Changes to Lethbridge Polytechnic’s Wellness Services have made the space more private for patients, more accessible--particularly for those with mobility challenges--and more welcoming for students seeking counselling and medical support.
To accommodate the move back to CE1380, Wellness Services will be closed from Friday, Sept. 27 until 8 a.m. Oct. 3. The campus community is invited to tour the new space from 12:30 to 3 p.m. Oct. 2.
Wellness Services hours are 8 a.m. to noon and 1 to 4 p.m.
The renovation affects the Buchanan Library (Niitsitapi’ksimpstaan) with the closure of the stacks in CE1341. Books from the stacks can be found on the shelves in the Learning Commons space.
All 43 study carrels have been relocated to the back of the library in the space known as Coulee’s Edge.
This project will affect the study spaces in the library stacks and the breakout rooms in the back of IB Commons. However, there are many other spaces on campus available for student use, and additional spaces are being made available through the end of the winter semester.
- Study carrels from the stacks are now found at the back of the Buchanan Library.
- The open space in IB Commons is still available for use.
Other existing student spaces on campus:
- TE1224, located on the first floor of the Technologies building across from International Services’ offices.
- IB Learning Commons, Instructional Building. Although offices in the back will be used by Wellness Services for counselling appointments, the study spaces in IB1112 are available to you.
- Second floor, Instructional Building. There’s a space above IB Commons.
- LPSA South Commons (TT1991 in the Trades, Technologies and Innovation Facility). This space offers three tiers full of table and chairs. You can’t miss it if walk past the Food Court toward the Trades building.
- Second floor Physical Education Building. Tables and chairs are located near the trophy case.
- The Fishbowl (CB1016) first floor of the Cousin’s Building.
Additional spaces will also be available to students until the renovations are concluded in October.
These spaces are all available on a first come, first served basis for no more than two hours at a time, with one exception noted below.
Some spaces should be used for quiet study. Others are available for group work.
Please be respectful of other users and use the space for no more than two hours to allow other users’ access.
These spaces are intended for group work:
| Location & capacity | How to access |
|---|---|
| IB2105 – 8 people | First come, first served, two-hour limit |
| IB2108 – 12 people | First come, first served, two-hour limit |
| CE1356 – 8 people | Visit the Lethbridge Polytechnic Students' Association office to ask to use the room. |
| CE2306 – 8 people | Book through Outlook Calendar. Enter CE2306 in the LOCATION field. It is considered booked once confirmation email is received. |
| CE2308 - 12 people | Book through Outlook Calendar. Enter CE2308 in the LOCATION field. It is considered booked once confirmation email is received. |
| TE1228 – shared quiet study space | First come, first served, two-hour limit. Only available Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Not available Tuesday and Thursday. |
Wellness Services email and phone numbers are unchanged Contact them at wellness.services@lethpolytech.ca or by phone 403-320-3289 or ext. 3289 from a polytechnic phone.
Lethbridge Polytechnic has made health and wellness a priority for our students and employees, as outlined in our institutional commitment to the LC Cares: Stronger Together strategy. The renovations affecting Wellness Services and the Buchanan Library will help us accommodate growing student needs for both medical and counselling services, as well as learning supports and accessibility accommodations.
In Wellness Services, where the demand for mental health appointments has increased 300 per cent in five years, our growing team of health professionals, including a nurse practitioner, doctors and counsellors, will be better accommodated in the renovated space. Their patients will have their appointments in spaces suited to their privacy and care needs. The space will be fully accessible. These are just a few of the improvements to ensure students’ needs can be met.
Demand has also been rising in the Buchanan Library, also known by its Blackfoot name Niitsitapi’ksimpstaan. Accessibility Services, currently located at the back of the library space, has seen a 104 per cent increase in the number of students reporting multiple disabilities over the past four years. Borrowing programs for laptops, books and other resources have grown 150 per cent year to year. The need for quiet study space has also been on the rise.
Out of this renovation, direct student supports from Accessibility Services and Student Learning Services will move to the front of the Learning Commons. The renovated space should also give additional visibility to important services such as Canvas support, academic strategists, tutoring and research supports. Accessibility Services clients will benefit from extra privacy. The space will become a centralized one-stop shop for the student and faculty supports offered at the library by the Centre for Teaching, Learning and Innovation.
This move will create more quiet spaces for focused study and group work.
This renovation is all about better meeting student needs in both the library and Wellness Services. Wellness reopens Oct. 3. The library service will reopen later this fall.