U of S to offer courses at Onion Lake Cree Nation
- EFN Staff | July 20, 2015
The University of Saskatchewan’s (U of S) Colleges of Education and
Nursing have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Onion Lake
Cree Nation to create additional opportunities for potential
post-secondary students to learn where they live.
The agreement
gives Onion Lake students the option of entering into the fields of
either education or nursing, or completing prerequisites for other
health sciences in Onion Lake through the support of the already
established Indian Education Teaching Program (ITEP), run by the College
of Education.
“The College of Education respects and honours the
work and goals of our First Nation communities and is committed to
working at meeting student needs both on and off campus,” said Michelle
Prytula, dean of the College of Education.
The College of
Education has a long history of successful partnerships with First
Nation communities through its ITEP program, which has been around for
more than 40 years.
“The mandate of ITEP is to ensure Indian
control of Indian Education and that is the guiding principle behind our
program,” said Chris Scribe, co-ordinator of ITEP and First Nations,
Métis and Inuit Programming in the College of Education. “Producing
First Nation teachers to teach First Nation children in a way that
promotes culture, language and traditions is essential to the success of
First Nation children in our schools.”
Lorna Butler, dean of the
College of Nursing, said that through this new agreement, Onion Lake
Cree Nation students will have the advantage of learning together with
others in the College of Education and ITEP. Once they complete their
first year at Onion Lake, they can then apply to the College of Nursing
to complete years two through four at one of our sites.
“The
College of Nursing has been responsive to the needs of rural and remote
communities by offering students the opportunity to obtain a nursing
degree without leaving their home communities,” said Butler. “‘Learn
Where You Live’ is a model that helps build a local, skilled workforce
to provide better access to health. The College of Nursing is proud to
be part of this collaboration.”
“Having sufficient numbers of
qualified, local Aboriginal nurses to provide health care is key to
improving Aboriginal quality of life and well-being,” said Heather
Exner-Pirot, strategist for outreach and Indigenous engagement, College
of Nursing. “This partnership allows the college to extend the
opportunity to make nursing education more responsive and accessible to
the people of Onion Lake.”
Onion Lake Cree Nation’s strategic
plan and vision is for people to assume productive and responsible roles
in society, including acquiring leadership roles within its education
system.
Related story: Northern communities graduate first batch of nurses
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