AMHW Core Values🌿
Ethical practice, respect, and social justice—grounded in the right to self-determination, healing, recovery, and most importantly, hope—are at the heart of the Addiction and Mental Health Worker (AMHW) Program. Our values guide how we learn, teach, and serve our communities, grounding all interactions in respect, care, and empowerment. Our practice values spaces that understand safety, care, and wellness look different for everyone, and we emphasize learning that is relational, reflective, and transformative.
1. Honouring the Land and Its Peoples
We acknowledge that Centennial College is on the traditional territories of the Mississauga of the Credit First Nation and other Indigenous peoples. We remember and honour these histories, understand our responsibilities to the land and community, and actively apply this awareness in our teaching, learning, and practice. We create spaces that respect Indigenous sovereignty, knowledge, and ongoing struggles, recognizing that healing is interconnected with land, culture, and community.
2. Valuing Lived Experience and Self-Determination
We affirm the voices of those with lived experience of addiction, substance use, and mental health challenges, honouring their right to self-determination. We engage in trauma-informed practices that promote healing, hope, and recovery, and we critically reflect on how our interventions can empower rather than silence or control. By centering lived experience, we foster deeper understanding and authentic relationships.
3. Equity, Human Rights, and Inclusion
We strive to understand the ways systems of oppression, privilege, and power shape individual and collective experiences. We apply this understanding to advocate for human rights and equity in all settings. Our practice creates trauma-informed, safe(r), and inclusive spaces where diversity—across race, culture, gender identity, sexuality, ability, neurodiversity, and spirituality—is valued and celebrated.
4. Anti-Oppression, Anti-Racism, and Anti-Colonial Practice
We critically analyze the intersection of oppression, stigma, and systemic inequities in the context of addiction, substance use, trauma and mental health. Our approach is rooted in anti-oppression, anti-racism, anti-Black racism, and decolonial frameworks, guiding classroom discussions, course content, and field learning experiences. We apply these principles to actively challenge and transform inequitable systems while nurturing relational accountability and trauma-informed care.
5. Excellence in Learning and Practice
We prepare students to synthesize theoretical knowledge with applied practice, demonstrating skills that promote trust, empathy, and ethical, trauma-informed care. Learners engage in reflective and creative practice, analyzing complex interpersonal dynamics, evaluating their impact on community members and communities, and co-creating solutions that promote resilience, wellness, and recovery.
6. Commitment to 2SLGBTQIA+, Disability, and Neurodiversity Affirmation
We honour and integrate diverse identities and ways of being into all aspects of learning and practice. This includes advocating for the rights, inclusion, and well-being of Queer and Trans communities, challenging sanism and ableism, and affirming neurodivergent ways of knowing, communicating, and experiencing the world in trauma-informed ways.
7. Community Engagement and Partnership
We cultivate meaningful, reciprocal partnerships with community organizations and stakeholders. Through these relationships, learners create sustainable, transformative field placements and community initiatives. By analyzing community needs, evaluating program outcomes, and co-creating solutions, we ensure that interventions reflect the voices and priorities of the community members we serve while centering trauma-informed approaches.
8. Student Success, Growth, and Well-Being
We foster environments that nurture holistic student success—intellectually, professionally, and personally. Students are encouraged to remember, understand, and apply ethical and trauma-informed principles, evaluate their practice critically, and create innovative approaches to challenges. By prioritizing well-being, reflective growth, and relational accountability, we ensure that learners are prepared to serve communities with competence, compassion, and integrity.
9. Healing, Hope, and Recovery-Oriented Practice
We integrate principles of trauma-informed care, healing, hope, and recovery into every aspect of our teaching and practice. This includes fostering emotional safety, promoting empowerment, and supporting community members’ self-directed journeys toward wellness. Learners are encouraged to create spaces where recovery is possible for all, while critically reflecting on how systemic and interpersonal factors impact addiction, substance use, and mental health.