Wednesday, March 15, 2023 @ 1:00 pm – Friday, March 17, 2023 @ 3:30 pm

PROGRAM REPORT

The Manitoba Collaborative Indigenous Education Blueprint

Victoria Inn and Convention Centre, Winnipeg
1808 Wellington Ave
Winnipeg, Manitoba R3H0G3Canada
View Venue Website

On March 15-17, 2023, the Manitoba Collaborative Indigenous Education Blueprint (MCIEB) hosted its first annual education conference at the Victoria Inn and Conference Centre in Winnipeg. The Inuktitut word, attausikuuluta, meaning “all together,” was gifted by Elder Martha Peet to emphasize the collaborative nature of the MCIEB and the fact that excellence in Indigenous education will only be achieved when educational organizations, government bodies and community all work together.
 
We had a wonderful full house and were sold out within a short time of announcing registration was open. To those who wanted to join us but couldn’t secure a spot, we understand your disappointment. Please consider emailing [email protected] with your name and details to be added to our contact list and receive updates for future events.


The Gathering is a confluence of Elders, educators, students, community leaders, policy makers, and advocates, invested in fostering important dialogue, exchanging knowledge, and cultivating partnerships centered on Indigenous education.
 
The 2023 Gathering focused on three key priority areas: Honoring Indigenous Knowledge, Connecting Community and Establishing Enduring Pathways’.
 
We had three incredible keynote speakers. David Newhouse, Chair of the Chanie Wenjack School for Indigenous Studies at Trent University, spoke on the topic Honouring Indigenous Knowledge: Affirming the rightful place of Indigenous Knowledge in academia. Ken Sanderson, Executive Director of Teach for Canada, spoke on the topic Connecting Community: Closing the digital divide in Northern and remote communities. And Dr. John Chenoweth, VP-Academic at Nicola Valley Institute of Technology, spoke on the topic Establishing Enduring Pathways: Credit transfer strategies to promote student mobility in Indigenous language proficiency and education.
 
 
The Gathering hosted 14 amazing breakout sessions which reflected the strong partnerships between Manitoba’s post-secondary institutions, K-12 educators, industry partners, and Indigenous communities.  We were blessed with the powerful sharing of culture, music and dance by Métis fiddler Morgan Grace, Hoop Dancer Emilie McKinney and Drummer Day Esquash.
 
We are grateful for an inspiring gathering where educators, students, community patrons, and advocates met to exchange knowledge and cultivate partnerships centered on Indigenous education.  Thank you to all who attended for making this gathering a place of connection and dialogue; thank you to all the outstanding speakers and facilitators for sharing your knowledge; thank you to the volunteers who made this event run smoothly; and our deepest thanks to the Elders who shared their knowledge and guidance and ceremony so generously.
 
 


David Newhouse’s Presentation

David Newhouse is Onondaga from the Six Nations of the Grand River community near Brantford, Ontario. He is Professor of Indigenous Studies at Trent University in the Chanie Wenjack School for Indigenous Studies and Professor of Business Administration in the School of Business Administration. He has been Chair of the Department of Indigenous Studies, now the Chanie Wenjack School for Indigenous Studies, since 1993.

His research interests focus on the emergence of modern Indigenous society, focusing on emerging Indigenous communities. He also teaches 1600 students per year in two first year courses in Indigenous Studies. He is the founding editor of two peer reviewed journals: CANDO Journal of Aboriginal Economic Development and aboriginal policy studies, a journal devoted to urban Indigenous issues. He is editor of 7 books on Indigenous issues and author of 25 book chapters, 50 journal articles and more than 150 keynote invited talks.

He has supervised 17 PhD students and 24 MA students. He has been awarded more than $9.0M in research funding from public and private sources. He was awarded a 3M National Teaching Fellowship for teaching innovation in 2022. He was awarded the Trent University Teaching Award for Educational Leadership and Innovation in 2016. He has served for the last decade on the Executive Committee for the Trent University Faculty Association: three years as president.
He currently serves as grievance officer. He is the former chair (now a member) of the Aboriginal Working Group of the Canadian Association of University Teachers. Locally, he serves on the board of directors for the Nogojawong Friendship Centre in Peterborough as Vice-President and in the past as Treasurer of the National Association of Friendship Centres and the Ontario Federation of Indigenous Friendship Centres and is the Co-Chair of the Trent Indigenous Education Council. He is the Co-Chair of the SSHRC Indigenous Advisory Circle and the Science Officer for the CIHR Indigenous Peoples Health Research competitions. He current serves as the Chair of the Indigenous Advisory Board of Katimavik, a national youth service organization.

Ken Sanderson is Anishinaabe, and a member of Pinaymootang First Nation. He has dedicated his career to enhancing opportunities for Indigenous communities. Ken brings 20 years of experience in executive leadership, organizational development, and growth management to Teach For Canada. He has worked with the Aboriginal Chamber of Commerce, Manitoba Aboriginal and Northern Affairs, and most recently, Broadband Communications North.

John Chenoweth’s Presentation

John is a member of the Upper Nicola Indian Band (Okanagan Nation) in the Nicola Valley of British Columbia. John has served Indigenous communities his entire professional career. He currently works as VP – Academic at Nicola Valley Institute of Technology. His research interests include marginalized people within education and Indigenous education. John has been married for 31 years and is the father to two sons.


John is a University of British Columbia – Native Indian Teacher Education Program (NITEP) graduate and former school teacher, Principal, and District Principal for First Nations Education. His teaching career began in 1994 and he transitioned to the post-secondary level in 2007. John is currently the VP Academic at the Nicola Valley Institute of Technology.

John understands that as an educator, his role is to serve Indigenous communities to revitalize Indigenous languages and cultures. To do this important work he privileges traditional Indigenous story-work as a model to address contemporary issues within education.al Reclaiming Our Future: Economic Development Youth Conference 2024 for Norway House Cree Nation.