Gracie, our Wellbeing Dog

At Donvale, we place importance on supporting the whole child – academically, socially, emotionally, physically and spiritually. Through our wellbeing and pastoral care approach, we seek to empower students to realise their God-given purpose and identity, and support them to develop positive relationships, resilience and a growth mindset, all within our safe and supportive environment. 

This week, we welcomed (back) Gracie. Gracie is well known to many in the DCC community, having spent her training days as a puppy in and around the College. Gracie now returns to DCC as a certified Assistance Dog from Dogs for Life. She will be onsite daily. 

Currently, Gracie is being slowly introduced to her role at DCC. It is anticipated that she will take a few weeks to transition before working to full capacity each day. Select members of the Learning Support Team have been designated as Gracie’s College Handlers and, together with trained Handlers, Gracie will eventually play a supportive role to individual students and classrooms. It is our hope that through Gracie’s presence, student wellbeing will be positively enhanced. 

To aid a positive transition, there are a few golden rules we as staff, students and parents must follow as we interact with Gracie around the College.

• When wearing her yellow vest and on lead, Gracie is a working wellbeing dog and all interactions with her must be calm and respectful of the role she is fulfilling
• All members of the community must seek permission of the trained Handler to interact with Gracie
• No food items or treats are to be given to Gracie.
• Hands must be washed after interacting with Gracie
• Other dogs are not to interact with Gracie when she is ‘working’. 

Should there be reasons why a student cannot interact with Gracie, parents are asked to contact the college immediately. Please contact your classroom teacher (Primary) or Homeroom teacher (Secondary) in the first instance. Staff will share this information with First Aid if concerns related to allergies are raised. 

We are delighted that Gracie is back with us as a regular and important member of our community, learning to play her part as the DCC Wellbeing Dog, supporting students as they engage with various aspects of community life. We have already seen her welcomed by many, and look forward to seeing her around the College each day.