NEWS RELEASE COUNTY OF WELLINGTON
Aboyne, Ont.- Wellington Terrace Long Term Care Home and the Upper Grand District School Board (UGDSB) will be hosting Living Classroom information sessions.
The Living Classroom is a training model designed to educate and prepare the next generation of health care students by immersing them directly in the operations of long-term care and retirement homes.
Benefits of a Living Classroom Include:
- An Immersive Learning Environment: Students spend valuable instruction time inside a care home setting, working alongside health care professionals, interacting with residents, and applying their learned skills in meaningful, real-world circumstances.
- A Collaborative and Supportive Culture: The Living Classroom fosters a team-based approach, bringing together faculty, residents, families, and care teams to create a rich learning environment that enhances both student education and resident well-being.
- A Stronger Healthcare Workforce: As the demand for skilled and compassionate health care providers continues to grow, the Living Classroom model ensures graduates are ready for the workforce from day one. Students receive hands-on experience that prepares them to deliver exceptional senior care and sets them up for long-term career success in the long-term care and retirement home sector.
- Innovation in Personalized Care: Each Living Classroom is designed to meet the unique needs of the partnering long-term care home and educational institution, ensuring that training methods and care approaches are adaptable, effective, and applicable to the needs of the people they care for.
- Education- Upon completing the 10-month Living Classroom Programme, students will receive their PSW certification; CPR and First Aid Certification, Gentle Persuasive Approach Certificate (GPA®) in Dementia Care; marketing skills; employer contacts; work experience; OSSD credits if required
Information Sessions:
Saturday, April 11 (2 sessions): 10:00 am – 12:00 pm and 12:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Tuesday, April 14: 5:00 – 7:00 pm
Thursday, April 16: 5:00 – 7:00 pm
All sessions will be held at the Wellington County Museum in Aboyne Hall. 536 Wellington Road 18, Fergus ON N1M 2W3
“Wellington Terrace is pleased to continue our successful partnership with the Upper Grand District School District Board on the Living Classroom Programme,” said Suzanne Dronick Wellington Terrace Long Term Care Home Administrator. “We look forward to welcoming the next cohort of students into the programme.”
“The UGDSB PSW programme at Wellington Terrace is an exciting opportunity to support our community and invest in frontline health-care workers who make such a difference every day,” said Melissa McDowall, Principal of Continuing Education at UGDSB. “PSWs are essential to quality care, and this programme in partnerships with Wellington County helps build a stronger, more compassionate health-care system.”
Background
A pioneering partnership in 2009 between Conestoga College, the Schlegel-UW Research Institute for Aging (RIA), and Schlegel Villages launched our Living Classroom programme. The programme is currently funded by the Government of Ontario and led by the RIA through the Centres for Learning, Research and Innovation in Long-Term Care (Ontario CLRI), in partnership with the Ontario Association of Adult and Continuing Education School Board Administrators (CESBA). There are over 50 Living Classrooms across Ontario, with that number expected to grow.
