitivity in the practice and teaching of mindfulness

  • Familiarize yourself with some of the science of mindfulness

  • Explore best methods for engaging, honoring, and teaching diverse groups of students

Prerequisites and Requirements

  • Completion of at least one in person or live online 8-Week MBSR course:
    • MBSR course was taught live by a certified MBSR teacher
    • MBSR was taken for your own growth
    • MBSR course consisted of an orientation, 8 classes of at least 2.5 hours, and an all day (retreat class) of at least 7 hours

  • Consistent personal mindfulness meditation practice of at least the past 2 years

  • Strong relationship with a meditation teacher (or teachers), either living or no longer living. Ideally this will be a one-to-one relationship with a live meditation teacher, but might also be met through a connection through teachings (even ancient teachings) of a teacher or teachers.

  • Personal practice of mindful movement (for example, yoga, tai chi, chi gong) for at least a year

  • Minimum of one mindfulness retreat of at least 5 days completed within the past 2 years:
    • Retreat was led by a teacher either in person or live online (no recorded retreats, solo retreats, or retreats that rely on recordings of teachers instead of live interaction with a teacher or teachers).
    • Retreat was in a tradition that aligns with the practices and attitudes of MBSR.

  • Regular participation in some form of personal development, such as counseling, coaching, spiritual advising, or so on, with a professional

  • Work/Education experience:
    • A university degree (or equivalent life experience)
    • Experience working in or with groups

  • Willingness to work hard. ECM's training pathway requires efforts such as—
    • Staying in good, consistent communication with your mentor
    • Developing and revising materials, such as class plans, meditation guidance audios, and so on, based on feedback and ongoing growth
    • Submitting all materials on time
    • Participating fully in all trainings, including completion of all preparatory work prior to trainings and all follow-on work after trainings.

  • Willingness to be in collegial relationship with trainee cohort. ECM’s training pathway is designed for small trainee cohorts. These cohorts participate together in trainings throughout the years while in the training pathway, supporting each other throughout.

  • Ability to gather students for your MBSR courses. Gathering enough participants for an MBSR course is challenging for most. Ideal candidates for the ECM teacher training pathway have in place a means to gather at least 8 participants for their MBSR courses (such as within an organization where they work or an organization with which they are associated, and so on).

What Technology You Will Need

  • High-speed internet connection

  • Please, no phones

  • Join on a computer that has a full-sized screen on which you can see at least 25 Zoom participants, without having to scroll

  • Ensure that your computer is situated on a stable surface (instead of resting on your lap, etc.)

  • Video and microphone capability (so that you can be seen and heard)

  • A place for practice that allows for being undisturbed

  • Current version of Zoom installed

This program is limited to no more than 4 MBSR teacher trainees

Program Schedule Program Cost Apply Common Questions Teaching Faculty: Program beginning April 2027

The cost of this program is US$3000 (this includes a seat in the MBSR course).

Please review the information below regarding the dates for application submission, and so on. The button below takes you to a secure online application for the program.

Application timeline for the program beginning April, 2027:

  1. Submit application online by Sunday, January 31, 2027.

    NOTE: To ensure that the program is a good fit at this time, the most qualified applicants will be contacted to set up a time to meet by Zoom with the trainer before final acceptance. If 4 applicants are accepted before January 31, the application process will be closed.
  2. Receive email from East Coast Mindfulness by Wednesday, February 3, 2027, with acceptance status.

    NOTE: All applicants will receive notification with acceptance status.
  3. If accepted, you will be asked to confirm your spot and submit payment by Friday, February 12, 2027.
  4. Once your spot is confirmed, you will receive preparatory information about the program.

If you have questions, please email info@eastcoastmindfulness.com.

Stacks Image 4505416
Rebecca Eldridge

Rebecca has been practicing and teaching mindfulness for decades, with a particular focus on Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR). She trained through UMass Medical School's Center for Mindfulness and later joined its faculty, where she trained and mentored mindfulness teachers and helped develop early online MBSR offerings, working with clinicians and executives as well. In 2016, she trained her colleagues at the Center for Mindfulness to deliver their first MBSR course online. She is the principal author of the MBSR Appendix to Jon Kabat-Zinn's revised MBSR curriculum, which provides guidance for teaching MBSR in live online settings.

Beyond teaching MBSR and training MBSR teachers, she’s worked extensively with organizations, healthcare professionals, and other groups seeking to bring mindfulness into real-world settings. Her work has also included assessing MBSR teaching quality and contributing to the development of tools that bring participants' perspectives into the evaluation of MBSR teaching.

She studies, practices meditation, and teaches under the guidance, deep caring, and encouragement of her teacher, Pema Chödrön.

More about Rebecca.

  • Program Schedule
  • Program Cost

    The cost of this program is US$3000 (this includes a seat in the MBSR course).

  • Apply

    Please review the information below regarding the dates for application submission, and so on. The button below takes you to a secure online application for the program.

    Application timeline for the program beginning April, 2027:

    1. Submit application online by Sunday, January 31, 2027.

      NOTE: To ensure that the program is a good fit at this time, the most qualified applicants will be contacted to set up a time to meet by Zoom with the trainer before final acceptance. If 4 applicants are accepted before January 31, the application process will be closed.
    2. Receive email from East Coast Mindfulness by Wednesday, February 3, 2027, with acceptance status.

      NOTE: All applicants will receive notification with acceptance status.
    3. If accepted, you will be asked to confirm your spot and submit payment by Friday, February 12, 2027.
    4. Once your spot is confirmed, you will receive preparatory information about the program.

    If you have questions, please email info@eastcoastmindfulness.com.

  • Common Questions
  • Teaching Faculty: Program beginning April 2027
    Stacks Image 4505680
    Rebecca Eldridge

    Rebecca has been practicing and teaching mindfulness for decades, with a particular focus on Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR). She trained through UMass Medical School's Center for Mindfulness and later joined its faculty, where she trained and mentored mindfulness teachers and helped develop early online MBSR offerings, working with clinicians and executives as well. In 2016, she trained her colleagues at the Center for Mindfulness to deliver their first MBSR course online. She is the principal author of the MBSR Appendix to Jon Kabat-Zinn's revised MBSR curriculum, which provides guidance for teaching MBSR in live online settings.

    Beyond teaching MBSR and training MBSR teachers, she’s worked extensively with organizations, healthcare professionals, and other groups seeking to bring mindfulness into real-world settings. Her work has also included assessing MBSR teaching quality and contributing to the development of tools that bring participants' perspectives into the evaluation of MBSR teaching.

    She studies, practices meditation, and teaches under the guidance, deep caring, and encouragement of her teacher, Pema Chödrön.

    More about Rebecca.

REFUND POLICY:
You may receive a refund less $150 if you notify us via email (info@eastcoastmindfulness.com) at least 7 days prior to the first session of Fundamentals. No refunds will be granted thereafter.

Questions? Please email us at info@eastcoastmindfulness.com