If there is one thing we have all learned over the past two years, it is the importance of resilience. In the Student Services Department at Loyola, we are well placed to help develop the resilience of some of the most vulnerable students in our school. The COVID pandemic has meant that our students have faced unfathomable challenges and each learner’s journey has been unique. In response to this, we have customised our students’ courses to place them in a better position to thrive during remote learning. A key element of resilience is knowing who to call on for help when things get tough; those who have struggled in lockdown have
discovered that they have a wealth of supports to access, both within the Student Services Department and through the school’s regular pastoral channels. Our students understand the structures in place at Loyola to help them succeed, even in the face of unprecedented adversity. Each of the students in our care and their families have an individual contact person in the Learning Diversity Team, electively providing them with a primary go-to person to speak to before they become overwhelmed. This key support structure operates in addition to the school-wide mentor program which serves to meet the everyday wellbeing needs of all students across all year levels. Our Learning Diversity teachers work individually with our students and their
classroom teachers to tailor their courses to help them achieve their best. The students are supported by our Learning Support O”cers who provide on-the-ground assistance and extra help to give them every
opportunity to thrive. Our counsellors also provide exceptional care and other elective strategies to help students successfully navigate their own paths through their education and beyond. The Student Services Department here at Loyola sees the road to resilience as individual to each student, so we manage each student differently, using their individual qualities to build sturdy foundations of emotional strength they can tap into for years to come