Designing rigorous and humane learning environments.
Education for human flourishing.
Hi. I’m Sasha.
I’m an award-winning educator, writer, and researcher working at the intersection of education, contemplation, science, mathematics, and philosophy. I currently serve as a founding faculty member and Chair of Mathematics and Science at Pine Street School in New York City.
Featured Projects.
Meditation and Philosophy
Much of our dissatisfaction arises from misunderstanding the nature of reality. Buddhist philosophers developed systematic maps of a path beyond this misalignment, organized around three mutually reinforcing forms of training: increasingly refined ethical conduct, deepening concentration and mental stability, and greater clarity of perception.
I created this course in Buddhist theory and practice to offer a structured introduction to that path. It is fully online, free, and available through my website.
Contemplative Studies
Adolescence is a period of profound psychological transformation. As young people transition from childhood into maturity, they face new challenges related to identity, agency, relationships, and meaning. During this pivotal period, education has a unique opportunity: to help students develop the inner capacities that allow them to meet life with clarity and care.
The standards-based framework below is designed to support adolescent development across three essential capacities: stable minds, kind hearts, and clear vision. Drawing on developmental psychology, contemplative traditions, and contemporary educational design, the framework translates inner development into clear instructional targets, practices, and learning experiences. I look forward to sharing the fully articulated curriculum soon.
Mathematical and Scientific Literacy
As Joseph Campbell writes, “I don’t believe in being interested in subjects because they are said to be important and interesting. I believe in being ‘caught’ by it somehow or other.”
Alfred North Whitehead expressed a similar idea through his educational stages of romance, precision, and generalization. Before students can engage deeply with the technical procedures of a subject, they must first encounter its beauty, possibilities, and larger significance.
Mathematics expands the way we see and understand the world, but this is rarely made plain to students. Instead, they are often introduced immediately to the complexity of its procedures, without first being given a reason to care.
My collaborator and I created Realm of Reason to begin with that sense of romance. Through real-world challenges and imaginative fantasy scenarios, the game reveals the deep applicability of mathematics and enables students to have genuine fun and shed math anxiety while wielding these potent concepts.
Selected Past Work.
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Commencement Speech 2026
After spending three years helping to build the middle school, I was honoured to have been selected as the Faculty Speaker for the inaugural Grade 8 Graduation at Pine Street School. All students received offers to their top choice schools including: Trinity School, Stuyvesant High School , Packer Collegiate, Poly Prep Country Day School, and more!
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International Congress of Mathematicians Outreach Grant 2026
Awarded a grant by the International Congress of Mathematicians for the development of an outreach exhibit for middle school students to be presented at the 2026 ICM in Philadelphia.
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MOEMS Manhattan Math Tournament 2026
Founded and directed the inaugural 2026 MOEMS-sanctioned Manhattan Math Tournament. We hosted 14 schools including The Spence School, Brearley, Collegiate School, The British International School, Packer Collegiate, and The Hewitt School for a morning of advanced problem solving. Daniel Zaharopol, CEO of the Art of Problem Solving Initiative and BEAM served as our Guest Lecturer.
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Edyth May Sliffe Award 2025
I was awarded the 2025 Edyth May Sliffe Awards for Distinguished Mathematics Teaching in Middle School by the Mathematical Association of America (MAA).
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International Society for Contemplative Research 2025
Presented a talk entitled: “Standards-based approaches to contemplative studies for adolescent learners” at the 3rd Annual Conference for the ISCR at UNC Chapel Hill.
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Generative AI Design Sprint 2025
Organized Pine Street School’s third annual full-day Generative AI Design Sprint, where middle school students used frontier models to build working prototypes, brands, and websites before presenting their ideas to a community panel of judges and an audience of 70+.
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Medium Day 2025
Delivered a talk at Medium Day, an online conference that attracted over 19,000 participants. I spoke on “The Art of Interdisciplinary Thinking” - providing frameworks to think divergently accross disciplinary lines.
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Cordell Hull Foundation for International Education 2025
Invited to speak at the orientation event for a group of international educators arriving in New York City on the power of AI for differentiated resource creation.
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Contemplative Studies Course 2025
My third time teaching a 6-week course on Buddhist theory and practice.
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Bhutan Conference on Science, Mindfulness, and Meditation 2025
Presented a set of Contemplative Standards for integration into educational systems to international scholars and monastics.
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National Science Teaching Association (NSTA) Annual Conference 2025
Presented to faculty and administrators ways to integrate Generative AI authentically into the science classroom.
View the slides here. -
Portrait of a Learner with the Common Ground Collaborative 2025
Collaborative designer of a holistic framework of human development deployed in schools in 20+ countries.
Read the portrait here. -
Contemplative Studies Course 2024
Scaled, refined, and taught a 6 week in-person course on Buddhist theory and practice in New York City, partnering with startup university FractalU.
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Contemplative Studies Course 2023
Created and taught a 6 week in-person course on Buddhist theory and practice in Peterborough, partnering with a local wellness studio.
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Sustainability in Schools 2022
Through my work as Deputy Sustainability Coordinator at the Chinese International School, I contributed to an international report on sustainability best practices.
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CreativeMornings Hong Kong 2021
Led a group meditation practice and explored the relevance of focus and concentration in modernity.
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Soho House Hong Kong 2020
Presented meditation and breathwork techniques in the context of recovery, presence, and performance.
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Contemplative Workshop 2020
Designed and led a one-day seminar on the effects of modulating posture, breath, and attention on wellbeing.
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Apsis Newsletter 2019
Started publishing an interdisciplinary newsletter integrating science and contemplative practices.
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Physics and Philosophy Debate @ UofT 2019
Cofounded the inaugural Physics and Philosophy student group and moderated a dialogue between philosophers and physicists.
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Living in a Zen Monastery in China 2018
Article written on my time living in a Zen monastery for the UofT Dept. Buddhist Studies.
Featured Writing.
