Jackie Nelson, Director, Strategic Initiatives, NorQuest College
When I first met Jackie almost a decade ago, she was already viewed as an innovative leader that utilized digital health to impact patient outcomes and system improvements. Since that time, she continues to be involved in transformative activities no matter what role she is in. She consistently seeks to initiate and support initiatives that push the boundaries of our current system with the intent to continue to make improvements.
The pandemic has resulted in significant changes to the way that students experience post-secondary education. Post-secondary education can be a stressful time for students under the previous circumstances and with uncertainties with the way that courses will be delivered in the future are continuing to add to stressors. On campus life did provide access to social interactions as well as various support systems and programs to help students manage stressful situations. However, in this new virtual world many students may not know where to turn to receive required supports. Staff may also be dealing with similar situations and both staff and students require additional training and support to assist during these circumstances.
Recognizing this gap, Jackie led an organizational wide initiative aimed at implementing a leading workplace mental wellness platform that empowers users to measure, track, and train their own resilience. This platform was personalized for NorQuest and provide preventative resilience training to help staff and students get ahead of adversity they may face. This initiative has been key in providing required supports during a difficult time and has contributed to increased student/staff engagement and wellbeing.
