Room to Become: You Will Surprise Yourself Here

Something happens at CIIS that's hard to put into a brochure. You can describe the programs, the faculty, the community. But the CIIS students and alumni who came back to speak at the Spring 2026 Open Houses were trying to explain something more profound and more pervasive. Something quietly, truly transformative. 

The Therapist Who Became a Researcher

Marissa Dudek arrived at CIIS certain she wanted to become a therapist. She had her path mapped out. Then the learning started — not from textbooks alone, but through lived, experiential practice — and everything shifted.

"I realized I loved the research component. I loved learning about psychology. But when it came to holding that space as a therapist, it became clear that wasn't the path for me."

Rather than treating this as a setback, CIIS gave her room to follow the thread. She transferred into the East-West Psychology Ph.D. program, found her footing, and hasn't looked back. She now works on campus as an admissions counselor while pursuing her doctorate.

"I am now where I want to be. And it is so gratifying that I simply went for it and let all of that go."

The Introvert Who Built a Community

Nora de Roock came into the Community Mental Health program with low expectations for connection. She describes herself as an introvert. She planned to finish her degree and move on.

That plan didn't survive contact with CIIS.

"I honestly wasn't expecting to make so many important relationships. My professors are now my really, really good friends. And I wasn't expecting a community that held me as much as it did."
 

Image

Years after graduating, Nora is still here. She returned first as a teaching assistant, and now teaches her own class, mentoring the next generation of clinicians. The transformation wasn't just academic. It was a fundamental shift in how she understood her own capacity for connection.

"It helped me find my voice. My program taught me that there's value to who I am as a being that I can provide to the communities I serve."

Closer to Home Than Expected

Kelson Pamarang enrolled in the Transformative Leadership program expecting professional development. What he got was something he hadn't thought to ask for.

In his first semester, a single reading sparked a question that would shape the next two years of his academic work — and his entire approach to fatherhood. His capstone project grew into a community initiative around redefining masculinity and storytelling for fathers. But the most profound shift happened at home with his young foster son.

"CIIS challenged me to grow and step outside of what I was comfortable with. It really made me evolve."

A Deep Listening to One's Self

Dr. Latonia Dixon was a registered nurse when she walked into an open house for the Women's Spirituality program and knew immediately she had found something she couldn't walk away from. The practical concerns were real: the cost, the career implications, the skepticism from people around her. She heard it all and chose to listen to her inner voice instead.

"I followed my heart. I felt like the universe was going to support me — and it did."
 

Image

After graduating, she walked into a college career fair with her master's degree and a determination to leave with a job. She was the only person in the room who did, landing an adjunct teaching position before the weekend was over. She has been teaching ever since, now also serving as a mentor and advisor, paying forward what CIIS gave her.

The Dare That Rewrote Everything

Jessica Samples was working full time at a nonprofit, raising a family, and loving exactly two hours of her week — the time she spent teaching mindfulness and meditation. She applied to CIIS almost as a dare to herself, convinced she wouldn't go even if she got in.

She went. And five years later, those two hours have become her life's work.

But the transformation ran deeper than a career pivot. What surprised her most was how thoroughly her CIIS education wove itself into every corner of her life, from the way she holds space, to the way she shows up for her community.

"Something that was planted in me through my time in the program was how important access is. Part of every week is making those connections happen — connecting people who want to practice mindfulness but don't have the resources."

Having experienced what’s possible, she’s now making sure others can, too.

What Will Change For You?

Every person who comes to CIIS arrives with a plan. Most of them end up somewhere better than they imagined. The programs are rigorous, the community is vital, and the learning has a way of reaching places that traditional education never does.

Are you ready for a new chapter?