H O M E C O M M U N I T Y
Pine Creek First Nation,
Vogar Manitoba,
Winnipeg Inner-city
C U LT U R A L I D E N T I T Y
Anishinaabe, Métis
C U R R E N T P O S I T I O N
Aboriginal Education Consultant, The Winnipeg School Division
Since my involvement
with my Aboriginal community began, both in education and our
community at large, I feel that I have been able to find a sense of place
and purpose for myself. When I was first exposed to our Anishinaabe
teachings there was lots of stuff I didn’t understand, but I listened
well and it kept me wondering. These experiences were coloring
my world as they filled in some important pieces about my life as
an Anishishinaabe Ikwe. I am thankful that we were able to connect
with traditional people through the schools I attended because each
experience I encountered encouraged me to seek out our traditional
people further. It also helped me appreciate what I had learned from
my own grandparents and family members. Although we did not
articulate it, our families have hung onto many of our traditional
practices and this was only brought to light for me when I had a
context to understand this. It is the traditional teachings and experi-
ences that have helped me make sense of who we are as a people.
My exposure to Anishinaabe teachings in school began in junior
high and opened me up to a world that was hidden in plain sight. Our
stories created space and gave meaning to my life. The Seven Fires
Prophecy was one such story that I now realize was more than story.
What I heard was an account of our history as Anishinaabe people
and an invitation to be a part of its unfolding story. This particular
story created space for me, the listener, to participate and it directed me
towards Pimatisiwin: a beautiful path in life that was left behind and
maintained by our Elders and Knowledge Keepers. The story speaks
of the different eras our people went through and ends with a focus
on the present time. It was our elders and traditional spokespeople
who said our people would wake up and pick up what was left behind
for us to make our nations strong again. It has been an exciting
journey to see this story come to life over the past twenty years. It was
wonderful to find a sense of purpose in stories that made space for my
presence and that afforded me new and meaningful life opportuni-
ties. It instilled a sense of responsibility that directed my life-actions.
These stories gave me something to believe in and I was drawn to
its endless possibilities.
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Through my schools’ sports experiences I always felt like we were the
underdogs in our visits to other schools. For some reason we knew
that people would expect bad behavior from us. Heck, I think we even
expected it ourselves! It’s unfortunate that as Aboriginal students we
had come to see ourselves in this way. Luckily, the stories that I heard
counteracted what I was learning through my life experiences as a
young person growing up in the North End of Winnipeg. It allowed
me to see and expect something different in who we were and more
importantly it inspired me to root for the underdogs
When I became a teacher I wanted all my students to make sense of their
own worlds and to find meaning and purpose in their life. Although
I could not know all of their histories, as a teacher I hoped that I could
help them find their way. I think that is what teaching is all about. I
have lived a richer life because of my educational experiences and
community involvement. I have such great respect for teachers who
have come in many forms, my grandparents, my mom and dad, my
siblings, my daughter, my friends including the many other Aboriginal
educators I have come to know over the years. Each one has worked
hard to get where they are and I have always been in awe of their
strength. It is because of our collective and growing presence
that I found my own strength and abilities.
I remember attending a sweat lodge ceremony conducted by Dan
Thomas and Garry Robson once. One comment stuck with me from
that experience; the idea that we must not always focus on the negative
in the telling of our stories because that is what we bring into our life
if we constantly give attention to it. We have to remember to balance
our life out by focusing on and working towards the positive. I think
I carried that with me for a long time, because for many years I have
been so motivated in my desire to support our growing initiatives that
give rise to our voice and presence. This is how I thought we could
bring back the positive to our collective.
Overall, I am so grateful for the opportunities that have been afforded
to me as a student who was exposed to Aboriginal teachers and mean-
ingful educational experiences. Although I didn’t appreciate it then,
I am thankful that my parents made me stay in school. As an Aboriginal
educator, I have wanted to provide my students with the same type
of meaningful experiences I had as a student. It is interesting to
think that residential schools were the places that cut us off from our
own identity, yet for me it was in school where I was first given the
opportunity to make some important discoveries. Schools can be places
that bring a sense of purpose, belonging and identity back to our people
but we must be conscious and consistent in our efforts to do so.
We do need more Aboriginal youth to pursue education as a career
and fill the role of a teacher, a consultant, a principal, a professor or
the many other jobs that are available to those with a teaching degree.
I am glad that through my education I have been fortunate to participate
in many meaningful life experiences. I have also been able to initiate
some of my own. One of the things I am most proud of is that I helped
to establish the Aboriginal Circle of Educators, Aboriginal Education
Awards Banquet. Although I recognize myself as a founder, this event
was made possible by many Aboriginal educators coming together and
putting some of their effort and time into making this idea a reality.
There is lots of room for new initiatives and we need you to participate
and contribute to making your ideas a reality. So why wouldn’t you want
to become an educator? There is a whole community of people
waiting for your great ideas and contributions.
Rebecca Chartrand - Wapunoong Ikwe
E D U C AT I O N / T R A I N I N G
Bachelor of Education,
Masters in Education
(pending)
25
R O L E S / R E S P O N S I B I L I T I E S
Support and promote the natural inclusion of Aboriginal perspectives in education.
It is important to have a dream
and to envision the world you
hope to live in. That is the world
you will create because we are
the engineers of our own lives.
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