January 24, 2024

The Cree School Board (CSB) has launched a department of higher learning to bring additional postsecondary opportunities to Cree students. The department will manage Eeyou Istchee’s postsecondary programs, including the Cree Teacher Training Program and the Iyeskuwiiu CEGEP-level springboard program. The department also collaborates with Cree entities to ensure that educational offerings are aligned with regional priorities and in-demand career paths. “Ultimately part of our plan is for a Cree CEGEP in our territory, all depending on the dominoes to fall into place,” said CSB director Darlene Cheechoo. “There will be multiple people involved in it. We’ve already started some groundwork that we need to update with current data for feasibility.”

University of Winnipeg Assistant Professor Laura Forsythe has been researching the erasure of Métis women in academia. While completing graduate research at UManitoba, Forsythe explained that she did not see the work of Métis women reflected on syllabi, which prompted her to look further into the experiences of Métis women in academia. Forsythe developed an intertwined Michif methodology centred around learning through listening. She identified three themes contributing to Métis women’s erasure in academia: colonial attempts at erasure, attempts at making Métis identity invisible, and power structures that attempt to silence Métis voices. Forsythe dedicated a chapter of her dissertation to providing Métis people with guidance for how to navigate the academic realm. In an effort to foster connection and to help Métis scholars share their knowledge, she has also established a journal dedicated to Métis voices and has hosted events. “It was sort of the knowledge that I received from the grandmothers and the ways in which we needed to help ourselves, that I have now put forward a path for my own scholarship and my own career that is going to be around lifting up and creating spaces for Métis people to thrive in the academy,” said Forsythe.

The new Chief Aranazhi School, located on Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation, has officially opened. The facility will provide students in grades 5-12 with education in an environment that celebrates the First Nation’s culture and traditions. The $20.8M building and its grounds—which include an oversized gym, a fitness room, a commercial kitchen, a ceremonial space, an outdoor ice rink, and a playground—will also be used as a community centre for the First Nation. “Chief Aranazhi School will provide a foundation for traditional education while ensuring our youth become masters of every contemporary institution, from arts and culture to math, science and beyond,” said Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation Chief Tony Alexis. “Cutting-edge, this school will help students maintain their culture and identity while preparing them for the exciting opportunities of the future.”

A new resource called the Dewemaagannag/My Relations Indigenous Engagement Guide will provide educators with recommendations and best practices for working with Indigenous communities. The guide, which was created by Geneviève Sioui (Wendat Nation) with the assistance of student Amanda Shawayahamish (Animbiigoo Zaagi’igan Anishinaabek community), was inspired by the questions Sioui received when she first started working at Concordia University. The guide places an emphasis on building reciprocal relationships, highlights how important it is for non-Indigenous researchers to advocate for better practices for issues such as confidentiality, and discusses Indigenous sovereignty over information. It is intended to be a “living document” which will be updated as practices change and which recognizes mistakes as part of the process of building reciprocal relationships.

Georgian College has partnered with the Simcoe County District School Board (SCDSB) and the Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies to bring an Indigenous language virtual reality (VR) tool to the classroom. SCDSB and SIIT will use Georgian’s Indigenous language VR worlds tool to teach elementary to postsecondary students about Indigenous languages, cultures, and treaties; contribute to the Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action; and support the preservation of Indigenous languages. The VR worlds will give students a place to socialize, practice speaking the languages, and learn more about Indigenous elements such as the Medicine Wheel. “Creating innovative virtual worlds and then teaching Indigenous languages in them has truly been a labour of love,” said Georgian Indigenous Studies Coordinator Michele O’Brien. “We are so excited to collaborate with educational partners to make Indigenous languages and cultures accessible to even more people.”

The First Nations Human Resources Development Commission of Quebec (FNHRDC-QC) has received up to $25M in funding to support skills training through the Global Strategy for Indigenous Employability project. The project focuses on increasing the number of Indigenous people who are employed or participating in vocational training. “Every professional success in our communities gives hope and inspires the current generation as well as future generations—because a job is not just a job, it’s a path to cultural pride and pride in your identity,” said FNHRDC-QC Executive Director Richard Jalbert.

Several postsecondary schools have announced new Indigenous-focused courses and programs. Two programs are intended primarily for faculty and staff: Concordia University’s Office of Indigenous Directions has launched a non-credit Cree-language course as part of its Pîkiskwêtân Indigenous Learning Series, while Loyalist College and First Nations University have partnered to deliver the 4 Seasons of Reconciliation employee education program to Loyalist’s staff and faculty. Other programs are intended to bring learning opportunities to northern and rural communities. The Gabriel Dumont Institute of Native Studies and Applied Research is partnering with the University of Regina to offer an Indigenous Education Doctorate program. Throughout their studies, students will learn about Métis local knowledge, history, spirituality, and culture within national and international contexts. The Atik Mason Indigenous Pilot Pathway program, which prepares students from the North for careers as pilots and offers an opportunity to pursue further pilot credentials through Moncton Flight College, is expanding to Rankin Inlet.

The chairs of two school divisions in Manitoba are calling on the Government of Manitoba to bring additional Indigenous teachers into the classroom. St-James Assiniboia School Division chair Holly Hunter and Winnipeg School Division board chair Tamara Kuly co-authored a letter to MB Minister of Advanced Education and Training Renée Cable calling on the government to work with Indigenous organizations to increase the number of certified Indigenous teachers and education students. Hunter and Kuly also called for a “significant investment” into training and partnerships with community organizations to provide First Nations, Métis and Inuit candidates with bursaries and wraparound services. “We know that Indigenous students that see themselves reflected in the teaching staff are more likely to achieve academic success,” said Hunter. University of Manitoba Associate Dean of Indigenous Education Frank Deer noted that the institution is currently designing a post-baccalaureate diploma in Indigenous education that will begin training students in Fall 2024.

Two Dalhousie University law professors have raised their concerns about Dal’s proposed process for verifying Indigenous identity. Last month, a Dal task force recommended that the university implement a process through which people would submit federally issued status cards or written confirmation to verify their Indigenous identity. However, a recent report examining the legality of the proposed policy–authored by Indigenous faculty members Cheryl Simon and Naiomi Metallic–states that this process runs the risk of excluding people who have legitimate claims to Indigeneity, but who do not have federal recognition. Simon and Metallic assert that Dal already has the tools at its disposal to prevent Indigenous identity theft and fraud and that no new process is necessary. In a public statement, Dal Provost Dean Harvey indicates that the consultation process will continue over the coming months.

Kanien’kéha (Mohawk) language speakers will soon have a new dictionary to help support language learning. The Dictionary of Kanien’kéha (Mohawk) with Connections to the Past is being developed by linguist Karin Michelson and native speaker Glenda Deer, using previous research done by Michelson’s late father Gunther Michelson. Deer and Karin Michelson have been working for seven years to fill in gaps in Gunther Michelson’s work to create a comprehensive dictionary. Translator and former language teacher Kahnawa’kehró:non Akwiratékha Martin, who is reviewing and editing the dictionary, told CTV News that learners have been waiting for a resource like this. “The language is just made of parts, but the beauty of it is there is just so much play and art to it,” said Martin. “Then you can just play with it, like the elders do.” The dictionary will be published in March by the University of Toronto Press.