Naropa University

Naropa University is a private, nonprofit liberal arts university located in Boulder, Colorado. Founded in 1974, it is recognized as the first accredited Buddhist-inspired university in the United States. Naropa integrates contemplative practices such as meditation with traditional Western academic disciplines. The university offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs in areas including psychology, writing and poetics, religious studies, environmental studies, education, and the arts. Known for its emphasis on mindfulness and contemplative education, Naropa attracts students interested in interdisciplinary study, creative expression, social engagement, and personal development within a nonsectarian, spiritually informed academic environment.

Naropa University was founded in 1974 in Boulder, Colorado, by Tibetan Buddhist teacher Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche as the Naropa Institute under the Nalanda Foundation. Established during a period of cultural experimentation in the United States, the institute sought to integrate contemplative practice with Western scholarship. Early programs included Buddhist studies, psychology, visual arts, and the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics. Naropa began offering degree programs in the mid-1970s and expanded to year-round instruction in 1978. In 1986, Naropa received full regional accreditation from the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. The institution formally adopted the name Naropa University in 1999, reflecting its broader academic scope. Over subsequent decades, Naropa University developed undergraduate and graduate programs rooted in contemplative education and continues to operate as a private liberal arts university in Boulder.