Rida Batool is a dedicated Social Work student and is looking forward to completing her placement with MCASS through Ryerson University. Rida has always had an interest in community engagement and involvement. She has been connected to her community and works closely with the diverse individuals and families within it. Through the Social Work program and working at MCASS, she hopes to apply the knowledge and experience she has gained to acquire more skills in helping individuals and families with different ethnic, religious, and social backgrounds as well as those in marginalized communities within Toronto.

Aside from being a student, Rida also has a variety of experience working in different fields. Initially, she began her Social work career working with children at her local public library as well as working at a daycare within her community. There, she worked with children and youth to help them develop their educational, social, and life skills by working closely one-on-one and in small groups with them. From there, Rida moved forward to working at a South Asian organization which focused on community development in different South Asian communities all around the GTA through expression of various art forms. The project she worked on in this organization focused on emphasizing anti-racism and anti-discrimination in marginalized communities through displays and expressions of art forms such as art galleries, civic engagement projects/fairs, and sports. Following this, Rida worked at the YMCA organization to assist adults and youth in employment assistance programs. She assisted individuals in creating their resume and cover letters, as well as prepping and coaching them for job interviews along with participating in creating youth summer programs and conducting individual interviews with the youth and adults at the organization. Along with these various organizations, Rida has also been working in Retail for the past 6 years continuously engaging customers and clients with different backgrounds on a daily basis and providing exceptional customer service and problem solving. Working in different departments of the retail environment, adapting and understanding the job requirements as well as placing customers’ needs and requirements was her top priority. Recently Rida also started her own Cake Business where she creates custom cakes for birthdays, weddings, parties, etc, for a tasty and unique experience!

Currently, within Canada, there is such a diverse mix of communities and individuals that belong to different ethnic, religious, and social backgrounds. Most of these families and individuals immigrated from a different country in hopes of a brighter future not only for themselves but for their children. Rida also belongs to this group because she, herself is a Muslim, brown-raced, hijab-wearing, female. Rida understands how one can feel out of place in a new country and would strive to create their own identity in their community. Rida chose Social Work as a career path to help those within these communities and provide them with the feeling of belonging and acceptance into Canadian society. Through MCASS, she wants to provide individuals and families the assistance they need to build and establish their unique identity within their communities and help children and youth develop their social and life skills for their future. Working at MCASS, Rida hopes to reconnect her previous experience working with children and youth and apply the knowledge she has gained over the years to help those coming into the organization.

Completing her upcoming placement at MCASS, Rida is looking forward to working with youth, children, individuals, and families coming into the organization. She hopes to connect with everyone and build good relationships to help assist and provide exceptional service to each person she works with. She hopes that through MCASS, she can reach out to more Muslim children and families in the GTA as there is such great amounts of unique communities all around. Rida is looking forward to engaging closely with the hard-working staff, volunteers, and students at MCASS to provide accessibility to all those using the services at the organization. With community support and the dedication of MCASS’ programs and services, Rida is confident that she will positively contribute to the organization as well as acquire skills for her future endeavors.

You can Follow Rida’s Cake Business Here: