Kassandra Thompson

Within OJEN, my job entails a lot of outreach work and meeting new people. I get the pleasure of connecting with amazing groups of youth and work closely with them while providing them with legal information and legal life skills to navigate through their everyday lives. I am also fortunate because I get the chance to connect with justice sector volunteers whom also enjoy giving back to youth and providing them with information that can be very useful.

One of my favourite memories since being with OJEN has been getting to experience in person programming with the youth from the Roy McMurtry Youth Centre. This was an amazing experience due to the fact that, not only was it my first time facilitating the T180 program in person, but also because the youth provided so much positive and useful feedback. This really had an impact on me as it was extremely fulfilling to see how the youth were so willing to engage with me, and share their perspectives and experiences, regardless of their current situations. They brought their best selves each session and for that I was truly grateful.

Recently, I’ve been learning how to be a better facilitator and mentor for youth. I believe that there is a specific technique that is needed in order to be able to connect and engage with an audience of young people whom come from all different walks of life. Being able to gage the audience to understand what direction the conversation needs to go in or what is needed to assure the information is being interpreted well, is very important. While trying to master this, I’d also like to continue to be a role model and be a good mentor for youth that seek direction and/or insight from someone like myself who has also experienced quite a bit within my own life. In all, wanting to lead youth in a positive and good direction is my ultimate goal and why I strive to improve at what I do within OJEN.