Shelter Support Worker Certificate Program

This module provides an overview of the Shelter Support Worker course, student expectations and a brief history of housing and homelessness crisis in Ontario. It will explain structural and individual causes of homelessness and housing instability for youth, 2SLGBTQ+, Indigenous peoples, people with disabilities, new immigrants & refugees and our responsibility to these groups. We will also learn about the Toronto shelter standards and operations, low barrier shelters and housing models such as Housing First.

Students will learn about oppression for various communities and other intersectional groups in this session. 

In this module, students will learn about effective communication. It will assist in avoiding misunderstandings and improve accuracy in using language and communication skills. In addition, students will learn effective listening skills and de-escalation tactics. 

Trauma-Informed Care understands and considers the pervasive nature of trauma and promotes environments of healing and recovery rather than practices and services that may inadvertently re-traumatize others.

In this module, students will learn the moral principles shared by a group. In addition, this module will provide principles and standards for workers serving homeless people in the various shelter facilities. These standards will enable Shelter Support Workers to adhere to a humane, fair, and caring code of conduct.

This module will discuss fears and ways to face them. We will also understand the meaning of self-sabotage and learn ways to avoid the behavior.

In this module, students will learn about harm reduction, which refers to policies, programmes and practices that aim to minimize negative health, social and legal impacts of drug use, drug policies and drug laws. In addition, students will learn how to work with people without judgement, coercion, discrimination, or requiring that they stop using drugs as a precondition of support.

Case management is a professional and collaborative process that assesses, plans, implements, coordinates, monitors, and evaluates the options and services required to meet an individual's health needs. Students will get a basic understanding of case management and documentation skills.

In this module, students will learn about crisis intervention and how to de-escalate situations where someone is highly annoyed, angry or afraid and may react with hostility. In addition, students will learn how to work from an empathetic perspective and understand the differences between empathy and sympathy.

Students will learn about Indigenous culture to recognize, comprehend, and appreciate Indigenous peoples' values, traditions, and belief systems. Students will hear about Indigenous history in a de-colonized way of storytelling to understand how one's own beliefs, practices and histories have impacted the health and wellness, self-esteem and socio-economic wellbeing of Indigenous peoples.