Northlands College CEO Guy Penney mentioned members of the Elders Advisory Council will be paid for their time. (Derek Cornet/larongeNOW Staff)

By Derek Cornet

northern education

Indigenization Strategy at Northlands College continues

Jan 25, 2022 | 12:41 PM

An Elders Advisory Council recently announced by Northlands College will bring a new body of knowledge to some of the decisions made at the institution.

“We had a number of Elders from northern Saskatchewan reach out to us and indicate what they believe they can bring to the table for us,” CEO Guy Penney said. “They submitted applications and so on and so forth. As is the case with any competition, it is very tough to narrow it down to just a few seats when you have a tremendous amount of interest, but we managed to do that through consultation with our board and so forth.”

The council, which consists of Ann Lafleur of Beauval, Thompson McKenzie of Grandmother’s Bay, William Morin of Pelican Narrows, Henry Charles of Montreal Lake and Freddie Throassie of Black Lake, will meet in-person for the first time in late February. At that time, they will meet with Northlands College’s board of governors, as well as complete an orientation session and learn about the college’s policies.

The meeting will also give the Elders an indication of what role they will play with Northlands College and how it will enrich the lives of staff and students.

“They won’t attend regular board meetings,” Penney said. “There’s going to be somethings left to work out yet. It’s going to be a process that will be fluid and will evolve over the course of time. We want to create an environment where there is dialogue between the Elders Advisory Council and our board of governors. We know the opportunity for this body to give advice will be great and we know of board is very much open to all that our Elders in northern Saskatchewan will be able to offer to us.”

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The council will provide guidance and knowledge to the institution in the areas of language and culture. Members will also work closely with the board of directors and the office of Indigenous Initiatives to reinforce the college’s vision, mission and outcomes.

The launch of the council is part of an Indigenization Strategy currently underway at Northlands College. That process has already included the raising of reconciliation flag in Air Ronge, along with the hiring of Resident Elder Elie Fleury and Indigenous Initiatives manager Ron Ratte. There was also the opening of the Elie Fleury Cultural Centre in February 2020.

In 2019, 96 per cent of the Northlands College student body was of Indigenous ancestry.

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derek.cornet@pattisonmedia.com

Twitter: @saskjourno