Posted on Tuesday, June 6th, 2023
It has been planned for many years and now it is part of the campus grounds at
the Pembroke Waterfront Campus. A new Indigenous Medicine Wheel Garden, located on the Western tip of the campus property, was dedicated recently in a special ceremony that celebrated what the space means to the college and broader community.
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Posted on Monday, June 5th, 2023
Last fall, Shelia Grantham and Kerry Potts began working as Indigenous
pedagogy and curriculum consultants at Algonquin College in the Learning and Teaching Services (LTS) department. The goal of LTS is to foster a culture of teaching innovation and excellence and build relationships with faculty, academic schools and applied research that support strategic collaboration, pedagogical and technological exploration and ideas sharing. As part of their mandate, Grantham and Potts, in their roles with LTS will further advance the TRC’s Calls to Action relating to Indigenous education. Read more >
Posted on Friday, March 3rd, 2023
For Indigenous students to thrive and succeed at Algonquin College,
Indigenous voices need to be involved at every level of the College, bureaucracy and red tape need to be streamlined, student resources better promoted, and faculty should demonstrate flexibility and willingness to accommodate family emergencies.
These were some of the suggestions and recommendations shared with an audience of college employees and faculty, at the March 2 Indigenous Student Leadership Panel, hosted by Shelia Grantham and Kerry Potts, Algonquin College’s Indigenous Pedagogy and Curriculum Consultants in Learning and Teaching Services. Read more >
Posted on Tuesday, January 31st, 2023
On a snowy day in the Ottawa region, close to 100 learners, employees and
other members of the Algonquin College community tuned in to engage with legendary Canadian Murray Sinclair, the former Chair of Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
His Honour, with a snow-covered backdrop of his own, joined participants from his home in Winnipeg for a virtual chat answering questions on a range of topics. The conversation was hosted by Jamie Bramburger, Manager, Community and Student Affairs at the Pembroke Campus.
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Posted on Thursday, October 27th, 2022
While most folks were able to enjoy a bit of a slower pace this summer, new employees Shelia Grantham
and Kerry Potts started their new roles at Algonquin College and hit the ground running, quickly becoming part of the College community, hosting events and being interviewed by local media.
Grantham and Potts are Indigenous Pedagogy and Curriculum Consultants, new roles created within Learning and Teaching Services (LTS). The goal of LTS aims to foster a culture of teaching innovation and excellence at Algonquin College and build relationships with faculty, academic schools and Applied Research that support strategic collaboration, pedagogical and technological exploration, and ideas sharing. With these new roles, LTS will further advance the TRC’s Calls to Action relating to Indigenous education.
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Posted on Tuesday, October 11th, 2022
Soup’s on and ready to eat!
Starting today (Tuesday, Oct. 11) Three Sisters Soup, a traditional soup made from corn, beans and squash, will be on the menu at two locations on campus and will include squash grown and harvested from the College’s own Three Sisters Garden.
The Garden, located outside, across from the Connections Bookstore and Savoir Fare, was planted by horticultural students (with the help of some young people from the Early Learning Centre) back in June. Corn, beans and squash seeds were planted in accordance with Haudenosaune traditions. The Sisters symbolize peace, friendship and respect.
The garden was tended to by horticultural students, staff from the Truth, Reconciliation and Indigenization office and volunteers, including Thaddeus Attagutaluk, a welding and fabrication technician student from Iqaluit, who watered the garden all summer.
In addition to the crops, the final phase of the landscaping project was completed in partnership with PCL Construction. Indigenous plants including sumac, birch, cedar and dogwood were added to a dry riverbed that includes ferns and perennials.
To watch a short video of the Three Sisters Garden from planting to harvest click this link.
Posted on Friday, September 30th, 2022
On the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation, participants at Algonquin College in Pembroke took part in the KAIROS blanket exercise.
It’s an immersive, interactive experience that educates participants on the history and culture of Indigenous people in Canada, as well as the loss of their land and life.
“It takes you through the entire Indigenous history in a couple of hours,” says Aimee Bailey, a spokesperson at the Circle of Turtle Lodge in Pembroke, who helped lead the blanket exercise Friday.
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Posted on Thursday, September 29th, 2022
College holding day-long series of events for students and employees
Each year, Sept. 30 marks the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
The day honours the children who never returned home and Survivors of residential schools, as well as their families and communities. Recognition of the tragic history and ongoing impacts of residential schools is a vital component of the reconciliation process.
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Posted on Tuesday, September 27th, 2022
Paula Naponse never thought she would own her own store, a lifelong dream she had since she was eight years old.
For a decade, Naponse’s business selling fashion, beadwork and artisanal goods like candles was an ad hoc affair. She had a name, Ondarez — a name inspired by a similar phrase she would see often on Facebook (it was 2008, peak Facebook) posts from her home community: “I’m on the rez.”
But a storefront seemed out of reach. Naponse sold her wares at cultural gatherings and by mail order. But thanks to a tourism training program and a push from her eldest daughter, Naponse’s business expanded to her childhood dream of a storefront and café.
“I have a sign now! I never ever thought that it could happen to me,” Naponse told Canada’s National Observer.
The Beandigen Café, a coffee-pun play on the Anishnaabemowin word biindigen, or welcome, opened in November 2021 and serves as a storefront for Indigenous artisans and a community space for beading circles, Indigenous open mic nights, and NDN taco pop-ups.
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Posted on Tuesday, July 19th, 2022
After a three-year hiatus, Northern Youth Abroad (NYA) has returned to Algonquin College. Inuit and
Dene students from Nunavut and the Northwest Territories (NWT) are learning carpentry skills and getting a taste of college life throughout the month of July. On hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this is the first NYA program at the College since 2019.
NYA is an Ottawa-based charitable organization offering programming in education, career building and community leadership to northern youth. They offer three core programs: the NYA Canadian Program, NYA Next and the NYA International Program. After completing NYA’s Canadian Program, youth aged 1622 are eligible to participate in NYA Next, which takes place at the College’s Ottawa Campus.
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