Cree School Board

CREE SCHOOL BOARD

Cree Nation Government Annual General Assembly August 5, 6, & 7, 2014

1 OUTLINE

1. Introduction: 2. Review Process: a. Working Group: Cree Education Act b. Working Group: Cree Component of Cree Education 3. Ownership Linkage Meetings: 4. Cree School Board Preliminary Graduation Numbers 5. Highlights for 2013 – 2014 6. WIPC:E 7. Conclusion

2 INTRODUCTION

• Greetings to all delegates of this 2014 Annual General Assembly for the Cree Nation Government; • We are pleased to do a short presentation about the CSB activities for the school year 2013 – 2014; • We will begin with the Review Process which we initiated last fall; • We began by considering two questions:

1. What is Cree Education?

2. How well do our legislative documents serve us?

3 Traditional Holistic Cree Education

4 Questions unanswered: What is Cree Education? What is Aboriginal Education? What makes it a “Cree” How will an Aboriginal Education Education System? How is it System be different from Western different from Western Education System? Education system?

Reviews: Education Act for Cree/Naskapi Fed. Gov’t New Policy JBNQA: Section 16 Transfer of Control of Native Peoples; Cree “Cree Control of Education to Component of Cree Education Cree Education” First Nations Standing QEA - 1968

1969 1970 Feb. Gov’t’s White National Indian Paper: Dissolution Brotherhood’s Response: 1975 of Indian Act, “Indian Control of Indian Signing of JBNQA: Reserve System Education” and DIAND Announcement of JBEHP

5 REVIEW PROCESS

I. Working Group for the Review of the Education Act for Native Peoples: Ø Composition of Working group: cross-section of Cree population; youth and Elders; Ø Mandate to review both the Quebec Education Act and the Education Act for Native Peoples; Ø Create a framework of a revised or New Cree Education Act; and Ø Make recommendations to Governance Development Committee and Council of Commissioners of what is to be included in new Cree Education Act.

6 REVIEW PROCESS cont’d

II. Working Group for the Review of Cree Component of Cree Education: Ø Composition of Working Group: cross-section of Cree population; includes youth and Elders; Ø Mandate: to review the Cree Component of Cree Education; Ø Create a framework of how the Cree Education system should look like; what aspects of Cree Culture, traditions, ceremonies, values, etc should be included; Ø Make recommendations to Governance Development Committee and Council of Commissioners of how to revamp Cree education.

7 OWNERSHIP LINKAGE MEETINGS

• Connecting with the owners (Members of Cree Nation) is a primary job-output of the Council; • Council now holds its regular meetings in Cree Communities: Council will met in Whapmagoostui, Washaw Sibi (Amos), Mistissini, Waswanipi, and Eastmain; • Cree School Board met with Cree Nation Government, Cree communities, Cree entities and others since 2011as part of its OL process; • First Round of meetings are done; • The following table shows some of the results, but does not show all the data from all the groups with whom we met during the last four years:

8 OWNERSHIP LINKAGE cont’d

Source of info/ School GCCQ & Mistissini First Waskaganish Justice & Cree Trappers Committees Chiefs Nation (Mar. First Nation (June Correctional Assoc (June 14) (June 14) 14 minutes) & Sept 13 (Sept 13 (Oct 12 minutes) Issue/ minutes) minutes)

•Importance Insert of Cree Oraltable and x hereIncluding x x language and culture written secondary level Land-based programs x Survival skills x

Recognition of elders as x x teachers More resources for x cultural programs Importance of history x Agreements signed Balance between “2 x x worlds” of Cree Quality of education Promote Standards concerns graduation; not high high standard enough for curriculum; college improve [concern attendance that community leaders saying this] French language x x x qualifications Literacy/writing skills Writing skill/ literacy x handwriting

Enhanced math x x x x

Enhanced science x Chem, x science, biology

9 OWNERSHIP LINKAGE cont’d

Source of info/ School GCCQ & Chiefs Mistissini First Waskaganish Justice & Cree Trappers Committees (June 14) Nation First Nation Correctional Assoc (Oct 12 (June 14) (June & Sept 13 (Sept 13 minutes) minutes) minutes) Issue/

Enhanced technology x x x education After school/extra x Tournaments take sports curricular activities students out of class Drop out rate x x x x Channel to CTA programs?

Special needs x x Gifted students x Strategic thinking, x accountability Need for leadership Capacity x training building Healthy learning X crossing environment guards Bullying x x x Parenting skills Importance of x sleep, nutrition Parental involvement Xxx; more x in education active school committees Need shared vision to Mining Teen pregnancy x substance focus on root causes/ increase; abuse/ social issues boarding domestic home; housing violence needs; health FASD issues housing

10 OWNERSHIP LINKAGE cont’d

Source of info/ School GCCQ & Chiefs (June Mistissini First Waskaganish First Justice & Cree Trappers Committees 14) Nation Nation (June & Correctional Assoc (Oct 12 (June 14) Sept 13 minutes) (Sept 13 minutes) minutes)

Issue

Need to collaborate X Keeping teachers in Community Cree Nation School community; need action gov’t committees share coordination between programs with each other; Chief & Council and promote more CSB e.g., hockey; more community collaboration on all involvement levels

10 year clause x Need health care nurses nurses professionals Need various professions Current Lawyers; trades, retirements need accountants2000 jobs to be replaced; to be filled; what will professional future jobs be? cooks; assess needs More local training x Need tourism education

Mining education & pre- x x Industry, mining, reqs environment

Need teacher ed/Cree x x x teachers Daycares in schools x x

Assistance for Post-sec x with children who want to attend school in south

Concerns re: use of x funding

11 OWNERSHIP LINKAGE cont’d

Issue

Mentoring youth x Need skills for law judges x admin and corrections Need Career Self- Upgrading x planning/ confidence; assistance; culture prep for college/self- career shock in first year – confidence planning students lose years of education

Wider scope of school x committees (non- parents) Communication Between Don’t know who to issues school communicate with committee and schools, role clarity; proper channels for complaints Lack of relationship of x teachers in community

Understand x governance system of CSB

12 PRELIMINARY GRADUATION NUMBERS 2013 - 2014

Congratulations to all Cree School Board graduates from all sectors! 13 GRADUATION TRENDS

• Insert table

14 HIGHLIGHTS OF 2013 - 2014

• 2 Progress Reports each tabled by the two Working Groups on the Cree Education Act and the Cree component of Cree Education; • Received a Status Report on the 5 year capital plan; • Approved revised budget for Surplus fund to be used for school projects and other School Board Projects; • Appointed members of the Negotiations committee for the upcoming Negotiations for CSB Funding Rules for 2014 to 2019; • Approved new budget for Summer Literacy Camp; received last year’s progress report; showed the impact was good for our students and how the parents were impressed by these camps; • Renewed the Service Agreement with Elephant Thoughts – to help students at the Secondary Level; • Approved Amendments to the 2013-2014 Personnel plan; • Approved several contracts for service/ construction/renovations/ school transportation, etc.; • Approvals of Service agreements for Heavy Machinery/Mineral & Metal Processing training Programs; • Roundtable on Building Capacity toured the Cree communities; Cree secondary students, teachers, Commissioners and other CSB staff attended the RBC;

15 HIGHLIGHTS OF 2013 – 2014 Continued • Council elections: Daniel Mark Stewart as Vice Chairman; Mabel Bearskin as Third Member for the Executive Committee; Members appointed for Audit Committee were Emily G. Mianscum, Samson Wischee, and Teddy Wapachee; Roger Sandy, Daisy Shecapio, Samson Wischee and Annie Mapachee were appointed as Governance Development Committee; • Doctors Alex and Lindsay Thornton presented “Neural Underpinnings of a Fit Brain”; how physical activities improves cardio vascular fitness and learning; these two doctors are also examining the effects of sleep deprivation on learning; a pilot project was initiated in Eastmain; • The Council of Commissioners approved User Fee payments for 2013-2014; and • Cree School Board received an invitation to attend World Indigenous Peoples’ Conference: Education.

16 WORLD INDIGENOUS PEOPLES’ CONFERENCE: EDUCATION 2014

• A CSB delegation attended by invitation the World Indigenous Peoples’ Conference on Education in Honolulu, Hawaii; • Delegates participated in various workshops with a wide range of topics on Indigenous education; • Chairperson, Vice-Chairman, Director General and Director of School Operations also attended by invitation a seminar to discuss the challenges encountered by Indigenous leaders of education; • Topics discussed at the seminar were funding for Aboriginal education, legislated educational policies and how they affect Indigenous education, cultures and languages; implementation of programs to include Indigenous cultures and languages into curriculae, etc.

17 CONCLUSION

All First Nations leaders should consider these three questions. The delegates who attended the seminar at WIPC:E were asked to consider these three questions:

1. What am I called to do? To lead the discussion in clarifying what we mean by Cree Education.

2. What are we called to do? To provide the best education possible for all Cree students: youth, adults and Post-Secondary.

3. What are we calling others to do? To participate in the discussion and delivery of a Cree education system that will strengthen the Cree Nation.

18 LAST THOUGHT

Plenty Coups, Crow Chief:

“Education is your greatest weapon. With education you are the white man’s equal, without education you are his victim and so shall remain all your lives. Study, learn, help one another always. Remember there is only poverty and misery in idleness and dreams – but in work there is self-respect and independence.”

19 The End!

Megwetch!

Thank you!

Merci!

Questions???