From participating in the learning sessions over the 21-week period, the youth will have a portfolio of their development that they can take with them to future employers. At the beginning of the program, youth participate in Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS) to ensure that when they come in contact with materials at the facilities they know the safety procedures and are able to report incidents accurately if they were to occur. In addition, youth can receive Emergency First Aid, AED and CPR training after 16 weeks in the program. Giving the youth these opportunities to gain, develop and learn skills that they did not have prior to the …show more content…
In my opinion, have a Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist (CTRS) do this job would be beneficial to enhancing the overall experience for youth and everyone involved. A CTRS would be able to build rapport with the youth, complete the initial assessment and work with the youth throughout the 21-week period. Youth are defined by health professionals as needing to be fixed; which focuses on a more deficit way of thinking instead of focusing on the strengths a youth has (Hurtes & Allen, 2001). By adapting a youth development approach to programming as professionals we are emphasizing the potential, strength and abilities in youth instead of the alternative (Hurtes & Allen, 2001). In addition, I think the CTRS would be able help in the creation and further progress with the learning sessions. Another asset that a CTRS could contribute is the creation of leisure education programs that could provide youth opportunities to do meaningful leisure and recreation activities. Many youth experience dissatisfaction and boredom during their free time so it is critical to integrate leisure education into a youth’s everyday life (Wu & Hsieh, 2006). Wu & Hsieh (2006) suggest outdoor adventure