dc: What do you think makes our courses different in mental health?
Anne: The depth that goes into the preparation and planning of these courses is very impressive. I could tell you that it’s highly professional but it’s also that when you come along to a course, it embraces you. You feel comfortable. You feel respected. It’s a safe space and you can contribute at your pace, so it feels like you are ultimately driving yourself.
There’s no one with compliance, there’s no one setting what the goals and expectations are, that person doing that is you. So, what you want to get out of it is your decision. How you contribute, how you participate, is entirely within your control. This creates a very different learning setting. It promotes right from the get go the expectations of self-respect, and that for others. It has a different flavour, but the flavour is going in the right direction and feels really pivotal to learning today.
dc: So what would you say a discovery college course looks like?
Anne: It’s like a smile 🙂 The set up and the arrangement when you first come in is like walking into a smile.
dc: What would you say to someone who hasn’t been to a discovery college course before?
Anne: If you see promotion for the course, reach out and enquire. Ask about it, make a call, send an email, or even a text. What you’ll get back is information from someone that lives that smile. It’s just about being in those spaces whether online or physical. When you get knowledge of this particular college and the courses that it runs, make that movement, do it, because the first port of call is connection.
From there you can build up more knowledge and more opportunity for yourself. Maybe even meet with someone from the college before you come along or have someone come with you when you go to a course. Give yourself permission to have the courage to take that first step.
You’ll find that those experiences are positive and comforting. All my interactions with discovery college either electronically or face-to-face have always been highly professional, very engaging, and always effective.
If people that work professionally or have some type of practice have never been to one of your courses, I would really recommend everyone who works in social welfare or community development to come along as a point of professional development. To be a part of a course, because you’re hearing lived experience, you’re hearing professional experience, you’re getting an array of expertise that crosses all boundaries, all levels and it all compliments the learning.
It’s fresh, and it’s really relevant right now.
