Wholistic Student Experience

With a focus on the well-being of the whole student, Niagara College nurtured and leveraged its unique relationship with student leadership, created new co-curricular activities and opportunities for community engagement; new mental health and wellness strategies that recognize and respond to a more diverse college community; and new and vibrant learning and living spaces.

Niagara College received $100,000 in funding over two years from the Bell Let’s Talk Post-Secondary Fund. The funding will support the development and implementation of a Mental Health and Well-Being Framework and knowledgebuilding campaigns to increase awareness of mental health supports, reduce stigma, and create a culture of understanding and action that supports student mental health and well-being.

A two-day summer transition program was introduced for incoming students with disabilities to help them with the transition to college, providing an opportunity to meet their support team and peers, and build skills to feel prepared for the start of term.

Thrive@NC, a five-week program to build and enhance resilience and thrive personally and academically; and ncLibraries + Learning Commons celebrated the grand opening of the new digital media lab and makerspace at the Welland Campus. Known as the ‘Exploratory,’ the space features a range of technology, software, and equipment for filming and editing videos, recording audio, designing graphics and creating prototypes with a 3D printer, sparking imagination and innovation for students, faculty and staff.

KORU Mindfulness, a fourweek mindfulness course for students, were delivered in the Fall and Winter terms. Meditation Mondays provided an opportunity for students and employees to practice mindfulness, reduce stress and anxiety, increase calmness and relaxation, and improve concentration, physical and psychological well-being.

A special canine, Teddy, an Australian Shepherd, Blue Heeler mix and Certified Therapy Dog, was welcomed to the NC community to help students manage stress. Studies have demonstrated the benefits that therapy animals provide to students to help with stress reduction and an improved sense of calm and well-being.

Gratitude Wednesdays launched in Winter 2023 to promote thankfulness and positive mental health for students. Gratitude booths collected notes of gratitude from students that were added to a ‘Garden of Gratitude,’ within the Health, Wellness and Accessibility Services (HWAS) offices.

Professor Joanna Cielen launched The Pursuit of Happiness: A Practical Guide to Mindfulness, a unique course that blends mindfulness with the science of happiness and workplace preparation. The innovative course launched virtually in Winter 2022 with more than 80 students.

The Niagara College Therapeutic Recreation Activity Collective, known as ‘nc-TRAC’, reopened in Fall 2022, offering students meaningful resources; therapeutic recreation activities to promote physical, social, cognitive, spiritual and emotional health; drop-in guided relaxation and meditation; cultural programs; and is home to virtual-reality headsets, two Snoezelen rooms and a BroomX Projector – an immersive, interactive multimedia device that transforms the space into a relaxing refuge for students. The Collective also offers valuable learning and volunteer opportunities for Recreation Therapy students.

Indigenous Education celebrated the grand re-opening of the Welland Campus Indigenous Lounge. The new space provides Indigenous students access to a range of amenities and resources, and a lounge area to gather and meet. The celebration, held during Treaty Recognition Week, also marked the designation of the HWAS office as a smudge-friendly space.

NC’s Student Administrative Council (NCSAC) held a dedication event to unveil the newly renamed Saundra Patterson Wellness Lounge. The space honours Saundra Patterson, the devoted partner of long-time NC President Dan Patterson, who is currently President Emeritus.

Saundra, who passed away in January 2021, was loved by the college community for her compassion and leaves behind a legacy of tireless commitment to student success. The lounge is a special indoor space for students to drop-in and engage with trained wellness peers about challenges, such as loneliness, sadness, and stress, and to access wellness resources.

The Career Fair returned to an in-person format for the first time since 2020, providing students and community members with a venue to explore a multitude of job opportunities available in the Niagara region.

Academic Excellence

In an atmosphere of constant innovation in teaching and learning, Niagara College provided valuable experiential learning for students, whether on campus, online, local or global. NC innovators looked for opportunities to leverage new technologies to make programs more flexible, accessible and responsive to the needs and expectations of students and employers, ensuring programs meet and exceed provincial quality benchmarks. NC also leveraged connections with industry, employers and alumni to enhance pathways and opportunities for students.

The first recipients of the President’s Award for Innovation in Student Learning and Success were announced in 2022. The Award recognizes individuals and teams at the College who have made an impact on student engagement, learning, or success in remarkable ways by innovating aspects of their work or by creating new opportunities.

Five innovations by 15 innovators received the award:

> Virtual Innovation in Esthetician Retailing by Susan Paone and Lisa Maurice, professors in the School of Hospitality, Tourism and Sport

> Lightboard by Shauna Gupta, professor in the School of English Language Studies

> Entrepreneurial and Experiential – New realms of discovery by Cammie Jaquays and Melanie Sodka, professors in the School of Business and Management Studies

> Sustainability Ambassador Program by Lindsay Taylor, student, Taryn Wilkinson and Amber Schmucker, staff from the Office of Sustainability

> NC Virtual Preschool by Angela Hayes, Lindsay Milligan, Cathy Teixeira, Kelly Wilcox, Drew Kean, Jodi-Lynn Noble, and Wendy Coxon, staff and faculty from the Early Childhood Education program.

NC launched a new Accessibility Hub, leveraging $230,000 in funding from the eCampus Ontario Virtual Learning Strategy grant. The team behind the Accessibility Hub developed articles, checklists, videos, and resources with straight-forward recommendations for educators to simplify the creation of accessible web content, learning materials, and experiences for students.

History was made in Niagara at the Niagara 2022 Canada Summer Games, and Niagara College was thrilled to be part of the inspiring sports and culture legacy of the transformational event in many ways, including as Experiential and Digital Production Partner Broadcasting – Radio, Television and Film (BRTF) Professor and Program Coordinator Peter “Dutch” VandenBerg, served as Chair of Broadcast Operations

& Production Services for the Games. Through his leadership, over 100 BRTF students and alumni had the opportunity to work on the event in a multitude of technical roles. NC’s mobile broadcasting units could be seen across Niagara during the two-week event, as the crew covered 90% of the Games’ competitions and events, producing over 1,000 hours of live coverage. Hundreds of NC students, faculty, staff and alumni volunteered and interned with the Games, a once-in-a-lifetime experiential learning opportunity that brought the welcoming, passionate and trailblazing spirit of NC to the multi-sport event.

The opening of the Student Massage Therapy Clinic drew in clients from the College and community, providing Massage Therapy students with hands-on experience during their third semester of the program and exposure to a wide variety of different injuries and conditions in a range of real-life scenarios to prepare them for their future careers.

The reopening of NC’s Performance Therapy Clinic provided hands-on, on-site experience for Occupational Therapist Assistant and Physiotherapist Assistant students and opportunities to complete required work placement hours.

In 2023, NC and Bethesda hosted dedicated dental hygiene clinics for children with autism spectrum disorder. The clinics provided children with autism extra support to have a successful dental appointment while NC students took on the role of clinicians, participating in assessments, oral hygiene instruction, and a range of dental services.

NC faculty and students and residents at Radiant Care Tabor Manor developed a virtual wellness platform for Radiant Care residents that promotes the physical and social aspects of fitness while boosting seniors’ technology skills. The project was funded by the Radiant Care Foundation and the Government of Canada New Horizons grant and was prompted by the social isolation seniors experienced during the pandemic. Students helped lead filmed fitness classes with senior resident participants, and residents were able to access the videos on technology devices that NC students taught them to use through a train-the-trainer model.

NC was the first college in Canada to adopt Pallium’s award-winning Learning Essential Approaches to Palliative Care (LEAP) Paramedic course. The course was woven into the Paramedic program curriculum and provided second-year students the chance to earn their certification from Pallium Canada. LEAP Paramedic is a blended learning course for paramedics and Emergency Medical Service professionals that teaches the essential practical knowledge, attitudes, and skills to provide a palliativecare approach on-site.

The Wellness Connection Tour, funded by the Niagara Community Foundation and spearheaded by Club Wellness Niagara, gave NC students in the Recreation Therapy and Social Service Worker programs hands-on experience and a chance to help people across Niagara connect with supports and services. The tour stopped in one Niagara community per week to give people access to free wellness programming and resources, such as housing support, employment services, medical care and substance-use programs. NC students engaged participants in recreational activities and connected them to community resources.

The new Culinary, Tourism and Beverage Studies division and a new culinary service model launched in 2022, amplifying the student experience with events and initiatives driven by curriculum that allow students to showcase their skills to the college community and the public. Events included culinary pop-ups, where students cooked an eclectic range of cuisine for guests to purchase, and final exam dinners, where students prepared and cooked a five-course meal for guests in Benchmark.

The new foodservice model also increased opportunities for students to participate in the Feed the Community program, spearheaded by Professor Olaf Mertens, who received a Minister’s Award of Excellence for the initiative. Culinary students prepared and packaged 300 meals per week for delivery to local food banks, putting students’ classroom skills and knowledge to work while learning about social responsibility.

The popular Caps, Corks and Forks event returned in 2023. Guests enjoyed a five-course meal prepared by culinary students led by Chef Professors Tony DeLuca and Kyle Landry. Each course was paired with both a wine and a beer, carefully selected by two teams of students – Team Wine and Team Beer (Winery and Viticulture Technician, and Brewmaster and Brewery Operation Management programs, respectively), who poured, served, and introduced their beverage selections at the event. Baking and Pastry Arts students prepared dessert, Hospitality and Tourism students presented the meal, and Artisan Distilling students crafted and served a signature cocktail for the pre-dinner reception.

In partnership with the City of Welland, NC hosted the first-ever Welland Girls Sports Day – a free event for girls ages six to 12 to try out a variety of sports. Staff, faculty and students from multiple areas of the College contributed to the event, including Knights varsity coaches and student-athletes, who ran stations to teach the technical aspects of each sport. Recreation Therapy faculty and students made the event accessible for all participants, while Hairstyling students taught participants how to style hair for sport.

A new English-style garden was unveiled to honour the memory of Saundra Patterson – the College’s long-time ‘first lady’ and partner of NC President Emeritus Dan Patterson. The Saundra Patterson Memorial Garden was designed and built by students and faculty from the School of Environment and Horticulture, and staff from the Teaching Greenhouse. As a special applied learning project, more than 150 students participated in the creation of the garden.

Students in the Educational Assistance and Adult Supports program gained real-world experience supporting literacy development in children through a new initiative called Developing Readers, which partnered with DSBN schools to provide reading partners to students spanning from kindergarten to grade two.

In collaboration with the DSBN, NC welcomed 120 high school students to the Trades has no Gender event, a series of sessions for secondary students covering the fields of carpentry, electrical, technology and industrial automation, motive power, and welding. Students participated in lab activities to learn about programs in the trades and STEM pathways.

Students from the Educational Assistance – Adult Supports and Recreation Therapy programs learned about accessibility through ParaSport Pathways – a leadership workshop that taught participants about inclusion in sport, recreation, and physical activity for people of all ages and abilities. Students who attended the workshop earned their Introduction to Inclusion – Level 1 Certification, a provincially recognized certification that will help students build their resumes and portfolios as they embark on their careers.

Students in NC’s Hairstyling and Broadcasting programs showcased their skills behindthe-scenes at Canada’s Got Talent. Hairstyling students worked backstage to prepare contestants for their performances with hair, make-up, and touch-ups.

Television Production students assisted filming crews, filmed performers, and handled stagehand and audience logistics.

The Early Childhood Community Development Centre (ECCDC) and NC received close to $2 million in funding through the Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development to design and deliver an accelerated Early Childhood Education diploma program. The program allowed educators currently working within licensed childcare and EarlyON programs to participate in a year-long program to become a Registered Early Childhood Educator while maintaining their employment.

NC and Niagara University (NU) signed a Dual Admission agreement and an Academic Articulation agreement to create pathways for students from eligible NC diploma programs at NC to NU degree programs, and for students in eligible programs who maintain required academic averages to gain guaranteed and automatic acceptance to NU degree programs.

Photonics researchers and industry experts from across Canada visited the Photonics Engineering programs, the only dedicated programs of their kind in Canada, as part of the 2022 Photonics North Conference Nearly 200 delegates toured the facilities, experiencing equipment demos by faculty and students and visiting the photonics flex lab, high-power laser lab, spectroscopy and additive manufacturing lab, optical fabrication space and more.