Event Details:

Dr. Mike DeGagne, President and Vice-Chancellor, Nipissing University

 

The goal of cultural reconciliation is among the highest priorities of the Canadian government. The effort to develop understanding between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Canadians is at the heart of reconciliation. An historical series of reports and Commissions have all arrived at the same general conclusion: reconciliation will mean a process of decolonization leading to greater self-determination. Universities are, then, challenged to advance the aspirations of Indigenous students by focusing on the "indigenization" of the academy and the "decolonization" of the institution. This decolonization will require a fundamental shift in the stories told within the university: the narratives embedded in the curriculum, student services, residence life, and considerations of faculty teaching, research, and community service.