FSSH Practicum office celebrates community partnerships

Practical hands-on learning is a major component of the undergraduate experience at Ontario Tech University. Students a acquire workplace skills, apply their knowledge in real-world settings to solve pressing problems, and cultivate a sense of personal and professional development.

The university’s Faculty of Social Science and Humanities (FSSH) provides experiential learning opportunities through the Practicum: an intensive, challenging and competitive academic course offered to a select group of fourth-year students. The Practicum includes both an in-class component as well as a 100-hour placement with an organization.

Practicum placements would not be possible without the partnerships FSSH has forged over the years with a wide variety of organizations. To honour these collaborations, the faculty recently hosted its first-ever Celebration of Community Partnerships event.

Speakers included:

• Steven Murphy, President, Ontario Tech University
• Peter Stoett, PhD, Dean, FSSH
• Dan Walters, FSSH Practicum Co-ordinator
• Tristan Williams, fourth-year Criminology student

“Our university—especially the downtown Oshawa campus location—is well-positioned to grow alongside its surrounding communities,” says Walters. “As a relatively new university, we have the privilege of building our identity and reputation around the feedback received from our community partners. In the Faculty of Social Science and Humanities, we have an impressive array of Practicum supervisors who play a critical role in our students’ personal, professional and academic development. Our experiential learning partners, in effect, serve as an active ingredient in our students’ success—and I am forever indebted.​”

Randy Gill, President and CEO of community partner Their Opportunity, a local charity that helps low-income families enrol their children in organized sports and recreational programs, values the university’s Practicum experience for its contributions to the community, and for its ability to bring people together.

“I believe in the Practicum experience, and I believe we’re creating impact together in our communities, across the region and the nation,” says Gill. “When you make an investment in people, that’s where your greatest resources lie.”

Fourth-year Criminology student Tristan Williams completed his placement with Carea Community Health Centre’s Youth Outreach Program in Ajax, Ontario.

“My Practicum experience nurtured my passion for helping youth who may be struggling with behavioural or confidence issues,” says Williams. “I thank Practicum Co-ordinators Dan Walters and Juanita Barton for their enthusiasm and determination. It’s important for students to have access to Practicum staff who are so inspired to do their job, and who are willing to go above and beyond as they empower youth and those who will lead the future.”

• See more photos from the Celebration of Community Partnerships event.

To learn more about the benefits of the Practicum for students and employers, contact the FSSH Practicum team or check out:

• The Practicum section of the FSSH website.
• FSSH on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.