Indspire e-Newsletter August 2020

Within a generation, every Indigenous student will graduate.

Welcome to the first edition of Indspire’s e-newsletter! Each month, we’ll bring you the latest information on Indspire programs and events, research and the news on Indspire laureates and our partners. We’ll also share stories of First Nations, Inuit and Métis students that are realizing their educational dreams, even during these uncertain times.

National Indigenous History Month

It’s been a busy few months here at Indspire with the release of the first report from our Research Knowledge Nest, two webinars and the broadcast of the 2020 Indspire Awards! Here is a recap in case you missed any of it.

Indspiring Change @ Home: A Virtual Conversation with our Community

On Thursday, June 11, Indspire launched its inaugural webinar series, Indspiring Change @ Home: A Virtual Conversation with our Community. The first edition featured a conversation between Roberta Jamieson, President and CEO of Indspire, and bestselling author Prof. Jesse Thistle. Approximately 250 people from across Canada tuned in to hear this engaging and thoughtful conversation. In cased you missed the webinar, you can watch it here.

The Indspire Awards

The Indspire Awards bestow the highest honour on Indigenous people who have made significant contributions to Indigenous education, culture, business, health, law, sports and public service in Canada as well as three youth awards to First Nations, Inuit and Métis role models. The 2020 Indspire Awards were broadcast nationwide on CBC and APTN on Sunday, June 21, 2020. Haven’t see it yet or would like to watch it again? You can watch it here for free.

Indspire Provides Record Funding For First Nations, Inuit and Métis Students Across Canada

Indspire announced that it has awarded an unprecedented $17.8 million in scholarships, bursaries and awards to more than 5,100 First Nation, Inuit, and Métis students during the current school year. You can read the official press release here.

Indspire, CIBC help create awards for 36 Indigenous students at the University of Alberta

Indspire is thrilled to announce a significant partnership with the University of Alberta that will enable 36 First Nations, Inuit, and Métis students to achieve their highest potential. Thanks to support from the Government of Canada, Indspire has matched a generous $500,000 gift from CIBC which will, along with other commitments, create awards for Indigenous students at the U of A of up to $2.9 million dollars. Read more about this here.

Indspire Research Knowledge Nest

Exciting things are happening at Indspire’s Research Knowledge Nest! Begun in 2019, this ground-breaking new initiative is the first of its kind in Canada: an Indigenous-focused research incubator. Its mission is to improve Indigenous educational and employment outcomes through research and analysis – and to contribute to the development of a new generation of Indigenous analysts and researchers through its Research Assistant program.

Despite the unusual circumstances created by COVID-19, the Research Nest had a very busy – and productive – summer!

Highlights include:

JUNE

Indspire released the Building Brighter Futures: Bursaries, Scholarships and Awards Program Recipients’ Outcomes Report, the very first report generated from research conducted by the Research Nest. It identified an imminent problem in Indigenous education in Canada: while more and more Indigenous students are attending or want to attend post-secondary institutions, the funding is not there to adequately support them. It also highlighted the impressive achievements of current and past Indigenous post-secondary students: nearly 90 percent had graduated and half worked for Indigenous organizations.

The release featured a webinar with Roberta Jamieson, President & CEO of Indspire; Kristen Everett, VP of Programs & Student Success; and Joshua Thomas, the very first Research Assistant hired by the Research Nest, in conversation with his mentor, Dr. Rob Gillezeau from the University of Victoria. You can check it out online here and read the report here.

JULY

The Research Nest announced the creation of its Advisory Committee: four respected professionals whose unique expertise will provide the Research Nest with insightful guidance to fulfil its vital mandate. Learn who they are here.

Stay tuned for:

AUGUST

We’re anticipating the release of the Nurturing Capacity Synthesis Report, which will document the best practices and lessons learned of over 50 Nurturing Capacity projects. These projects offered ingenious ways to support Indigenous students from kindergarten to Grade 12.

OCTOBER

We’ll be releasing a joint report with the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business (CCAB) which will combine Indspire’s Building Brighter Futures: Bursaries, Scholarships, and Awards data with Statistics Canada data to look at Indigenous post-education employment outcomes.

Have questions or want to know more about the Research Knowledge Nest? Email us at [email protected] or visit us at indspire.ca/research.

Building Brighter Futures Student Spotlight

Marie Duquette

I am currently a couple weeks away from graduating from a bachelor’s degree from the University of Guelph in Animal Biology. In September 2020, I will be starting in a 2-year diploma program for Protection, Security, & Investigations at Conestoga College in Kitchener. My hopes are to become an animal cruelty investigator or animal control officer.