7 minute read
Learning in Action
CROSS-CAMPUS COLLABORATION CREATING CAMPUS
PLAYGROUND
The Human Services Club is heading a crossdepartment initiative to improve Lakeland College’s playscape. Club president and child and youth care student
Katherine Dinesh says the club was looking for a special project to work on when the idea of creating a nature-inspired play area for the community was presented. “We wanted to give back to the community,”
Dinesh explains. “Our instructors came up with the idea of creating a natural playscape and we worked together to come up with all the concrete ideas. Natural play spaces are very important for children, especially in a society which is so reliant on technology. Our idea is to help children with the sensory aspects of development, while being out in nature and playing.”
The playscape is already under construction beside the arboretum on Lakeland’s Vermilion campus. Plans for it include a tunnel, A-frame and stairs as well as a mud kitchen, water play area and sound wall, all created with donated or locally sourced material. Funds from Feast on the Farm also contributed to the project.
According to Dinesh, the best part of the project is that it is a group effort involving the entire campus. “It’s called the Human Services Club but we have students from all the different schools bringing their perspective on things,” she says.
EMPOWERMENT Building futures with SUPPORT
Annette Donnenworth knows how essential a supportive community is to achieving financial empowerment thanks to Women Building Futures (WBF).
Working as a waitress several years ago, Donnenworth was looking for assistance transitioning into a career with more room for economic growth. WBF helped her find a career in the pipefitting trade where she thrived.
Fast forward several years, the WBF alumni was ready to take her career in a new direction with power engineering. When WBF and Lakeland announced their new partnership in the spring of 2021, she jumped at the opportunity to enrol in a power engineering career accelerator program. “They don’t just throw you in there,” says the WBF alumni, who’s now enrolled at Lakeland College. “They give you a strong base of knowledge to start, they help you get all the safety tickets you need, and they mentor you, preparing you before you even start the program. I really liked that.”
The accelerator program provides three weeks of instruction and training for potential female power engineering students. It’s an opportunity to get their safety tickets, brush up on their math and other skills, and build a community before entering the post-secondary program. The partnership with Lakeland ensures that seats in the heavy oil power engineering (HOPE) program are held for participants, pending their successful application. Donnenworth completed the accelerator program with nine other women, eight of whom are now taking HOPE. “With Women Building Futures, they set you up with a foundation of knowledge and community. Here at Lakeland, they teach you how to keep that momentum going with support. It’s amazing."
LAKELAND COLLABORATION TO THE RESCUE
Jana Teefy, a Lakeland College second-year wildlife and fisheries conservation (WFC) student, flew into action when she received news that a bird needed rescuing.
On Nov. 17, 2021, the retrieval request came from WFC alumna Alyssa Metro, who works for the Alberta Society for Injured Birds of Prey. She connected with Ryan Pearce, a Lakeland environmental sciences instructor, however he wasn’t available and recommended Teefy. “After receiving the call about the injured bird, I knew that Jana, who took my ornithology class, had experience safely handling birds from volunteering at the Beaver Hills Bird Observatory. She is also a volunteer at Wild North and has experience handling, caring for and transporting large birds. Additionally, she has worked with wildlife during a previous career as an animal health technician so I was comfortable asking Jana to go rescue the hawk and putting her in contact with Alyssa,” says Pearce. With Pearce’s help, Teefy connected with Metro to coordinate the rescue southwest of Vermilion, and Caleb Corcoran, who works at the Strathcona Raptor Shelter, to organize the bird’s transfer. “I remember the snow was past my knees, so it was difficult to circle the bird. I was trying to come up behind it. It was trying to be intimidating with its wings spread and opening its mouth. When I got close enough, the first thing I did was grab its legs because if you have a leg, you have the bird. While all of my previous experience helped me in retrieving the hawk, my experience in Ryan’s class helped me properly ID it as a Rough-legged Hawk,” Teefy explains. On the underside of the Roughlegged Hawks’ wings, they have a dark patch or markings that are key identifiers, as well as long and narrow broad wings and wingtips that are broad and often swept back slightly. Teefy says she was excited to use her ornithology skills from class in a real rescue opportunity. “Overall, it was a cool experience. I want to be an ornithologist and work in research and bird conservation. I put all of my training into practice during this experience, which is exactly the type of work I want to do,” Teefy says.
August 18, 2022 Research Centre, Vermilion campus
Held in a beautiful setting outdoors on our Research Centre, Feast on the Farm is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to connect with industry leaders, alumni ,and friends of the college while raising funds for Lakeland’s distinct educational model.
Lakeland College’s approach to education is straightforward. We put students in real-world scenarios, challenging them to think critically and learn through tangible experiences. Your support of Feast on the Farm ensures our students benefit from an educational experience that goes beyond the classroom.
For tickets, contact Stacey Ruller at 780.872.3080
Students launch HANDS-ON HELPING
At Lakeland, hands-on learning is a critical component of the student experience. Some human services students are using these opportunities as both a way to practice their new skills and to offer their fellow students an additional form of support with peer coaching. Kara Mouly, a second-year child and youth care student and peer coach, says the new peer coaching program fits in with the other student wellness initiatives offered at Lakeland. “It’s important to have student coaching programs like this because there are a lot of students who might be nervous about talking to the counsellor and would rather just talk to another student,” Mouly explains. “Maybe they don’t know where to start looking for services. We can help direct them to where they need to go and it gives us
a chance to practice our skills.” Mouly is one of three peer coaches. They meet in the library a few times each week for casual conversations with students looking for someone to talk to and are available through email. The peer coaches also host wellness activities and help Lakeland’s student wellness advisor, Sarah Popil, with her programs. "Stress, tests and The coaches also homesickness, have extensive information on whatever they are various resources going through, we are and are able to help able to talk about it students navigate and to find the proper them. resources for them." “We help with pretty much anything a student will go through,” Mouly says. “Stress, tests and homesickness, whatever they are going through, we are able to talk about it and to find the proper resources for them. They are pretty universal experiences. We all go through them at some point in the semester.”
I care about my family. I also care about my college.
You don’t have to choose.
Support the ones you love and Lakeland in your Will. WillPower.ca has simple tools to guide you through the process of leaving a charitable gift in your Will.
This year, Lakeland continued to offer in-person, work-integrated learning experiences that take students beyond the classroom! It’s a critical part of what makes a Lakeland education so valuable. Because this handson approach challenges every student to go beyond the classroom, our students graduate as highly capable thinkers and doers.
Because of this, it was important that we provide our students with these experiences, even as we adapted to the challenges of these past few years. Here is just a snapshot of what our students have been up to.
