Quest School's new Sunalta campus focuses on high school student learning and an adult transition program
Quest School has expanded to a second campus in Calgary that is an innovative learning hub for high school students and young adults with moderate to severe developmental disabilities.
Allie Gauthier is the vice-principal of the high school and says when the space was being designed there was a lot of thought put into it to make it special for the 50 students.
"We created a kitchen for students to use, a life skills labs, laundry services," she said. "All those things that give students a place to practice their skills to increase their independence and they're gonna take those skills with them into adulthood."
The demand for Quest's programming has been on the rise with its waitlist quadrupling in the past three years. The expansion of their programs with this new campus will ensure more students have the best educational opportunities available so they can thrive.
"Our school has been around for over 40 years so we've been serving the Calgary community throughout that time," said Gauthier. "We've heard from our families about the need for a special space for our students, especially our high school students."
Reach full potential
Gauthier says the campus is helping to build relationships with students and their families who are watching them grow and reach their full potential.
"Our students all have complex needs, so moderate to severe disabilities and we have multi-age classrooms, so they're not based on grade level," she said. "They're grouped more based on their needs, their social skills, not necessarily their grade, or their age level.
"What's huge," she added, "is our students come here, they have peers that are friends, and they find a place of belonging."
Rahel Mulugheta, Quest program director, focuses on life skills like hygiene, laundry, basic kitchen skills, social relationships, skills, volunteerism for the older students in the adult transition program.
Physical and mental health, social connections, relationships and job readiness are also a priority.
"I think navigating adulthood is already hard enough," she said. "I feel like these are the things that you need to know and to prepare for adulthood is these areas so I think that's really important."
Mulugheta says students figure out their goals for the program and then try to reach them through the activities taught.
"We even practice transit like buying a ticket, practice looking up routes, just community safety," she said. "You got to stand behind the line, community etiquette, just things like that, I think these are really important, sometimes I kind of wish when I was in high school or in college, they taught us those things."
Mulugheta says all the life skills taught will help students gain confidence and give them what they need to apply for a job. She compares it to a stepping stone or launching pad for the participants for life after school.
Coffee Cart fan
Nik Sharma, 14 years old, enrolled at the school in 2020. He would like to one day be a volunteer at the Spruce Cliff campus, helping teach the younger students. But here, he's a fan of the Coffee Cart program.
"It teaches you how to sell the coffee and how to use the money properly," he said. "You count up the money to make sure you have enough."
Anu Sharma, Nik's mom, says he was excited about the new campus and couldn't wait for its January 2024 opening.
"What we wanted ultimately for Nick was just a space where he would go where he would feel safe," she said. "Academically, he's going to learn whatever he's going to learn but most importantly, we wanted him to have an opportunity to belong to something and to feel some pride of this community and have similar routines to his sisters that he's going to school and he belongs somewhere."
Now with two campuses, Quest would like to add two more in other quadrants of the city to alleviate its wait list.
"As we continue to grow and expand, we're looking for other opportunities in the city just to continue this community based program," said Gauthier.
Learn more about Quest School here.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec man who threatened Trudeau, Legault online sentenced to 20 months in jail
A Quebec man who pleaded guilty to threatening Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier François Legault has been sentenced to 20 months in jail.
Russia puts Ukrainian President Zelenskyy on its wanted list
Russia has put Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on its wanted list, Russian state media reported Saturday, citing the interior ministry’s database.
Two killed after collision with truck on Hwy. 417 near Limoges, Ont.
Ontario Provincial Police say two people were killed after a car and a transport truck collided in the westbound lanes of Highway 417 near Limoges, Ont. on Tuesday afternoon.
A Chinese driver is praised for helping reduce casualties in a highway collapse that killed 48
A Chinese truck driver was praised in local media Saturday for parking his vehicle across a highway and preventing more cars from tumbling down a slope after a section of the road in the country's mountainous south collapsed and killed at least 48 people.
Canadian doctor concerned new weight-loss drug Wegovy may be used inappropriately
As Wegovy becomes available to Canadians starting Monday, a medical expert is cautioning patients wanting to use the drug to lose weight that no medication is a ''magic bullet,' and the new medication is meant particularly for people who meet certain criteria related to obesity and weight.
Britney Spears 'home and safe' after paramedics responded to an incident at the Chateau Marmont, source tells CNN
A source close to singer Britney Spears tells CNN that the pop star is 'home and safe' after she had a 'major fight' with her boyfriend on Wednesday night at the Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood.
Grandparents killed in wrong-way crash on Hwy. 401 identified
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.
Premier Legault reiterates that McGill pro-Palestinian camp must be dismantled
Quebec Premier François Legault reiterated that the pro-Palestinian encampment at McGill University must be dismantled while police remain 'on the lookout for new developments.'
Houston braces for flooding to worsen in wake of storms
High waters flooded neighborhoods around Houston on Saturday following heavy rains that have already resulted in crews rescuing hundreds of people from homes, rooftops and roads engulfed in murky water.