George Brown College’s 25th annual Mental Health Conference: Decolonizing learning and creating conditions for student well-being

In episode 4, we focus on the upcoming 25th annual Mental Health Conference at George Brown College in Toronto and this year’s theme, Thriving Together in the Classroom: Creating the Conditions for Student Well-Being. 

Author, storyteller, Indigenous academic and conference keynote speaker Carolyn Roberts; dean of the Centre for Preparatory and Liberal Studies, Susan Toews; and director of Student Well-Being and Support, Alex Irwin discuss this year’s conference and its focus on teaching, the mental health and well-being of post-secondary students, decolonizing learning and Indigenous resurgence through education.

Reflecting on the need for decolonizing and re-storying education, Roberts says:

“When Indigenous students step into the classroom, we are being asked to leave a part of who we are at the door, because that's not talked about or shared within those spaces. So we have to leave our indigeneity at the door to come in to learn about something else. And that's not a sustainable thing.And not only for Indigenous students, but for all non white students that are walking into these spaces … We need to make sure that we're having multiple stories from multiple perspectives in our classrooms, so that all of our students can see a piece of them within the work that they're doing.”

For online registration, conference fees and information about the February 27, 2025 conference, please click this link. 

About today’s guests: 

Carolyn Roberts uses her voice to support Indigenous resurgence through education. She is a St’at’imc and Sto:lo woman belonging to the Thevarge family from N'quatqua Nation and the Kelly Family from the Tzeachten Nation and under the Indian Act she is a member of the Squamish Nation. Carolyn is a speaker, author, Indigenous academic, and a faculty member in UBC Teacher Education and NITEP programs. She has been an educator and administrator for over 20 years in the K-12 system. Carolyn’s work is grounded in educating about Indigenous people and the decolonization of the education system. She works with pre-service teachers to help build their understandings in Indigenous history, education, and ancestral ways of knowing, to create a brighter future for all Indigenous people and the seven generations yet to come.She is also the author of Re-Storying Education: Decolonizing Your Practice Using a Critical Lens (2024). 

Alex Irwin is an accomplished educator with broad experience managing people and projects and developing innovative education programming for a wide range of students, both domestically and overseas. He is director of Student Well-Being and Support at George Brown College, where he oversees counselling, accessible learning services, deaf and hard of hearing services, and the college’s peer wellness programming. He is also a clinical social worker, with a history of working at community-based mental health and treatment centres.

Susan Toews has over 35 years of experience in education, with the last 18 years of her career at George Brown College, where she has served in leadership positions in both academic roles and service areas. She is currently the Dean, Centre for Preparatory and Liberal Studies. Susan is a strong advocate for a whole campus/whole student approach to student mental health and believes in the wide application of Universal Design for Learning, as it provides guidance for creating accessible, inclusive and engaging student-centered learning opportunities – critical to student well-being. Susan holds an M.Ed. from OISE/University of Toronto and, as a committed lifelong learner, continually engages in professional development in education, including graduating from UBC’s Organizational Coaching program in 2024.

Transcript of this episode can be accessed at georgebrown.ca/TommyDouglasInstitute. 

Image: Carolyn Roberts, Susan Toews, Alex Irwin  / Used with permission.

Music: Ang Kahora. Lynne, Bjorn. Rights Purchased. 

Intro Voices: Ashley Booth (Podcast Announcer); Bob Luker (Tommy) 

Courage My Friends podcast organizing committee: Chandra Budhu, Ashley Booth, Resh Budhu. 

Produced by: Resh Budhu, Tommy Douglas Institute and Breanne Doyle, rabble.ca. 

Host: Resh Budhu.