About Us

In a time marked by mental health crises and increasing social stratification, our work is more urgent than ever. College years are pivotal for spiritual exploration, and young adults today face unprecedented challenges related to mental health, identity, and belonging. While various religious traditions have established robust campus chaplaincy programs, Buddhism remains largely underrepresented. The Maitreya Association aims to bridge this gap through:

Empowering chaplains by advocating for the support of Buddhist chaplains across universities.
Connecting seekers by providing mediation instructions, spiritual guidance, and coherent context to students exploring Buddhism.
Supporting heritage Buddhists by offering resources to deepen their practice and understanding of the Dharma.
Building community by creating a sense of belonging through college sanghas that cultivate unity and resilience across diverse backgrounds.

Our Mission

For Professionals

Empower Buddhist chaplains. Offer professional development in contemplative care to Buddhist teachers and other spiritual life professionals.

For Community

Design and implement cross-campus programming to strengthen Buddhist student organizations.

For Students

Provide Buddhist practice, spiritual care, teaching, and leadership development to college and university students.

For Collective

Hardness resources and fundraise to support our mission and extend our reach.

Our Team

Dedication. Expertise. Passion.

President

Ji Hyang Padma

Ji Hyang Padma is a college chaplain and educator with over twenty years’ experience in higher education, and a Zen teacher with Lay Entrustment Transmission in the Soto Zen lineage of Shunryu Suzuki. She has served as a college chaplain at seven institutions, including Wellesley College, Harvard University and Brandeis University. She is now Chair of the M.Div Program and Associate Faculty within the Wisdom Traditions Department, Naropa University.

Secretary

Jonathan Makransky

Jonathan Makransky is the Multireligious Ministry Initiatives Coordinator at Harvard Divinity School, where he manages the activities of the Buddhist Ministry Initiative. He received his Master of Theological Studies in Buddhism from Harvard and has worked in university spiritual life and ministry settings since then. He is a lifelong Tibetan Buddhist practitioner and has practiced leadership and youth mentorship experience in the tradition.

Treasurer

Kusa Iván Mayerhofer

Kusa Iván Mayerhofer is an ordained Dharma and meditation teacher in a Korean heritage Seon (Zen) Buddhist lineage. His ordination master is the Ven. Haju Sunim at the Zen Buddhist Temple in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Currently, he serves as the Associate Chaplain for Buddhist Programs, Director of the Davidson Meditation Initiative, and Interfaith Coordinator at Davidson College. At Davidson, he gets the rare and awesome opportunity to be a Buddhist presence on campus, lead Dharma and meditation programs, as well as meditation retreats, and take students on Buddhist pilgrimages to local temples and international ones too. Before moving to North Carolina, Iván lived in Colorado Springs where he served on the boards of Awakening Truth and Web of Connection, both organizations that supported the still-growing Theravada Buddhism Bhikkhuni movement. Originally, Iván is from Southern California, where his parents immigrated from Germany and Mexico. Ivan serves as Treasurer of the Maitreya Association.

Vice President

Rebecca Dawn Nie

Rebecca D. Nie has served the Buddhist communities at Stanford in various ministerial roles for the past 15 years. In 2020, she was invited to serve the inaugural Chaplain-Affiliate Council with other campus ministry leaders, such as the Executive Director of Hillel at Stanford. The Dean of ORSL, with the approval of the Stanford Provost, has been entrusting her to oversee the Buddhist religious and spiritual life of the students, faculty, and staff since. Z.M. Nie is a Zen Master of the Korean Jogye Order and received teaching authorization in Chinese Esoteric Buddhism. She also holds advanced degrees in physics and mathematics from the University of Toronto and Stanford University.

Chair of Advisory Committee

Venerable Priya Rakkhit Sraman, MDiv

Venerable Priya Rakkhit Sraman is a Theravāda Buddhist monastic and chaplain dedicated to fostering spiritual well-being in higher education. Originally from Chattogram, Bangladesh, he was ordained at the age of eleven and has trained in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Hong Kong, and the USA. He holds a Master of Divinity from Harvard Divinity School and served as the first Buddhist Chaplain at Tufts University, Massachusetts, before moving to Atlanta to become the first Buddhist Chaplain in the Office of Spiritual and Religious Life at Emory University. In this role, he mentors students, leads meditation programs, facilitates interfaith collaboration, and supports the spiritual care needs of the Emory community. He also organizes Buddhist educational initiatives, including the Black Buddhist Teachers Series and the Buddhist Book Club, retreats, workshops, cultural and traditional festivals. Beyond Emory, he actively engages with local Buddhist centers and advises students on Buddhist studies and spiritual development.