Daniel Gorman is co-founder of Bubbling Brine Brothers, a sauerkraut business he started while a student at MUM. In fours years he went from cutting vegetables by hand in his basement to renting and renovating a commercial kitchen and selling his products to 12 grocery stores.

Daniel came to MUM from northeastern Missouri, inspired by his mother. They both have practiced yoga, and Daniel became interested in Eastern philosophy in high school. When he began studying soil biology at MUM, he became fascinated with the role of microbes. He wanted to apply what he learned about microbiology and apply it to food fermentation.

“It’s all ecology: our stomachs are very similar to roots the way we pick up nutrients and minerals,” said Daniel. “When we become deficient, we get sick just like plants do.”

Daniel completed an internship with a small sauerkraut manufacturing company in Oregon and decided to follow their model. He teamed up with fellow entrepreneur Noah Loin of Noah’s Raw Chocolate and fellow sustainable living student Jonathan Buzan and began experimenting with various recipes.

Daniel graduated in 2014 with a major in sustainable living and a minor in music. He appreciated the small class environment and the focus on a healthy lifestyle.

Bubbling Brine Brothers now produces three kinds of sauerkraut which they sell to grocery stores in southeast Iowa, including numerous Hy-Vees and Everybody’s Whole Foods in Fairfield. They use organic ingredients and source them locally during the growing season. The company recently started supplying the University of Iowa, and they hope to secure additional wholesale contracts.

“There is a paradigm shift to live foods and healthier organic foods,” said Daniel. “Everyone’s mind is changing from the industrialized foods system to local, quality food; that’s a big part of my motivation.”

MUM student Kyle Amsberry grew up in Mesa, Arizona, and joined the U.S. Army at age 18. He served for five years, including tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. After leaving the Army, Kyle attended college for a while, then bounced around from job to job, working as a bartender for several years. But his life didn’t have a direction, and he didn’t have a healthy way to cope with post traumatic stress disorder.

In the winter of 2015 he heard about the Transcendental Meditation^® program and, with the help of a David Lynch Foundation scholarship for veterans, he learned the TM^®technique. He was so amazed by the transformation he experienced that he wanted to be involved with teaching the TM technique to veterans.

“I experienced calmness and silence,” said Kyle. “The chatter wasn’t there anymore; I wasn’t on edge that much. I found something and I wanted to help other people. I had a direction.”

Kyle wasted no time. He joined Enlightened Leadership International (ELI) and six months later attended an ELI summit in Holland. There he learned about MUM and decided to apply. After attending a Visitor’s Weekend where he met Dr. Thimmaiah, director of the Regenerative Organic Agriculture Certificate Program, Kyle decided to join the new program.

During his first class he had to write a business plan, and he came up with the idea for an organic farm and TM retreat for veterans. “I realized I can bring farming and TM together,” he said. “They are both therapeutic, and integrating the two can give veterans something to do.”

Kyle will soon be concluding the 10-month certificate program with an internship in New Zealand. Then he will continue studying at MUM to earn his BA in regenerative organic agriculture. He is still considering ways to facilitate programs that teach veterans the TM technique and organic agriculture at the same time. He also hopes to promote MUM among veterans so that they can better integrate the TM technique in their lives while also earning a degree.

Nathaniel Alexander recently graduated with an MFA degree from the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts, the oldest and one of the most prestigious film schools in the U.S. He is now launching his own production company, called 200 Percent, to offer music videos, unconventional advertising, and other branded content.

Nathaniel grew up in Fairfield and attended Maharishi School. With his teachers’ approval, he submitted his assignments in the form of videos whenever he could. At MUM he majored in media and communications, and in his free time began to do internships and freelance video work for local businesses.

“I was given a lot of freedom to explore my own creativity,” said Nathaniel. “Professors Gurdy Leete and Stuart Tanner were incredibly supportive and encouraging. Professor Leete’s encouragement was hugely instrumental in my eventual decision to make film my full-time career, because I felt supported in that aspect of my creativity.”

Nathaniel also appreciated the practice of the Transcendental Meditation^® technique and everyone’s focus on their personal growth. “Because of TM, the professors were very secure in their understanding of who they were. As a result, the feedback and the encouragement they gave weren’t coming from a place of their personal needs.”

The USC School of Cinematic Arts in Los Angeles is very closely connected to Hollywood studios and experts, so Nathaniel had the chance to experience how the film industry operates. Due to the MFA program’s interdisciplinary approach to filmmaking, he was also able to create short film projects, working on every detail of the development including script writing, editing, production design, and budgeting.

In his third year, Nathaniel won a $50,000 contest, sponsored by PepsiCo, to write and direct a commercial for one of their products: Mountain Dew. The process of working with a brand made him realize he enjoyed working creatively on a story that not only functioned as a narrative but as a vehicle for a product. Nathaniel’s long-term vision is to write and direct television shows, movies, documentaries, and interactive media.

MUM graduate Terrell Smith started his MFA in painting program this fall at the University of Iowa with a full scholarship. He graduated in 2016 with a BFA degree from MUM and applied to six different graduate programs. He was accepted to all of them, but after visiting the University of Iowa art department he needed to look no further.

“My source of achievement is looking for something that stretches my boundaries,” said Terrell. “As long as I am able to grow and learn and pass that on to somebody, I have achieved that goal. I felt that this program was going to do that for me.”

Terrell grew up in Florida and started working for the large retailer Costco at 18. For ten years he moved around the country and up the corporate ladder. Although he was successful, had a stable income, and a comfortable lifestyle, he felt he wasn’t growing. His girlfriend came to MUM first and easily convinced Terrell to follow.

He first signed up to be a pre-med major, but after taking a drawing class he discovered his passion. He has always been a visual learner and enjoyed expressing himself through imagery. Soon he fully immersed himself in creating art, participated in student life, and began helping other students with their art work.

“TM has changed my thinking a lot,” he said. “It made me understand life, my role in life, and my role as an artist. I have been able to really work on ideas that I want to push in my work. I am able to articulate what I want to say because I have confidence in myself.”

“Terrell is uniquely curious and always comes up with surprising, yet studied, results in his paintings,” said James Shrosbree, professor of art.

Terrell feels he has experienced a thorough transformation at MUM, enjoyed every minute of it, and “blossomed” along the way. He wants to continue expressing himself through art and teach others to do the same.