As an Educational Developer, I believe that educational development can transform educational practice, curriculum, and student experience. As an Indigenous Educational Developer, I seek to support faculty in the creation of engaging curriculum that positively impacts student learning. Relationships are key to my work and as such I take time to learn about those I am helping so I can build an environment of trust. Indigenizing curriculum and academia is not just what I do, but who I am. I am highly invested emotionally, mentally, spiritually, and physically in Indigenization and decolonization that this is the lens in which I see the world and the work I do. I strive to help faculty weave Indigenous knowledges into their courses in a meaningful way that has lasting impact beyond the halls of academia (Battiste 2013).  As Battiste shares "...Indigenous Knowledge is being revealed as an extensive and valuable knowledge system that must be made a priority or mission in education, not just for Indigenous students but for all students (Nourishing the Learning Spirit excerpt in Education Canada Vol. 50

(1) ). 

 

My hopes for the future are:

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1. Systemic change: across the institution, faculties and programs will commit to reconciliation even if they are not called on specifically by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (Sorcinelli et al., 2005);

2. Indigenous students: a high percentage of Indigenous students will feel that their histories and contemporary realities are being acknowledged and showcased in academia and will therefore feel empowered to graduate with a post-secondary degree; 

3. All faculties and disciplines will naturally weave Indigenous epistemologies into their courses.

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Empowerment

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I support others to create exceptional curriculum and be a “key lever for ensuring institutional quality and supporting institutional change” (Sorcinelli, Austin, Eddy & Beach, 2005, p. xi). As an Educator, I have seen how stagnant curriculum can become and with new ideas and a fresh perspective often lessons can become more impactful for students. Through the sharing of these ideas, I like to offer those I work with feedback that is supportive, constructive, and empowering, thus enabling maximum learning on behalf of students.  I share scholarly research with faculty and staff so they can learn as much as possible about Indigenous histories and contemporary realities and how these understandings can influence course content, activities, and assessment. One of my main goals is to utilize Indigenous pedagogy wherever possible and to support Indigenization and decolonization of curriculum.

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I have supported institutional change in the following ways: 

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• connecting community to institutional work (working with Elders and Knowledge Keepers)

• co-created the Indigenous Health Course for the Health Sciences Faculties 

• supporting the student advisory committee for the Institute for Circumpolar Health Research 

• supported the weaving of Indigenous perspectives into the Faculty of Science Bugs MOOC 

• facilitating workshops that showcase Indigenous ways of knowing, being, and doing in teaching and learning

• project management of Blended Learning courses

• co-developer of Understanding Structural Racism mini-MOOC

• co-developer of Walls to Bridges: Education in Prison program

  • member of the Unruly Women's Group ​

 

 

Relationships and Accountability 

 

Wahkohtowin, the Cree word for kinship and relational accountability to all things is a foundational principle of my work and my life in that I am accountable to those that I engage with and work with.

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