Walls to Bridges Application, Winter 2027 | Social Development Studies

SDS 435R: Restorative Approaches to Education - Walls to Bridges Application, Winter 2027

SDS 435R is offered through the Walls to Bridges program at Grand Valley Institution for Women, a federal prison in Kitchener. The class includes roughly equal numbers of students taking the course from inside the institution and students from campus. Everyone is enrolled in the same course for the same credit.

Enrolment is by application and interview. If your application moves forward, you will be invited to a short interview with the instructor in October/November. Students who are offered a place must then complete a Correctional Service Canada security clearance, which includes a police records check and takes several weeks. We can confirm a place in the class only once that clearance is granted.

Please read the commitments below carefully before applying. The course meets from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm (arrival time is 5:30 pm.) You will need to arrange your own transportation.

Applications close October 19, 2026 at 12:00 pm. Interviews will be held in October/November, and decisions communicated by the end of November.

Applicant information

First name

Last name

UWaterloo student ID number

UWaterloo email address

Program and level as of Winter 2027

(e.g.Social Development Studies, 3B. SDS 435R is open to students at level 3A or above; priority is given to SDS majors)

Resume/CV

Please upload a current resume or CV for the instructor to review.

One file only.
25 MB limit.
Allowed types: txt, rtf, pdf, doc, docx, odt, ppt, pptx, odp, xls, xlsx, ods.

Administrative questions

Class location and time

The class meets weekly at Grand Valley Institution in Kitchener on Thursdays from 6:00–9:00 pm, and entry procedures add roughly 60 minutes on either side. Can you commit to this schedule for the full term?

How do you plan to get to the site?

Note that students arrange their own transportation. Carpooling among classmates is common but not guaranteed.

Do you have a close family member or friend who works at Grand Valley Institution, or who is currently or was previously incarcerated there?

If you indicated Yes, please briefly describe the connection.

A Yes does not necessarily rule out your participation, but the institution needs to know, and we need to discuss it with you before your application proceeds.

Application questions

Answer in your own words. There are no correct answers here. We are interested in how you think, not in whether you already know the material. Roughly 200–300 words each.

1. What draws you to this course?

Tell us about both parts; the subject itself (restorative approaches to education) and the Walls to Bridges format.

2. What do you currently think about prisons and the Canadian criminal justice system, and where did those ideas come from?

We are less interested in your conclusions than in your account of how you arrived at them, such as what you've read, watched, been told, or experienced.

3. In a Walls to Bridges class, everyone is a student. No one is a guest, a helper, or someone else's learning experience. What do you think that will ask of you, and where do you expect to find it difficult?

4. SDS 435R asks you to co-facilitate peacemaking circles with your classmates and to reflect in writing on your own participation. Describe a group you've been part of where a difficult conversation happened. What was your role in it, and what would you do differently now?

Accessibility and other information

Is there anything we should know in order to make this course accessible to you? For example, AccessAbility Services accommodations, transportation constraints, or work and family responsibilities that affect your schedule. Some accommodations that are routine on campus are constrained by the host institution's rules. Tell us what you need and we will be honest with you about what is possible before you commit.

Other/Comments (optional)

Anything else you want to add or have questions about.