I became involved in this project (What’s Your Path) many years ago. Initially, I was attracted to the project because I wanted to help youth and their families expand their views on what success looks like. In my experience, I saw a trend of families not fully understanding the various pathways after high school and the rewarding occupations associated with them. I was hoping to change a prevalent mindset that university is the best and most valued pathway. I also wanted to connect students/families with stories from local people who have successful careers so they could learn from their journey and wisdom. Ultimately, it is all about helping young people gain access to information and experiences to support them in making informed choices that align with who they are and what they are passionate about.”
– Derek Zuccolo, Head of Student Services, Waterdown District High School
Helping young people refine their skills, passions & interests in order to develop a path for the future based on their priorities and goals. Through building confidence, reducing barriers, and connecting them to the resources and support they need, we will ensure all young people, by the time they graduate from high school, are future-ready.
We want to provide the most up-to-date and extensive information, resources, supports and opportunities to our young people. We need to prepare parents, friends and caring adults to be able to properly provide guidance and encouragement. They can begin to discover the possibilities, engage in school, build skills and confidence, learn how to plan ahead and make decisions, and be optimistic about their future. Throughout their journey, we will meet them wherever they are at and make sure they continue to move forward on a path that will ensure their success.
Using innovative tools and strategic partnerships, we will engage youth in meaningful ways and support them throughout their journey.
New Portal Launches!
What’s Your Path Portal and Speakers Bureau launched in 2023. This new online portal connects students and their families to information and resources, as well as allow them to browse through career profiles where they can learn about and explore career paths.
It also allows teachers to book speakers to come into their classrooms and for us to work with the school to plan targeted career fairs.
On this page:
What makes our approach unique?
- Youth Impact Team; we will train and equip older youth (19 – 29) to mentor and support high school students
- Youth Portal; youth can explore opportunities, find information, and get help to put them on a path to a future career.
- Parent Place; parents can access information that will help them guide their teens into making informed decisions.
- Advisors/Guest Speakers; as part of a new What’s Your Path Portal, we are building a list of professional advisors and guest speakers from all career sectors who are willing to share advice with young people.
- Partnerships with organizations that have expertise in education, business and mental health.
- Innovative tools such as a virtual platform and an app that connects students to co-op opportunities, internships and job shadowing opportunities.
WYP’s History
In 2013, Healthy Youth Network (formerly HC-HY Flamborough) was approached by local schools to develop an event that would help students explore pathways. Working with our partners, we developed an annual event, “What’s Your Path”, which evolved into creating opportunities for youth to explore pathways. This began to include preparing students not only academically, but socially and emotionally as well.
In 2018, we received a SEED Grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation* to explore a “What’s Your Path” Hub. By meaningfully engaging youth, the What’s Your Path Youth Hub Project identified the challenges Flamborough youth faced collectively and determined how we could provide the resources needed to build pathways to success in their community.
Building upon this concept, the “What’s Your Path” Program took shape.
*At the time, HYN was not incorporated as a not-for-profit and therefore required a partner for the application. For this application, we partnered with Flamborough Connects.
What We Learned
Working with our youth, we learned that the “Hub” term did not resonate with them and so the logo was adjusted to reflect the new vision.
Utilizing existing youth spaces (YMCA, Library, Youth Centre, etc.) and meeting youth where they already were (school, work, volunteering, programs/clubs, sports organizations), meant we did not need to create another “Hub”. Instead we would collaborate with these partners to form a network that would seek to improve outcomes for youth.
Our Team
- Sherri Cully, Program Manager
- Derek Zuccolo, Head of Student Services, WDHS
- Andy Burnside, Desjardins Insurance
- Spencer Edwards
- Gina Faubert, Radiant Girls
- Sophie Boers, MediaBay
Everyone has a role to play!
Partner with us, become a mentor, or help us provide supports and resources. Find out more.
