This past spring 2019, Ms. Lois Philipp toured a few post-secondary institutions with a group of Dehcho High School students. This was an eye-opening experience for a lot of them. As Ms. Philipp put it, “It was awesome to see the youth begin to see that they could see themselves in the colleges and universities that we visited and that there were pathways to get them there”. Ms. Philipp was particularly proud to see our students studying in a hotel staff training room to complete their assignment package. These pictures were taken just before 11:30 p.m. just before they were kicked out because of the late hour.
Isn’t it great to see our students being so responsible and diligent with their homework?
Ms. Philipp informed us that, the following day, students were once again doing their homework at the Native Centre at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT). Lois shared that: “The director of the centre was pleased as punch to see students working hard on homework”
While on the tour, Ms. Philipp noticed that some places really seemed to hold our students’ attention. I invite you to read her comments below:
University of Victoria (UVIC) – “There was an amazing young lady who toured us around as well as personally pledged to help anyone who needed help getting into any post-secondary institution. (It probably helped that we have a number of Dehcho students already studying there)
Camosun College (Victoria, B.C.) – “This has a great trade access program. They have an amazing Sports and Wellness program and have the Pacific Institute for Sports Excellence (PISE) centre which is open to elite athletes. There are a couple of Dehcho students there as well.
Vancouver Island University (VIU, Nanaimo, B.C.) – “Nanaimo is a fairly small community and students there have great academic support. They have a great ARTS One program which is a small first year program for Indigenous students focusing on academic preparedness with Elder and Indigenous support. Students need ELA 30-1 and a high school diploma. VIU, I think of all the BC institutions, has more Dehcho students than any other.
Capilano University (North Vancouver, B.C.) – “This was the first visit for me…an amazing location. It appealed to our students who want to pursue a career in theatre and the arts. They have a great Indigenous film program.”
Mount Royal College (Calgary, Alberta) – “Again, this was a first visit for me. I was blown away with the support they offer Indigenous students. It is a teaching university rather than a research university so class sizes are much smaller. We will definitely have some students apply.”
Other places we visited:
University of British Columbia (UBC, Vancouver, British Columbia) – “This university appealed to a number of students. There is a lot to do on campus. Any Indigenous student who applies is brought down for a campus visit in May. We loved the Long House. It has a door where every First Nations’ student can use during their recognition ceremony when they graduate.”
British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT, Burnaby, British Columbia) – “BCIT has an amazing Trades Discovery program and an amazing Red Seal Plumber as its director….She is the heart of the program and has an amazing relationship with all of the students. I worked with her last year trying to arrange a Trades Discovery program for northern Indigenous students – we were so close to making it happen.”
NAIT, SAIT (Southern Alberta Institute of Technology, Calgary, Alberta), Alberta University of Art Design (AUAD, Calgary, Alberta) – “There are fewer than 1/2 dozen chefs in the country with the designation of a ‘Master Chef’ and one of them works in the Culinary Arts program at SAIT. AUAD runs a 3-week summer program for high school students interested in a Fine Arts program. We have a couple of students at AUAD.”
A big thank you to Ms. Lois Philipp for making things happen and putting the welfare of our students at the top of her agenda!
Sincerely,
Philippe Brulot (Superintendent)