Events, Initiatives and Training

The Healthy Workplace Committee (HWC) is happy to have members like Isabel Savransky and Lia Van Wees from the OCIS team! The HWC is looking forward to supporting Earth Day and hope to see you at one of the events!

Your Healthy Workplace Committee is excited to share information about the Bird Safe Campus Initiative! OCIS is looking for volunteers to monitor buildings on both the North and Downtown campus in their spare time during the Spring migration season. Registration form: https://forms.gle/pNXVkywUvAHUdoBy6

National Pet Day is an unofficial holiday that takes place each year and is a day to appreciate the role that pets play in our lives.

You and your pet(s) are invited to join members of your Healthy Workplace Committee for this virtual event! Join in the fun, share a story, and learn more about pets loved and adored by your colleagues! 

Participants will be entered into a random draw for a “pet prize”!

Date:   Friday, April 11, 2025
Time: 12 – 1 p.m.
Mode of delivery: Virtual
Target audience: All faculty and staff

REGISTER by  4pm on Wednesday, April 9th

Gain knowledge to identify shifts in mental health and well-being in yourself and others while learning coping skills to manage stress.  Increasing our awareness about mental health will help reduce stigma associated with mental illness.

Participants will receive a certificate of completion from the Mental Health Commission of Canada. 

Date: Wednesday, April 23, 2025
Time: 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Location: Virtual, via Google Meet
Target Audience: Employees (Faculty and Staff without direct reports) 

Register for The Working Mind

 A minimum of 8 participants to run a session. Participants will be notified if the session is cancelled due to low enrollment.

The Every Day in May Health Challenge returns, May 1-31, 2025! This challenge combines various healthy habits, such as physical activity, nutrition, water consumption, and self-care practices, into a fun, friendly competition between colleagues.  Sign-up today for your chance to win prizes, while reaping the benefits of healthy habits and connecting with your team!

Visit the Every Day in May Health Challenge web page for full details!

This informative and interactive workshop is being provided by TELUS Health, our Employee Assistance Program (EAP) provider.

During this session participants will:

• Learn how to navigate mental health conversations through practical, hands-on activities.
• Explore common barriers to sharing mental health experiences.
• Apply a simple 4 step plan when preparing to share and obtain support. 
• Identify the key characteristics of a supportive person.
• Explore community and workplace resources that can provide informal and formal support.

Instructor

Anna Olchowecki, B.Sc.N, R.N., has a passion for empowering healthier individuals and has a genuine and calm demeanor. Anna is an entrepreneur in creating her own women’s health coaching business and is an advocate for research and evidence-based health and well-being practices. Anna is a member of the Integrative Women’s Health Institute as well as the Menopause Society (NAMS).

Date: May 14
Time: Noon to 1 p.m.
Location: Virtual

Mindfulness: Coming out of Automatic Pilot

Session format:

• settling practice
• brief review of the practice intention
• the main practice
• post-practice reflection
• Question and Answer time

Date: Tuesday, May 20
Time: Noon to 1 p.m.
Location: Virtual
REGISTER FOR COMING OUT OF AUTOMATIC PILOT

Instructors

Joan Hunt MSW RSW is a retired social worker and psychotherapist specializing in the Mental Health and Addictions field. She is also a Certified Teacher (2014) of Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction from the University of Massachusetts Medical School. She has extensive experience teaching mindfulness to a number of different populations including Mindfulness Based Cancer Recovery, Mindfulness Based Wellness and Resiliency and more recently Mindfulness and Self Compassion.

Karen Lewis MSW RSW RMFT-SQ is a social worker, psychotherapist, and couple & relational therapist in private practice. Her interest in the benefits of mindfulness and compassion to promote wellbeing and personal growth, led her to pursue training through the Center for Mindful Self-Compassion, a global leader in self-compassion training and practice, and the MiCBT Institute, an established research and training organization based in Australia providing professional training in mindfulness for regulated health professionals. Karen has significant experience facilitating groups.

We’ve heard you say that supporting your well-being comes in many forms including channeling your creative juices into your next LEGO project, so we invite you to attend April Showers bring May LEGO Flowers! Every participant will receive one LEGO set to build and keep. LEGO sets include Chrysanthemum, Plum Blossom, Mini Orchid, and Lucky Bamboo. At the workshop, participant names will be randomly drawn and then they can select their preferred LEGO set. Space is limited, so please register early.

Sessions

REGISTER FOR SESSION #1

REGISTER FOR SESSION #2

Gain knowledge to identify shifts in mental health and well-being in yourself and others while learning coping skills to manage stress.  Increasing our awareness about mental health will help reduce stigma associated with mental illness. 

Managers will receive The Working Mind for Employees plus additional content about supporting your team including:

• Having healthy conversations,
• Return to work & accommodation, and
• Helping your team through crisis management

Participants will receive a certificate of completion from the Mental Health Commission of Canada. 

Date: Thursday, May 22, 2025
Time: 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Location: Virtual, via Google Meet

 REGISTER FOR THE WORKING MIND

 A minimum of 8 participants to run a session. Participants will be notified if the session is cancelled due to low enrollment.

When it comes to the health of relationships, teams, and organizations, one thing affects everything: communication. Backed by 30 years of social science, Crucial Conversation skills represent the standard in effective communication. Improve your skills and get better outcomes by attending a training course.

The communication skills taught in this training focus on a specific kind of interaction: those when stakes are high, opinions vary, and emotions run strong. This is not a course on winning friends or winning people to your way of thinking; it’s about strengthening relationships and securing results in the moments that matter most.

This course teaches nine powerful skills for working through disagreement to achieve better resources: Get unstuck, Master my stories, Start with heart, State my path, Make it safe, Learn to look, Seek mutual purpose, Explore others’ paths, and Move to action.

Crucial Conversations: Employees

• Date: Monday, June 16, 2025 to Friday, June 20, 2025 (2.5 hours x 5 days)
• Time: 1:00 pm to 3:30 pm
• Location: Virtual
• Target Audience: Employees
  Note: Participants must attend all dates to receive their certificate.

REGISTER FOR JUNE 16-20, 2025 EMPLOYEE SESSION.

Crucial Conversations: Managers/Directors

• Date: Monday, June 23,2025 to June 27, 2025 (2.5 hours x 5 days)
• Time: 9:30 a.m. to noon
• Location: Virtual
• Target Audience: Managers/Directors
  Note: Participants must attend all dates to receive their certificate.

REGISTER FOR JUNE 23-27, 2025 MANAGERS/DIRECTORS SESSION.

Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST) is a two-day in-person workshop featuring powerful audio-visuals, discussions, and simulations. You'll learn how to recognize when someone might be thinking about suicide, and how to provide a skilled intervention and develop a safety plan with the person to connect them to further support. This workshop will increase your willingness, confidence, and capacity to provide suicide first aid.

This training requires a minimum of 8 participants to occur.

Date: Tuesday, July 22 and Wednesday, July 23, 2025*
Time: 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Location: In-person, North Campus, Room To Be Confirmed
Audience: All faculty and staff
* Please note: Participants must attend both days to be certified.

REGISTER FOR ASIST

Are you wondering what to make for dinner? Would you like to try a new recipe?

Free fitness classes offered by Campus Recreation and Wellness Centre for Staff and Faculty.

Visit the Group Fitness web page to book your spot.

Come out to the Campus Recreation Wellness Centre (CRWC) and participate in the Athletics department’s Staff and Faculty Pickleball Days. There is no need to register or purchase a membership; just drop in! Equipment is provided.

Schedule:

• Friday, April 25 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. 

Whether you are new to Ontario Tech or wanting to refresh your knowledge of the supports and services available through TELUS Health, our Employee Assistance Program, please select the orientation format that works best for you.

1. 1-Minute Mini Orientation for Employees - Video Recording
2. 25-Minute Full Orientation for Employees - Video Recording
3. Virtual Orientations: Employee and Manager* sessions held live. Select the date within the Orientation Flyer that you would like to attend to register.

*Orientation for Manager video recordings are available on the Leader Supports webpage.