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University of Guelph to enhance aboriginal scholarship

University will hire more aboriginal faculty members and support more aboriginal graduate students.

A University of Guelph initiative to hire more First Nations, Metis and Inuit scholars, and attract more learners from those cultural groups is being called unprecedented.

In response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s call to make post-secondary education more equitable, the university plans to hire five tenure-track aboriginal faculty members within the next six to 18 months. The hires will be across a number of disciplines.

As well, U of G will launch five new graduate awards for aboriginal learners, worth $30,000 annually for PhD students, and $15,000 annually for master’s students. A new $45,000 post-doctoral award for an aboriginal researcher has also been announced.

Cara Wehkamp is manager of U of G’s office of intercultural affairs in Student Life, home to the university’s Aboriginal Resource Centre. In an interview, she said the initiative in its entirety is unprecedented. She called it a strong response to the commission’s recommendation to make post-secondary education more accessible to aboriginal people, and more inclusive of aboriginal culture, history, and ways of knowing.  

The plan, Wehkamp said, is an acknowledgement that the representation of First Nations, Metis and Inuit people at all levels of the university needs to be improved. It is also an acknowledgement that aboriginal learners are underrepresented at the institution.

Only about seven percent of aboriginal adults in Canada hold a university degree, compared to 21 percent in the non-aboriginal population. Those numbers are roughly two percentage points for aboriginal and non-aboriginal residents of Ontario.

An important aspect of the plan is to hire faculty members and attract learners across all disciplines, Wehkamp added, not just a select few.

“This initiative will help the University transform its learning environment and further enhance our existing student support,” Charlotte Yates, provost and vice-president (academic), said in a U of G media release. “We expect they will pursue new lines of research inquiry and inspire future generations of scholars.”

The graduate awards component, she added, will “increase knowledge creation by aboriginal scholars and encourage training of the next generation of scholars.”

The university will also work to expand undergraduate research opportunities for aboriginal students, and create an aboriginal artist-in-residence program. 


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Rob O'Flanagan

About the Author: Rob O'Flanagan

Rob O’Flanagan has been a newspaper reporter, photojournalist and columnist for over twenty years. He has won numerous Ontario Newspaper Awards and a National Newspaper Award.
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