Learning pact helps lay path to reconciliation
Cultural links are critical in Indigenous education, Scott Haldane and Reeta Roy write.
When Sheldon Scow recounts his path to a university education, it is a story of tenacity and hard-won courage. A third-year First Nations studies student at Vancouver Island University, Scow dropped out of university twice before returning for a third time.
“I didn’t trust educational institutions and I didn’t trust my professors,” he says. “Vancouver Island University awakened my passion for my culture, and every day, I am learning to trust this institution.”
The key to his courage? A broad network of support, including his family and a team of dedicated staff at Vancouver Island University who reinforce his determination to succeed.
Deeply disrupted by Canada’s history of residential schooling, Indigenous learners experience a complex set of obstacles that have widened the gap in post-secondary attainment levels between Indigenous and non-Indigenous youth in Canada.
However, as demonstrated by Scow’s resiliency — and by the enrolment of thousands of other Indigenous students at colleges and universities across Canada — Indigenous youth are eager for opportunities to learn.
The calls to action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which examined the consequences of Canada’s residential school system, have provided considerable momentum and goodwill for Indigenous and non-Indigenous partners to work together to improve outcomes for Indigenous peoples. As Sen. Murray Sinclair, chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, has said, “Education holds the key to reconciliation. It is where our country will heal itself.”
In September, Vancouver Island University and Yukon College announced a new partnership with the Rideau Hall Foundation and the Mastercard Foundation that will break trail for this vision of reconciliation.
As we heard again and again from elders, chiefs and students gathered at the Yukon College launch event in Carcross, Indigenous youth have a passion for education anchored in their own cultures and histories. Rooted in the wisdom of elders, the aspirations of youth, and the vision Indigenous communities hold for themselves, our partnership welcomes Indigenous youth as full partners in their education. It will remove barriers for hundreds more Indigenous learners like Scow and support the realization of their dreams for themselves, their families and their communities.
Our partnership is grounded in respect, collaboration and co-creation. By listening to the voices of Indigenous learners, educators, elders and leaders every step of the way, we will not only strengthen the educational outcomes of Indigenous learners, but will work toward reconciliation benefiting communities and Canada as a whole.
This collective undertaking, we hope, will be a story of new beginnings, a story of partnership, trust-building and hope.
Looking ahead, we will carefully monitor our progress and share our learning broadly. We are collaborating with Indigenous learners and Indigenous communities to incorporate knowledge rooted in their experiences and aspirations. We firmly believe what is learned from the work being led by Yukon College and Vancouver Island University can inform reconciliation efforts on campuses across Canada.
By involving other Indigenous communities and educational institutions in the co-creation process, with support from philanthropic organizations, governments and the private sector, we hope to model solutions that could expand across the country so that many more Indigenous learners will see themselves and their communities reflected in an education that is relevant, meaningful and supportive to them.
“Our youth nurtured to learn is healing medicine for us,” Vancouver Island University elder-in-residence Gary Manson told the audience assembled in Nanaimo for the VIU launch event.
A leader from the Snuneymuxw First Nation and a survivor of residential school trauma, Manson has been instrumental in the development of this learning partnership. By co-creating programs driven by the voice of Indigenous communities, we — with Yukon College and Vancouver Island University — can create a vision of universities and colleges where the children and grandchildren of Manson, and others like him, will proudly learn, share and thrive.