NC TRAC welcomes staff and students to experience recreational therapy at grand opening

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n Nov. 5, Niagara College’s Welland Campus celebrated the grand opening of the Niagara College Therapeutic Recreation Activity Centre, as known as ‘NC TRAC.’

The Centre, located in the Merritt Wing in M102, offers students sensory experiences and therapeutic recreation activities to promote physical, social, cognitive, spiritual and emotional health.

At the ribbon-cutting ceremony, staff and students were able to interact with the industry level sensory tools. A popular activity among participants is the sensory floor, an interactive floor that responds to movement on or above it.

“We really see this as a win-win-win opportunity,” said Christine Wilkinson, Recreation Therapy professor, in her opening remarks. “We all know that students these days face many challenges. There’s a lot of stress involved with being a college student and we, for a long time, have known that recreation therapy activities could be really beneficial for the general student body.”

NC TRAC is supported by a $191,000 grant from the province’s Career Ready Fund, focused on hiring graduates and increasing experiential learning opportunities for students. Half of the grant is dedicated to hiring five recent graduates of the RT program.

“Recently, I was given the opportunity to join the NC TRAC team and I couldn’t be happier,” said recent graduate of the College’s RT program, Carolina Nassar. “Having the opportunity to reconnect with the College and the TR faculty at a professional level has been a highlight of my career. It has given me the chance to continue to expand my learning while challenging the knowledge I acquired as a student.”

After graduating from NC in 2016, Nassar has returned to the College in a part-time position as the NC TRAC facilitator.

NC TRAC is also contributing to the development of current TR students through experiential learning opportunities. First-year students of the TR program can volunteer their time at the Centre to gain hands-on experience with industry tools and earn a placement credit. Second-year TR students will develop and implement new programs in the Centre throughout the school year.

NC TRAC currently has seven student volunteers but hopes to facilitate a placement opportunity for more students as the Centre gains more traction with the student body.

“Many long-term care facilities will have a snoezelen room,” said Carolyn Triemstra, dean of NC’s Community and Health Studies division. “So it is definitely something that new grads are going to see [in the work field].”

The School of Community and Health Service’s Career Ready Fund grant is also supporting several new initiatives this term, such as a weekly Mood Walks  at the Welland and Niagara-on-the-Lake campuses, a physiotherapy and occupational therapy clinic at the Welland Campus, and more.

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Oct. 12, 2018: NC TRAC opens at Welland Campus October 15