Marilyn Ailey, Mohit Dudeja, and Steven Secord Named “WellU Champions for Mental Health”

Congratulations to Faculty of Education Contract Lecturers Marilyn Ailey, Mohit Dudeja, and Steven Secord for being recognized as “WellU Champions for Mental Health.”

Each year, WellU Champions for Mental Health are nominated by students for showing compassion, encouraging a sense of belonging, inspiring health-promoting behaviours, and promoting student well-being. To see what this year’s champions had to say about their role in student well-being on campus, visit lakeheadu.ca/welluchampion. Excerpts from their quotes are included below:

Marilyn Ailey: “Asking for help can be difficult, so I make it a priority to remove any barriers by being readily available and ensuring students have access to the resources they need to improve their well-being. I’m open and transparent with my students, letting them know that while I may not always have the expertise to address every challenge, I am committed to helping them find someone who can. I have also created a resilience challenge as a significant assignment in my physical and health education courses. I encourage students to look at an area of their life that could benefit from some attention—whether it is for their physical, mental, or social health. They set individual goals, track progress, and research and reflect on how prioritizing an area of life for themselves affects their overall well being.”

Mohit Dudeja: “I actively work to disrupt traditional power dynamics in the classroom. I encourage students to see me not just as a teacher, but as a multidimensional human being, fostering open communication and mutual respect. Recognizing the diversity of challenges students face, particularly international students navigating culture shock, academic transitions, housing instability, and language barriers, I take proactive steps to support their mental health. Through empathy, advocacy, and meaningful relationships, educators and staff can help students thrive not only academically but also emotionally and socially.”

Steven Secord: “Mental health is as important as our physical health and needs to be prioritized whenever possible. It is critical for effective learning and allowing us to reach our full potential. I try to create space in my classrooms that allow students to feel comfortable being themselves and where they know their well-being is a priority. Teaching in the Faculty of Education, it is important to model this for future educators so they too are able to visualize how they will accomplish this with their students.”

Below, left to right: Marilyn Ailey, Mohit Dudeja, and Steven Secord.