I am sharing an update on the Strategic Plan deliverable I’m leading, which falls under our commitment to being a people-focused organization and the initiative for learner support and services.
Enhancing learner services to support well-being and resilience
BCIT students prove every day that they are resilient and that, with the right support, they have what it takes to accomplish incredible things. Our commitment to learner well-being and resilience is central to what we do as a people-focused organization intent on achieving educational excellence. Realizing this commitment means making sure that the right student supports are available when students need them, and that students know how to access them. To achieve these goals, we need to equip employees with the knowledge, tools, and skills that they need to be confident in their ability to identify and effectively refer students in need of support.
Key accomplishments
Over the past year, several initiatives have been undertaken in fulfillment of the above deliverable:
- Enhanced outreach and communication to students, including the introduction of a new Student Services landing page and refreshed bi-weekly Student Newsletter.
- Heightened resourcing of the Early Assist Program which enables a timely response to students identified as in need of support.
- Launch of the Student Well-being and Resilience Framework, providing a roadmap for our priorities in enhancing learner services.
- Increased access to student health and counselling services for students at specialty campuses and at home through phone and virtual appointments.
Next steps
Several other initiatives are currently in progress related to this deliverable, including:
- Ongoing assessment of learner needs across our specialty campuses.
- Development of tools to assist instructors in supporting learner well-being and resilience.
- Review of key policies and forms from a learner well-being perspective.
For more details and updates as these initiatives move forward, please check the Student Well-being and Resilience Framework Implementation Plan.
If you have questions, feedback, or ideas for new initiatives related to student well-being and resilience or you are interested in learning how you can become a student well-being champion, please contact Student_Wellbeing@bcit.ca.
Thank you,
Michael Mandrusiak
Associate Director, Student Access & Well-being
Commitment: People-focused organization
Initiative: Learner support and services
Deliverable: Enhanced learner services in well-being and resilience
Deliverable Lead: Michael Mandrusiak, Associate Director, Student Access & Well-being