I have advocated for consent for over a decade, but if I am going to be honest, I only began to practise consent within the last three years. I am not talking about sexual consent. However, I am going to assume that when I said “consent,” you thought I meant “sexual...
Social–Emotional Learning and Violence Prevention: What’s the Connection? Here at The Circle, our focus is to deliver innovative, evidence-based social–emotional educational programs. Our motivation? We want to encourage youths to develop empathy, respect,...
COVID-19 Impact on Social–Emotional Learning The COVID-19 pandemic has not only affected students’ academic performance, but it has also significantly impacted their social–emotional learning. Research shows that students are experiencing an increased lack of...
I recently heard about a fascinating study in which researchers were investigating human perception of challenge. One of their findings was that when a person stands at the base of a hill that they are about to climb, they perceive the hill to be 10 to 20% larger than...
We welcome to Alex and Albert to our facilitation team! We're thrilled to have Alex King-Harris and Albert Strasser join the team of facilitators here at The Circle. Each of them brings an incredible skill set to their work in the Pass It On Boys program, for boys...
We were thrilled to see that SWOVA was featured in the current issue of Victoria's Vital Signs! Thank you to The Victoria Foundation for your support! And a huge thank you to Kate Nash and family for making the photo shoot happen over the summer! Read Full Report We...
A blog post by Kate Nash . SWOVA’s Girls Pass-It-On program started in 2010 as an after-school program that provided structured and individual mentorship between high school youth and Grade 8 students throughout the academic year. Kate Nash was hired as the program...
We are delighted to announce that #Lobstick Foundation has contributed $6,000 towards the Pass it On Girls Program! Our sincere gratitude to Lobstick for their generous support of the Pass It On Girls #MentorshipProgram. In this program, high school young women...
Pssst! We’ve received $5,000 in funding from @Coast_Capital ...Pass It On Girls! Our sincere gratitude to #CoastCapitalSavings for their generous support of the Pass It On Girls #MentorshipProgram. In this program, high school young women provide structured group and...
We are delighted to share news of recent funding from #SaltSpringIslandFoundation in the amount of $26,250! Funds will be used to update and re-redesign the award-winning #RespectfulRelationshipsProgram which has served more than 10,000 youth across the Southern Gulf...
National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women We invite everyone to attend a Candlelight Vigil Centennial Park Wednesday, December 6th, 2017 **4:30-5:00pm** To honour and remember all women who have been killed by violence. We will meet at the...
A blog post by Kate Nash Often the effects of a program like Pass It On are not ones you can easily quantify or even see. Yes, there are responses to surveys or the positive comments the girls shout out on the last day about missing the program or loving the time...
Ivanna Darmokhid was thirteen when she moved from Ukraine to Salt Spring Island. The teenage years can be a difficult time to leave your friends and family behind, but Ivanna was excited for this new adventure in her life. She’s grateful that her parents took the leap...
Keshua, Levi and Zyah Welch have a Grenadian dad and a Canadian mom with Dutch roots. They had a Canadian upbringing on Salt Spring Island, with the Grenadian humour of their dad and a touch of Dutch from their great-grandparents. Last year they had the chance to get...
The Circle Education works with children and youth to remove dividers that separate us and make us feel different from each other, when in fact we are inherently the same. Our executive director Janine Fernandes-Hayden learned an important lesson about...
Ask yourself this: Do you feel nervous if your phone is not in your hand or within sight? Do you find yourself wishing you were more creative or had more time in the day to spend on your passions or connecting with friends and...
As a parent of a participant in The Circle’s programs, and as a local educator, Shelly Johnson has a unique perspective on social-emotional education. Our Education Outreach Program Coordinator Adele Mark, sat down with Shelly to hear her take on the benefits of...
The Circle Salt Spring Education Society is offering a new ‘Methods and Tools for Deeper Connections with youth’ course at the end of January 2022. This offering is ideal for individuals who work with youth in a variety of contexts, whether it be formal educational...
Adele Mark, Education Outreach Program Coordinator, at The Circle interviewed Gail Bryn-Jones, a dedicated advocate of social-emotional education and teacher of over 30 years on Salt Spring Island. Gail has a master’s degree in Education and has served as a board...
When Adele Mark was fifteen, she moved with her parents from Los Angeles, a city of 13 million people where she had lived all of her life, to Salt Spring Island, Canada. A place she thought of at the time as a remote island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with more...