Non-profit, education and child care
This guide is for school and school board staff who are planning and delivering SHSM programs.
Overview
The Specialist High Skills Major in Non-Profit, Education and Child Care (SHSM–Non-Profit, Education and Child Care) helps students build a foundation of sector-focused knowledge and skills before graduating and entering apprenticeship training, college, university or an entry-level position in the workplace.
This SHSM program has 5 required components:
- bundle of 9 credits
- certifications and training recognized by the non-profit, education and child care sector
- experiential learning and career exploration activities
- reach ahead experiences
- sector-partnered experiences (SPEs)
Find a list of some of the careers that this SHSM can lead to.
Variants of this SHSM
The SHSM–Non-Profit, Education and Child Care can focus on a specific area (for example, international development, indigenous language preservation and promotion or community action) by varying the mix of its 4 major credits.
Where local circumstances allow, your school board may offer 1 or more variants of this SHSM.
Bundle of 9 credits
The SHSM–Non-Profit, Education and Child Care requires students to complete a bundle of 9 Grade 11 and Grade 12 credits, made up of 4 major credits, 3 other required credits and 2 cooperative education (co-op) credits.
These credits are required for all students, regardless of the pathway a student chooses after graduation:
- apprenticeship training
- college
- university
- the workplace
Four major credits
These credits provide non-profit, education and child care-specific knowledge and skills.
These 4 credits:
- can be any combination of Grade 11 and Grade 12 credits
- may include up to 3 non-profit, education and child care-related co-op credits (these are additional to the 2 required co-op credits in the bundle)
We (the Ministry of Education) maintain an SHSM-approved course list for the non-profit, education and child care sector. Contact the SHSM lead at your school board to get the list.
Three other required credits
These are required credits from the Ontario curriculum.
These 3 credits must include:
- one English credit (a compulsory English credit is required in Grade 11 and Grade 12 to graduate)
- one mathematics credit
- one of the following:
- science credit
- business studies credit
- additional major credit
- additional non-profit, education and child care-related co-op credit (in addition to the 2 co-op credits required in the bundle)
Your school may commit to including a contextualized learning activity (CLA) for the non-profit, education and child care sector in each of these 3 credits. If your school offers this, then:
- some of the course expectations for these credits are met through the SHSM
- your school decides if the SHSM for English is completed in Grade 11 or in Grade 12
Even if your school does not formally commit to including SHSMs, it can still offer them in 1 or more of these credits.
Two cooperative education (co-op) credits
Co-op credits in the non-profit, education and child care SHSM provide students with real learning experiences in a non-profit, education and child care workplace setting. This lets students refine, extend, apply and practice:
- knowledge and skills they learned in the cooperative education curriculum
- non-profit, education and child care-specific knowledge and skills learned through their SHSM program
| Credits | Apprenticeship training Grades 11–12 | College Grades 11–12 | University Grades 11–12 | Workplace Grades 11–12 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Major credits May include up to 3 co-op credits related to the sector (this is in addition to the 2 required co-op credits) | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| English may include a SHSM | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Mathematics may include a SHSM | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Business studies or science may include a SHSM May be substituted with 1 additional major credit or 1 co-op credit (this is in addition to the 2 required co-op credits) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Cooperative education | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Total number of credits | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 |
Certifications and training
Students must complete 4 compulsory and 3 elective certifications and/or training courses/programs that are recognized by the non-profit, education and child care sector.
Compulsory certifications and training
Students must complete:
- Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) Level C — includes automated external defibrillation (AED)
- ethical considerations
- Standard First Aid
- Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS) — generic, not site-specific, instruction
These are the proper names of the specific certifications or training courses/programs for this SHSM.
Elective certifications and training
These are names of an area, type or category of training. In these cases, your school board selects the specific certifications or training courses and programs.
Students must complete any 3 of the following electives:
- advanced training in a technique
- advanced training in a technology
- anti-oppression and allyship training
- behavior management
- communication skills
- compass/map/global positioning system (GPS)
- conflict resolution
- customer service
- environmental awareness
- equity and inclusion
- event coordination
- first aid/CPR/AED awareness
- fundraising
- group dynamics
- incident management
- infection control
- leadership skills
- legal/administrative procedures
- mental health awareness (approved by and delivered under the direction of the school board's Mental Health Leader)
- Mental Health First Aid
- non-violent crisis intervention
- personality inventory
- portfolio development
- project management
- proposal/grant writing
- sector-specific software 1
- self-defence
- social media networking
- successful exhibiting
- wilderness first aid
Learn more about certification and training in SHSM programs.
Experiential learning and career exploration activities
Experiential learning and career exploration opportunities relevant to the non-profit, education and child care sector might include instances where an SHSM student:
- observes a co-op student one-on-one at a placement in the non-profit, education and child care sector (an example of job twinning)
- shadows a non-profit, education and child care employee for a day (an example of job shadowing)
- works with a member of a non-profit, education and child care industry association or professional for 1 or 2 weeks (an example of work experience)
- volunteers with a non-profit, education and child care organization or for a special event in the school or community
- organizes an awareness or fundraising initiative in the school or community
- attends a conference or a workshop presented by a non-profit, education and child care organization
Learn more about SHSM program experiential learning and career exploration opportunities.
Reach ahead experiences
The SHSM-Non-Profit, Education and Child Care must provide students with 1 or more reach ahead experiences. These are opportunities to take the next steps along their chosen pathway – as shown in the following examples:
- apprenticeship: visiting an approved apprenticeship delivery agent in the non-profit, education and child care sector
- college: interviewing a college student enrolled in a non-profit, education and child care-specific program
- university: observing a university class in a non-profit, education and child care-related program
- workplace: interviewing an employee in the non-profit, education and child care sector
Learn more about reach ahead experiences.
Sector-partnered experiences (SPEs)
Students engage with a sector partner to learn about non-profit, education and child care and how it connects with ICE (innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship), coding and/or math literacy skills.
Learn more about SPEs in SHSM programs.
Careers in the non-profit, education and child care sector
These are examples of careers in the non-profit, education and child care sector, sorted by the type of postsecondary education or training the careers usually require.
Apprenticeship training
- conference and event planners
- early childhood educators
- educational assistants
- social and community service workers
College
- accounting technicians and bookkeepers
- administrative officers
- business development officers and marketing researchers and consultants
- facility operation and maintenance managers
- human resources professionals
- instructors of persons with disabilities
- other administrative services managers
- other business services managers
- social policy researchers, consultants and program officers
University
- authors and writers
- business development officers and marketing researchers and consultants
- elementary school and kindergarten school teachers
- managers in social, community and correctional services
- professional occupations in advertising, marketing and public relations
- secondary school teachers
- social policy researchers, consultants and program officers
Workplace
- conference and event planners
- general office support workers
- other administrative services managers
- program leaders and instructors in recreation, sport and fitness
- receptionists
- social and community service workers
Information and resources
Partnership opportunities
For local labour market opportunities in non-profit, education and child care, please contact your school board’s SHSM lead.
The SHSM model
This SHSM’s requirements are unique and geared to the non-profit, education and child care sector. However, the design of all SHSM programs follows a consistent model with 5 required components.
Find more information about the components of an SHSM.