Maharishi Academy of Total Knowledge—High School for Leadership, a new boarding school for boys, has appointed Mr. Alan Colby as its first headmaster. Mr. Colby has 16 years of experience as high school principal of the award-winning Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment located in Fairfield, Iowa. Students and faculty at Maharishi Schools worldwide practice the Transcendental Meditation^® (TM^®) technique, which promotes optimal learning, balanced brain development, increased mental alertness, and enhanced success in life. Maharishi Schools also put their primary focus on the development the student’s learning ability. This allows knowledge to be absorbed without strain. The use of the Transcendental Meditation technique, combined with unique teaching methods that foster profound learning, is called Consciousness-Based^SM education.

"Any boy interested in developing his full potential and making a powerful and significant contribution to society will be interested in Maharishi Academy. What an incredible opportunity—to easily become a better student, a better athlete, a better person while you are preparing yourself for college. This is the kind of education that prepares your brain to succeed. It's not just facts and figures in your memory—it's the coherent functioning of your nervous system. Your ability to cope with new situations and understand the deepest principles operating in nature will be assets in any college course or endeavor. It is the chance to spontaneously grow toward living a life that is free from mistakes. Instead of jeopardizing your good health, as can happen under the undue pressure in today's schools, you'll be balancing and strengthening your whole physiology and establishing healthy habits that will stand you in good stead your whole life," said Mr. Colby.

Maharishi Academy will be the first Consciousness-Based Maharishi boarding school for boys in the United States. Consciousness-Based education integrates the non-religious Transcendental Meditation technique into the school day for 15 to 20 minutes morning and afternoon. At Maharishi Schools, all disciplines are connected back to the student to make learning easy and meaningful.

Until now, families in the United States who wanted access to a Maharishi School often had to move to Iowa to attend Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment. Dr. John Boncheff is the Director of Expansion at Maharishi Academy, and he has visited many boarding schools. "Boarding schools are a good option for students whose local schools are not helping them achieve their full potential," said Dr. Boncheff. "Most of the other boarding schools set a high standard for academics, sports and the arts," he said. "Maharishi Academy is raising the bar by effortlessly developing the students' whole brain functioning—raising IQ scores, increasing creativity and reducing stress," he said. Over 600 scientific studies, many published in peer-reviewed journals, have shown the benefits of the TM technique.

Maharishi Academy bases its educational theories, educational practices, and administrative systems on the Maharishi School located in Iowa, with the addition of boarding school elements. Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment in Iowa, a pre-K through 12th grade co-educational day school, has had unprecedented success. Classes consistently score in the top 1% of the nation on standardized tests. More than 95% of graduates are accepted at four-year colleges. In 2007, a team from Maharishi School won the world Destination ImagiNation competition. The school has won top international, national and state awards in science, mathematics, art, theater, photography, poetry and writing. "Our formula for a successful Maharishi School works. We will repeat this success with Maharishi Academy, graduating young men who will excel in college and become ideal leaders," said Alan Colby.

The academy is named after its late founder, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Maharishi introduced the TM technique 51 years ago. More than six million people worldwide have learned the TM technique. Maharishi Academy will be one of hundreds of other Maharishi Schools worldwide. "Developing the full creative potential of consciousness makes the student a master of his life. His behavior is always nourishing to himself and everyone around him. He has the natural ability to fulfill his own interests without jeopardizing the interests of others. Such an ideal, enlightened individual is the result of ideal education—my Consciousness-Based Education," Maharishi said.

Alan Colby learned the TM technique in Waterville, ME, while a student at Colby College. He graduated from Amherst Regional High School, Amherst, MA in 1966 and earned a B.A. degree in Sociology from Colby College, an M.A. in World Religions from Boston University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and an M.A. in Higher Education Administration from Maharishi University of Management, Fairfield, Iowa. His background includes two years teaching at a boarding school in New York State, six years teaching at Maharishi School in Iowa, and eight additional years in administration in the nonprofit sector. Read more about Mr. Colby's background on the school website.

"Maharishi Academy is fortunate to have tapped an administrator of Mr. Colby's caliber and experience," said Dr. Boncheff. "His qualifications are impeccable: principal of a Maharishi School, experience leading boys, and teaching experience at a boarding school and a Maharishi School. Our 450-acre wooded campus and abundance of local nature trails, lakes, and mountains will suit Mr. Colby, as he is an Eagle Scout and outdoorsman. We are certain he will take our academy to new heights."

Built on the campus of the former Hawthorne College, Maharishi Academy is renovating buildings in preparation for opening.

A Visitors' Day is scheduled for Tuesday, June 17, and all are welcome. Those who wish to attend Visitors Day should make reservations by calling (603) 588-0400. Antrim, New Hampshire, is 94 miles from Boston, near Hillsborough, and directions are on the academy's website, www.MaharishiAcademy.org.

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