PRESS CONTACT
Janet Buehler
PR Manager, Self Knowledge Symposium Foundation
919/875-4307, Janet@SelfKnowledge.org
www.selfknowledge.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Self Knowledge Symposium Foundation Granted Tax-Exempt Status

Triangle nonprofit continues work as a leader in the national interest in spirituality

RALEIGH, NC (October 9, 1999)—The Self Knowledge Symposium Foundation (SKSF) has received federal tax exempt status, with the approval of their 501(c)(3) application. Based in the Triangle, the educational nonprofit organization encourages people to consciously develop their own personal, moral and spiritual values and to live according to them. With tax-exempt status, the SKSF will be better able to put their mission into practice, by creating experiential learning programs and social contexts within which people can explore the deeper questions in life, and by developing intellectual understanding and personal character in a quest for the life worth living. The SKSF also advises the SKS campus groups at UNC-Chapel Hill, Duke University, and NC State University; sponsors a non-student discussion group; and co-sponsors meetings, lectures, retreats and The Symposium spiritual journal. For more information, visit www.selfknowledge.org.

"This has been a year of incredible growth for us," says SKSF Executive Director August "Augie" Turak. "With our tenth-anniversary event series, Collisions with the Infinite, we've had a chance to look back and see how far we've come. Back in '89, only a few students, inspired by a lecture I'd given at NC State, seemed serious about finding out who they really were. Being a spiritual seeker was a lonely venture in those days." Turak notes that the tide has turned, however, and points to efforts such as the national Education as Transformation conference at Wellesley, which he attended last year. There he met hundreds of educators, administrators, and students from universities across the country who were interested in starting programs similar to the SKSF's. "It has been truly gratifying to have people from UMass Boston to the University of Denver ask us for help in getting started. This tax status will allow us to continue to grow and serve this community."

Several leaders in education have noticed the SKSF's achievements, such as Dean William Willimon of Duke University. The best-selling author of The Search for Meaning, and ranked as one of the top ten English-speaking preachers in the world by Newsweek, declared, "The SKS is the hottest thing happening in higher education today." Adds Dr. Betsy Alden, Coordinator for Service-Learning, Kenan Ethics Program, Duke University: "The Symposium provides a forum for students to share and explore issues of spirit and meaning. Its power is in its student leadership, its focus on direct personal experience, and its openness to the world's great wisdom traditions."

Business leader Steve Grubbs was pleased with the news of the group's new tax-exempt status. Grubbs serves as Executive Vice President, Director of national TV buying and program development, and member of the Board of Directors for BBDO New York. "This news validates what the SKSF has been doing for so many years. Spirituality is a personal, experiential search for Truth, and the SKSF provides people a "toolbox" for profoundly transforming themselves. I couldn't be more pleased."

Mary Alice Scott, Program Director for the SKSF, notes the group is now eligible for grants to further their efforts. "We have so many projects that could benefit, from supporting interfaith efforts on college campuses to developing educational materials for our rapidly growing journal, The Symposium. We can't wait to get started."

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