For the past few months, I’ve been posting a lot on social media about my weekly Monday evening Zoom classes, which are part of the University Magickus online school. What the heck is University Magickus? Trust me, I asked myself the same question! The first I’d heard of it was when founder Nicholas Bonanni contacted me and asked if I’d be interested in teaching a beginning Pagan course, along the lines of the content in my second book, “Pagan Curious — A Beginner’s Guide to Nature, Magic & Spirituality.”
Well, that certainly sounded interesting! Tell me more!
Although I hadn’t heard of the school, I had heard of his partner, Patti Negri, who welcomed me to her live online show, The Witching Hour, last year. Patti has a huge international following and TV presence (she is also known as The Good Witch of Hollywood, and is a frequent guest on the Travel Channel), and despite her celebrity, my visit with her was warm and welcoming. We just had an immediate vibe. It was Patti who recommended me to Nicholas, as University Magickus had plenty of advanced magical classes but very few beginner classes.
Well, Nick and I chatted for a bit, and I gave it a go. I really wanted the experience of doing “live” videos, and this seemed like just leaping into the water, sink or swim style. I quickly discovered that live chats are super awesome, and luckily, I swam. Each week, many of the people who attend are regulars, and I feel like I’m getting to know them, and they’re getting to know me. It’s like a gathering of friends, and I’m just thrilled when people like the class enough to come back.
Besides Nick and Patti, the third partner is Father Sebastiaan. All three have a keen interest in the paranormal, ranging from ghost hunting to vampires, and this common thread brought them together.
Nick says he got the idea after interacting with Patti on Instagram.
“I just asked Patti to go live on Instagram and I started gaining thousands of followers,” he says, which encouraged him to take his visibility to the next level. “I always wanted to have my own school and I had already opened ‘The Haunted Diary.'” Initially, Patti and Sebastiaan were teachers at Nick’s fledgling school, and the three enjoyed working together, so Nick says they teamed up and founded University Magickus in October 2021. Over time, the school grew and grew, many of them discovering it through Patti and following her broadcasts, appearances, and performance. Nick says the students and teachers have become a cohesive group.
“University Magickus came from a community. We were over 100 people sharing a common passion: the paranormal. Having the leaders of the field in this community allowed us to form the school that we all love today.” From just the initial three teachers, the school now has a paid teaching staff of 25. (Including myself!)
Patti says that she and Sebastiaan go back a little further, and met each other before meeting Nick.
“I met Father Sebastiaan while filming an episode of ‘Ghost Adventures’ on the Travel Channel — an episode at Zaks Museum that we were both in. We became fast friends. I was wary of his “vampire” lifestyle/belief system — until I started reading his books (“The Black Veils,” etc.), and saw that his spirituality and magickal style was beautiful, positive, and almost exactly like my elemental eclectic pagan path!”
As Nick said, their initial contact was online. Patti says their live Instagram appearance “became classes, which became a school, and the rest is history — in the making!”
As the school evolved, a mission statement began to form.
“We want to be a one-stop shop where people can learn about all paths of spirituality without judgement or prejudice,” says Patti. “A place where people can find or create their own individual path. MagickU (short for University Magickus) is a place where contemporary and ancient wisdom come together in a safe and nurturing atmosphere. It is a place where students can study, learn, create their own path, spiritual evolution and purpose.”
She explains that MagickU is a place where people can meet others who are magickally-minded, and learn from teachers who are all over the world, and available via Zoom. Each offers courses from their own unique perspectives, allowing magickal practitioners an opportunity to hear different and fresh voices.
Patti says MagickU is allowing her to fulfill her passion.
“My goal in life is to help show or remind people how amazing they are. What better way to do it than offering them affordable, accessible ways with the best of teachers from all over the world!”
There are three tiers of membership: Student, Advanced, and VIP, with graduated tuition that allows increasing access. The deluxe membership is $525 per month, but with 40 different classes to offer, Nick says this only comes to about $13 per class. And, there’s the option of just signing up for a single class for less than $20. And what a variety of classes there are! From a casual “Tea and Tarot” chat to discussions of love magic, werewolves, hauntings, deities, vampires, tarot, nature, herbs, crystals, and even classes with Patti herself.
For more information about University Magickus, to enroll, or to sign up for classes, visit https://www.magicku.org/
For more information about Patti, visit https://www.pattinegri.com/
For more information about Father Sebastiaan, visit http://www.fathersebastiaan.com/
Find ghost hunter Nicholas Bonanni on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
