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Home , Kapuskasing, Taykwa Tagamou Nation, Wahgoshig First Nation

INDIGENOUS PEOPLES’ ADVISORY COMMITTEE

MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD Tuesday, January 22, 2019 @ 11:00 a.m. Schumacher Board Office – with v/c to NLBO

Committee Members Present: Howard Archibald - Trustee – DSB North East and Chair of IPAC Arline Chasle - Director of Education, Timiskaming First Nation (v/c NLBO) Rose Thomas - Education Officer, (t/c until 11:33 a.m.) Neil Iserhoff - Education Director, Val Fuller - Trustee, DSB Ontario North East (v/c NLBO)

Committee Members Absent: Cathy Naveau - Education Director, Lynn Mongrain - Representative, Temagami First Nation Margaret Edwards - representative, Steve Meunier - Trustee, DSB Ontario North East

Administration Present: Lesleigh Dye - Director of Education, District School Board Ontario North East (v/c NLBO) Lisa Innes - Vice Principal, Indigenous Education

Administration Absent: Pearl Fong-West - Superintendent of Business and Finance

Resource Persons & Guests Present Anne Commando-Dube - Education Partnership Liaison, Audrey McLaren - Education Partnership Coordinator, Timiskaming First Nation(v/c from New Liskeard Board Office) Jack Solomon - Executive Director, Indian Friendship Centre

Resource Persons & Regular Guests -Absent Bernice Brunette - Executive Director, Ininew Indian Friendship Centre, Cochrane Chris McKay - Wawatay First Nation James Wesley - Director of Education, Derek McKay - Student Success Coordinator, Mattagami First Nation Marcia Chum-Sackenay - UAHL worker, Kapuskasing Indian Friendship Centre Mickayla Bird - Executive Director, Native Friendship Centre Kim Drouin - Co-Executive Director, Timmins Native Friendship Centre Irene Tomatuk - Director of Education,

Recording Secretary Susan Allen, Executive Assistant to Lesleigh Dye, Director of Education (v/c NLBO) Indigenous Peoples Advisory Committee Meeting 2019 01 22 – Minutes Page 2

1.0 Call to Order The meeting was called to order at 11:09 a.m. by Howard Archibald, Chair of the Committee. Introductions were made from both locations. Director of Education Lesleigh Dye acknowledged the meeting on the territory of the .

2.0 Smudge With only 5 Committee members present in the Schumacher Board Office, the decision was made to postpone the Smudge to a future meeting.

3.0 Approval of the Agenda  ADD, under Other Business, item (iii), DRAFT 2019-2020 School Year Calendar MOVED by A. Chasle seconded by N. Iserhoff THAT the Agenda be approved as amended. CARRIED

4.0 Minutes of November 9, 2018 MOVED by A. Chasle seconded by R. Thomas THAT the minutes of the IPAC meeting held November 9, 2018 be approved. CARRIED

Director Lesleigh Dye indicated that, further to items discussed at the last meeting, she and Howard will be working on the Policy and Procedures for IPAC and on further delineating our Indigenous community partners.

5.0 Business Arising from the Minutes

6.0 Education Services Agreements (ESAs):  Howard shared that communities will be working on their Education Service Agreements (formally called Tuition Agreements);  With all Agreements now expired, Lesleigh and Lisa Innes will be reaching out to all communities with a template to share with Councils;  Lesleigh noted that some communities are not up to date with payments;  Howard noted that First Nations’ communities have access to templates from their Tribal Council and/or the Chiefs of Ontario Office; the template is a guide that can be amended with specifics for each First Nation; Education Service Agreements should be worked on together before signed; today, he asked those communities working on them to send him their potential effective date … either he or Lesleigh can assist with the documents before Chief and Council sign them; funds are received from Indigenous Services (ISC, formerly Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada or INAC); some agreements are 1-2 years, others are 5 years; others can be done annually, all as per what works best for the individual First Nation;  Lesleigh added that, with this in mind, she and Lisa Innes are looking forward to hearing from each FN community to ensure all ESAs are hopefully signed by the end of June 2019, adding that, as a Board, we welcome 2-3 year agreements which could be reviewed annually;  Howard informed all members present that one topic at Ontario Public School Boards’ Association (OPSBA) Public Education Symposium (PES) will be Education Services Agreements… he is hoping to receive information/resources at the sub-meeting of the Indigenous Trustee Council later this week in Toronto to share with our IPAC member communities.

7.0 Future Community Visits:  Howard suggested that, once weather improves, we will discuss having our IPAC meetings hosted in one or more of our communities – any thoughts or comments on proposed Indigenous Peoples Advisory Committee Meeting 2019 01 22 – Minutes Page 3

dates (in April, May, early Fall), and whether meetings would be in person or by v/c to the community are welcome!

8.0 Indigenous Portfolio News/Updates: i. Teacher Professional Learning  Lisa Innes reported some sessions have commenced as we partner with different portfolios to support teacher learning (supporting students writing the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test, digital story-telling, reconciliation through Collaborative Inquiry for elementary teachers Board-wide with one day in each if February, March, April). ii. Upcoming Student Support sessions (Lisa I)  There will be mentoring of new teachers, especially in Kirkland Lake DCS  February 15th - Mental Health & Well-Being event will be hosted in Kapuskasing Friendship Centre with secondary students (9-12) attending from Cochrane HS & KDHS – Cody Sackenay will be guest (originally from Timiskaming First Nation) - feedback has included how to align the “5 ways to well-being” program with 4 teachings of the Medicine Wheel. iii. New staff for Indigenous education (positions to support Timiskaming First Nation, Wahgoshig First Nation, additional Indigenous Student Advisor for COCPS, new staff for the Timmins area) (Lesleigh)  Lesleigh shared the Board approval of additional support for Indigenous students, including adding an Indigenous Student Advisor (ISA) at RMSS, having an ISA working in the community of Wahgoshig FN, and adding an elementary ISA at Cochrane Public School;  For Temiskaming FN, support will include 2 additional sections being added for students who may have attendance problems in attending at TDSS. iv. Kevin Lamoureux –  Kevin will be the guest speaker for staff and guests on the April 8th, 2019 Professional Activity day, from 9:00-12:00  Lesleigh reminded all IPAC members and FN community members may attend in person at Timmins High or by v/c from the nearest high school;  IPAC members will be sent another reminder email and are asked to reply to Susan of the location they and their community members will attend. v. Grad Coach Pilot Project (Lesleigh)  Lesleigh was happy to report that the Ministry has provided funding for some school boards, including DSB1, for a Grad Coach Pilot Project… the funding under this pilot project allows for the hiring of a Grad Coach for Timmins High (noting the school location was determined by Ministry) to work with grade 11 & 12 students who are not currently on track to graduate and to assist with their credit accumulation and grad requirements; this will allow our current ISA at THVS to focus on Grade 9-10 students and their needs;  The Ministry summarizes the Grad Coach Pilot Project background and responsibilities as follows: o The Indigenous Graduation Coach Pilot will provide intensive supports to Indigenous learners with the goal of obtaining an Ontario Secondary School Diploma and successfully transitioning into post-secondary education, training or labour market opportunities. o A key component of this pilot is the presence of an Indigenous Graduation Coach (hereafter Coach) who has deeply rooted experiential ties to the Indigenous community(ies) and their culture(s), working in close collaboration with the School Administrator and Student Success/Core Team, supportive structures crucial to the success of the pilot. The Coach acts as a mentor and an advisor to students, facilitating Indigenous Peoples Advisory Committee Meeting 2019 01 22 – Minutes Page 4

access and referrals to academic supports and community resources. The coach also plays an essential role as an advocate for each learner with teachers, other school staff, and families. o This pilot is primarily modeled after the Indigenous Graduation Coach model adapted in Ontario by Keewatin-Patricia District School Board (KPDSB) in 2014 to address the long- standing graduation gap between self-identified Indigenous students and all students in KPDSB. o The KPDSB model shares similar components with other graduation coach models including the dedicated space and parent/guardian engagement elements, but is distinct in the following ways: . The model is grounded in a caring adult developing a trusting relationship with the students and understanding the strengths, needs and interests of each student and then making connections to support their successful transitions throughout their high school journey; and . The monitoring and tracking of students’ progress through utilizing real time data collection and communication tools enables the model’s supportive structures to be better informed of the specific needs of the Indigenous learners and make timely decisions about how best to support the Indigenous learner at any given time. o Positive outcomes in the schools participating in the KPDSB model have included: an increase in self-identification among Indigenous students; and credit accumulation rates among Grade 9 students now on par with their non-Indigenous counterparts.  Currently we have increased slightly to have a grad rate of 42% for self-identified Indigenous students;  Howard noted it would be interesting to know the make-up of the students involved and what their barriers are as they are tracked & identified as progressing to their expected graduation date? Could we look at the # of students identified & track grad rates and bring data to the to March 1st IPAC meeting>?  Howard… referring to the 42% grad rate – asked - would it be beneficial to have a breakdown of this percentage?… would this be useful information to have by region/school? To help us know what is working/not working? – look at Cody and how came out of his “dark place” due to culture, community; MOVED by A. Chasle seconded by V. Fuller THAT the above updates be received. CARRIED 9.0 Updates by Communities and Partners: i. Anne Commando (Wabun Tribal Council)  Will continue to advocate for all First Nations students across the Board;  Looking forward to meeting Cody Sackenay as his story reaffirms how healing leads to being re-connected to roots, traditions and culture;  Anne has attended schools and spoken with students about their culture rooms & to see potential for great things to happen in them; this with support of ISA and staff will further assist increase grad rates;  Continued focus is needed to bring in elders, address the wait list for assessments, provide even more support and services for students (interaction with community members & parents attending, in-service/mentor teachers & staff, address gaps & barriers) and assist with post-secondary discussion & options;  Howard reaffirmed the need to encompass and engage all FN communities, Tribal Councils, and DSB Ontario North East as we continue to build relationships between our communities, the Board, the school staff and work together to support our students while enhancing cultural understanding and educational learning; despite all having busy lives, the focus must continue to be on our youth and their futures. ii. Arline Chasle (Timiskaming First Nation):  Suggested we plan a pedagogical day for all communities to meet to share & discuss issues in our respective schools and offer support between communities; - Howard agreed this would be optimal and dates and location(s) should be shared for consideration. Indigenous Peoples Advisory Committee Meeting 2019 01 22 – Minutes Page 5

 Concern was expressed with the cuts by the Ford Ontario government;  For those students not continuing in post-secondary or having difficulty graduating, Timiskaming FN refers to their health unit to identify possible barriers (hearing, mental health);  Culture is very important to know… self-esteem is essential and the need to “know where you come from” before problems can be solved;  Our elementary school has many teachers who are non-Indigenous – TFN is working to educate them in culture and community  Audrey added:  Cody Sackenay is from TFN not Bear Island (corrected in the minutes )  Looking to meet with Principal Susi Johanson to discuss some exciting new initiatives;  Off-duty police officer will visit the Lodge at TDSS several times to build on relationships (especially with positive male role model);  Welding project for Grade 7-8 to be presented to parents & may be started in near future;  Wolf project will again take place – including participation inn the community;  Very interested in hearing more of the Grad Coach pilot project & results; our ISA works in this capacity as well;  42% is low for grad rate, but, compared to previous years, it has improved;  Reflective of the times we live in with so many issues facing students (anxiety, mental health needs, etc.);  Rather than a “career fair’, this year we will host a “job fair” in the near future to assist graduating students realize their choices/options for post-secondary to best meet individual interests.  Transition to secondary and then to post secondary continues to be a focus iii. Neil Iserhoff (Taykwa Tagamou Nation):  Reviewed upcoming items & events, which include: o Education Agreement (formerly tuition agreement) – we plan to have one ready by the end of March; o Community visit with parent-teacher night – great success with the last one and looking to schedule another one soon; o Will be making a presentation for application for funding special project(s); o Great Moon Gathering – 28th Annual Gathering will be held February 14th at Northern College (although it is now full) . 2 days with key-note speakers and 3 sessions for educators to choose workshops; . Sunrise gathering on Friday; more workshops/speakers . Spoke to a coordinator of Great Moon Gathering to see if some DSB1/TTN personnel could attend – Neil has access to 10 “golden tickets” made available – cost of $300 per person for school staff – he will send all info to Lisa - $150 for TTN (Howard also available to attend with Neil!) o Indigenous Support Advisor update – works with K-3 students and looking forward to this continuing; o Howard added update that 25 Grade 9 & 10 students from IFSS & ESCHS attended at the Detour Gold mine site in December; o Lesleigh added re: Great Moon Gathering – Lisa will work to with Cochrane elementary and secondary staff to attend (pending availability of supply teachers); very happy to hear of Educational Services Agreement plans and looking forward to seeing the draft; would like to have a date for the ESCHS visit to TTN and hopefully she can also attend. iv. Jack Solomon, Kapuskasing Indian Friendship Centre  Approached by staff from Kapuskasing District High School (KDHS) and Diamond Jubilee – students will continue on from past drum-making experiences – e.g. learning a song – so that cultural and community awareness continues to be build upon; Indigenous Peoples Advisory Committee Meeting 2019 01 22 – Minutes Page 6

 Community involvement in KDHS will continue with cooking goose with bannock after the hunt (as done last year);  Howard reminded all of the responsibility that follows the making of the drums.

MOTION: MOVED by A. Chasle, seconded by N. Iserhoff that the updates by communities and partners be received. CARRIED 10.0 Correspondence:

11.0 Other Business: i. DSB Ontario North East Director’s Annual Report 2017-2018  Lesleigh highlighted several parts of the hard copy of the Annual Report, which was organized around the Strategic Plan focus on Equity, Innovation and Culture; IPAC members received a copy to share with their communities. ii. Next Meetings: o Friday, March 1, 2019 o Friday, May 10, 2019 o Friday, June 7, 2019 – Susan will confirm Pow Wow date with TDSS!! All meetings from 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. (Schumacher Board Office, with v/c to New Liskeard Board Office and teleconferencing upon request) iii. Draft 2019-2020 School Year Calendar  Lesleigh reviewed the process of the three co-terminus Boards working together to develop each school year calendar following the Ministry guidelines

12.0 Adjournment: Howard thanked all in attendance and wished all a happy new year! MOVED by A. Chasle seconded by V. Fuller that we do now adjourn. CARRIED

The meeting adjourned at 12:56 p.m.