PART-TIME SUPPORT WORKER

Location: Etobicoke, Ontario

Schedule: Monday–Friday | Daytime Hours

Positions Available: Full-Time & Part-Time

About The MindShift Academy The MindShift Academy is a structured, community-based life skills program supporting young adults with developmental disabilities.

Our philosophy is simple:

The world is our classroom.

Our members learn through doing. Throughout the day, they participate in cooking, cleaning, organization, communication, community outings, volunteering, physical activity, creative programming, pre-employment activities and everyday life-skills development.

We are not a passive or sitting program.

Our days are structured, purposeful and active. We work with each member according to their individual abilities while encouraging them to develop greater independence, confidence, responsibility and participation.

We are looking for Support Workers who believe in seeing the ability first and who understand that meaningful support does not mean doing everything for someone—it means helping that person learn how to do as much as possible for themselves.

The Role

As a Support Worker at The MindShift Academy, you will work directly with members throughout their day.

You will help members participate in structured programming while supporting their individual communication, behavioural, social, emotional and life-skills needs.

This position requires someone who is actively involved.

You may be helping a member prepare a meal in the kitchen one moment, supporting a community outing the next, teaching someone how to complete a household task, encouraging participation in an activity, helping regulate a difficult situation or celebrating a member who has accomplished something independently for the first time.

No two days are the same.

What You Will Be Doing

Responsibilities may include:

- Supporting members with daily life-skills activities.
- Teaching rather than simply completing tasks for members.
- Encouraging independence wherever safely possible.
- Supporting cooking, food preparation and kitchen activities.
- Assisting members with cleaning, organization and other functional household skills.
- Supporting community outings, volunteering and recreational activities.
- Helping members develop communication and social skills.
- Supporting pre-employment and workplace-readiness activities.
- Helping members follow routines, schedules and expectations.
- Providing appropriate prompts, redirection and encouragement.
- Supporting transitions between activities.
- Recognizing early signs that a member may be becoming anxious, overwhelmed or dysregulated.
- Responding calmly and appropriately during behavioural or emotional situations.
- Following individualized behaviour and safety plans.
- Maintaining appropriate professional boundaries.
- Accurately documenting incidents,



observations and significant changes in behaviour.
- Communicating important observations to Academy leadership.
- Working collaboratively with fellow Support Workers, students, volunteers and management.
- Participating actively in Academy activities rather than observing from the sidelines.
- Supporting the health, dignity, privacy and safety of every member.

The Kind of Person We Are Looking For An exceptional MindShift Support Worker is someone who is:

Compassionate

You genuinely care about the people you support and treat every member with dignity and respect.

Patient

Some skills may need to be taught repeatedly. Progress may happen slowly. You understand that patience is part of the work.

Observant

You notice changes.

You pay attention to body language, mood, communication, energy levels and behaviour rather than waiting until a situation becomes a crisis.

Calm Under Pressure

When someone else becomes dysregulated, you do not become dysregulated with them.

You can remain calm, think clearly and follow established procedures.

Proactive

You do not wait to be told every little thing that needs to be done.

You look around, recognize what is happening and become part of the solution.

Engaging

You understand that sitting beside a member is not necessarily supporting them.

You talk with them, teach them, encourage them and find meaningful ways for them to participate.

Consistent

Our members benefit enormously from predictable expectations.

If something is expected on Monday, it should not suddenly become optional on Tuesday because a different Support Worker is present.

Reliable

Our members depend on us.

Being punctual, dependable and prepared for your shift is extremely important.

A Strong Communicator

You communicate clearly and respectfully with members, coworkers and leadership.

You also understand the importance of reporting concerns rather than assuming someone else will notice them.

Professional

You understand confidentiality, boundaries, teamwork and accountability.

Coachable

We do not expect anyone to know everything.

We do expect our team members to accept feedback, ask questions, learn and continuously improve.

Creative

Not every strategy works for every member.

Sometimes you need to change your approach, simplify a task, demonstrate it differently or find another way to motivate someone.

Positive but Realistic

You encourage our members without underestimating them.





You recognize accomplishments while continuing to challenge them appropriately.

Physically and Mentally Engaged

This is an active environment.

Support Workers may participate in walking, cooking, community activities, household tasks and other programming throughout the day.

What We Do NOT Want

This position may not be the right fit for someone who:

- Wants primarily a supervisory or sitting role.
- Regularly uses their phone during programming.
- Waits for someone else to take initiative.
- Does everything for a member because it is faster.
- Becomes easily frustrated when a member needs repetition.
- Is uncomfortable receiving constructive feedback.
- Treats challenging behaviour as simply someone being “bad” or “difficult.”
- Is inconsistent with boundaries or expectations.
- Avoids participating in activities.
- Is frequently late or unreliable.

At The MindShift Academy, **presence matters Pay: $17.60-$20.00 per hour

Expected hours: 18.0 – 20.0 per week

Benefits

- Casual dress
- Flexible schedule
- In office parking

Application question(s):
- Are you legally entitled to work in Canada?
- Are you available to work daytime hours Monday to Friday, approximately 9:00 a.m. to 3:30/4:00 p.m.?
- Are you seeking full-time, part-time, or either?
- Do you have 1 - 2 years of experience do you have supporting individuals with developmental disabilities, autism, intellectual disabilities, or related support needs?
- Have you worked directly with young adults who may experience emotional or behavioural dysregulation?
- This is an active, hands-on position. Staff participate in cooking, cleaning, community outings, walking, life-skills activities, volunteering, and other programming alongside our members. Are you comfortable performing these responsibilities throughout your shift?
- Our approach is to help members become more independent rather than completing tasks for them. Please give a brief example of how you would teach someone a task they were struggling to complete independently.
- If a member became increasingly upset, loud, or dysregulated, what would your first priorities be?
- How would you respond if a member refused to participate in an activity they were capable of completing?
- Are you comfortable documenting behavioural incidents and writing clear, objective observations about what happened before, during, and after an incident?
- Reliability and punctuality are extremely important because members depend on consistent support. Are you able to reliably arrive on time for all scheduled shifts?
- Tell us which one applies to you:

Autism support / Developmental disabilities / Behaviour support / Crisis prevention / Life-skills training / Community participation / Employment-readiness support / Personal care /

Licence/Certification

- VSC Check (required)
- DSW or PSW (required)

Work Location: In person

📌 Disability Support Worker (Lakeshore)
🏢 The MindShift Academy
📍 Lakeshore