Centennial College’s commitment to social development informs the content of our programs, including Child and Youth Care. Children will inherit the world, so we’re teaching you how to work with children, youth, their families and communities to create and support positive change and foster the development of tomorrow’s leaders.
Centennial’s Child and Youth Care program has a history of creating industry professionals, meaning students are well-prepared for their eventual careers. A reason for this is both the college’s efforts to give students experiential learning via field placement programs, and in-class learning activities and assignments designed to replicate experiences within their workplace. Nazeem Lahashmi is one such professional who’s had a long career, and has even come back to Centennial to teach a new generation. Here’s his story.
Why he got into Child and Youth Care
“I found a love of wanting to work with people,” Nazeem says about his early career, before getting into the field. “And I wasn't quite sure of what that would look like, until I came across the Child and Youth program. My mother actually happens to be an ECE teacher, and I knew I wanted to work with children and youth from some of the experiences in my own life.”
“At the time that I attended Centennial, I was already working as a residential counselor for children and youth that experience mental health and numerous disabilities,” he says. “I’d ask the staff if I should go to school, and a lot of people said: You don't get into this field for the pay, you get in to this field for the love and to make a difference in someone's life. Today, I think we're in a society that really looks for instant gratification. And what better way than working with a child? You can see that instant gratification when you walk through the door, and you can make that positive change with a big smile on their face.”
The Best Parts of the Program
“Centennial has the best Child and Youth Care program,” Nazeem says. “And the partnerships within the community that the college had was something that really appealed to me. The practicality behind the program helped me identify tools, because sometimes, working with children and youth, you don't have physical tools, but you need theoretical tools, and what the college and program did for me was give me frameworks.”
“The teachers were very well versed, they were knowledgeable in their practice,” he adds. “And the hands-on learning experience, the ability to do placements, to present, talk to other students and have a number of tools to share with the class, and then take some of those tools and share with my place of work at the time, those have to probably be my favorite parts.”
How Centennial College Helped him with his Career
“Some of the presentations, pamphlets and things that I created I actually transferred into my place of work and use that as either a conversation piece, or to create or further a policy,” Nazeem says. “The most useful knowledge I have is just how important it is to touch base with faculty and networking with peers, even within other programs, because the networking opportunity also can present a lot of options for you. I really felt having those connections throughout learning and post-learning was critical.”
“I started out as being just a casual employee for a residential service,” he says about his career path since school. “And then it progressed, and I went on to being part time, then full time, then a manager. And from that management, I took another step into becoming a regional manager for two large areas, Hamilton and Waterloo. And currently, I sit as a director of services, that's where my path has taken me. At one time I had my own practice where I was providing supports to families, an independent practice. It's opened a number of new avenues, and I feel the sky's still the limit here. And Centennial has provided a lot of that success for me.”
Teaching the Next Set
Centennial College’s pledge to make its students agents of positive social change means that the school is constantly looking to support those students. And students sometimes come back to support other students, as Nazeem did.
“I have so much love and desire and belief in the program that was constructed,” Nazeem explains. “I spent many years in residential, and I wanted to really give back to that specific area of learning. I know students that are in the field may not have the same opportunities I had, because of COVID. So I wanted to really help students understand, from my perspective, how the field actually is currently.”
“As a faculty, I support and teach students in in the field,” he explains. “It's called Field Practicum and Reflective Practice. It's kind of a paired course, and it includes presenting scenarios that now are virtual because students can’t actually be physically at their placement, critically analyzing their response to their scenarios, challenge them to think from a different perspective, supervising students as they're working through these modules, grading and assessing the students on their work, and providing valuable feedback to assist in their learning.”
Words for the Leaders of the Future
“It's really rewarding when you graduate, and you can get out there and you obtain a job and you make a difference,” Nazeem says. “As you start getting older, and you really start to look back, and say, what have I done with my life? Imagine, you can be walking through the mall or walking down the street and you see a child or a youth that you supported, that’s how you've impacted a life.”
“I've hired and recommended numerous students from this program,” he says. “And I've seen some of those people now in professional roles. I was just really, really ecstatic to have the opportunity to teach and to come back and give some of my knowledge to our future leaders. And I believe these future graduates are going to be leaders, movers and shakers.”
“Believe that you will make a difference,” he adds. “I believe in a better tomorrow for these children and the youth that we're going to support, and I believe that you are part of that solution.”
Written By: Anthony Geremia