Montréal, le 4 février 2005 —
Concordia’s Thursday Report - Concordia goes interactive for First Nations
by Janice Hamilton
Concordia’s Native Access to Engineering Program (NAEP), Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, and IBM Canada this week announced a joint, federally-funded project that will distribute interactive high school material in math and science subjects to aboriginal students across Canada via the Internet. The project is aimed at interesting more First Nations students in engineering careers, and at giving them some of the skills they need to succeed in that field.
Faculty Professor Co-Chairs Minister’s National Working Group on First Nations Education
by Dawn Wiseman
For the most part, the education of Aboriginal children living in Canada is not on par with that of non-Aboriginal children. They do not have the same access to resources, equipment and qualified teachers. This lack of quality, basic primary and secondary education manifests itself in high drop out rates, and the low participation of Aboriginal people in post-secondary education, particularly in the pure and applied sciences. The federal government has therefore made it a priority to address issues of equitable access to education for Aboriginal children.
Concordia’s Thursday Report - Artists explore life on the land with First Nations mentors
by Mary Fowles
An intercultural artists’ residency in early March organized by fine arts students brought them together with First Nations artists in a cottage near Joliette, Que. For four days, the 11 artists and four children lived, ate, slept, shared stories and created art together. “Our goal was to create an experience of community and collaboration for everyone involved, and to share, in terms of technique, stories and day-to-day living,” said Katrina Cunliffe.
Dolorès Contré Migwans, who is of Ojibwa origin, offered the artists her cottage. She describes herself as a “bush Native” — born in the bush, where the family’s survival is dependent on hunting and fishing.
Concordia’s Thursday Report - First Nations Act Draws Fire for SCPA panel
by Sylvain Comeau
Aboriginal speakers blasted the First Nations Governance Act at a panel discussion on March 11, 2003. The FNGA (also known as Bill C-7), a piece of legislation now before the House of Commons standing committee on aborigi-nal affairs, is a bill aimed at providing a framework for native self-governance. But the proposed legislation has met with opposition from native groups, and speakers at the debate outlined some of the reasons for that.
First Nations and Inuits students
by Manon Tremblay
Congratulations! You will soon be joining the swelling ranks of First Nations and Inuit students attending Concordia and we, the Centre for Native Education, are here to help you ease into university life. But what is the Centre for Native Education, you ask? We are only THE place to be! Run by Native people for Native people, the Centre is a welcoming space for all First Peoples, regardless of Nation, affiliations or personal beliefs. We offer a wide range of services, all tailored to your specific needs.
Concordia University's Native Access to Engineering Program (NAEP) Wins National Award
MONTRÉAL / November 17, 2003 — The Natural Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) has awarded a $10,000 Michael Smith Award for the Promotion of Science to Concordia University’s Native Access to Engineering Program (NAEP). The award, in recognition of its 10-year effort to promote excellence in math and science education among Canada’s Aboriginal population, will be presented to NAEP at a banquet held at the Museum of Nature in Ottawa on Wednesday, November 19, 2003.
Concordia’s Thursday Report – The following extract “Dream Catching catches on”
will be published in the next issue (February 10th, 2005)
by Barbara Black
While many Concordians will be heading south for a winter break during February, two teachers from Florida will travel north to Montreal during reading week. The teachers are here for workshops on how to make math and science relevant for their Native American students. They are delegates to DreamCatching 2005, the fourth biannual conference hosted by the Native Access to Engineering Program (NAEP).
Among other activities, DreamCatching 2005 will see the launch of the fifth in a series of interactive multimedia web portraits aimed at young Aboriginals. A Day in the Life of an Engineer has proved to be a great way to give role models to students. Many of them are located in far-flung communities, where there are few examples of successful professionals.
From Ancestral to Aerospace
by Patrick McDonagh
The Arctic can be unforgiving. Imagine the engineering challenge of inventing a non-polluting, structurally beautiful, well-insulated residence with whatever building materials you can find. If you do it wrong, you freeze to death. But if you’re lucky, or very good, you might come up with … an igloo.
The famed Inuit icehouse is an example of what Corinne Mount Pleasant-Jetté calls “ancestral engineering.” “Take something like a snowshoe, a canoe, or a cradleboard — how did people come up with those?” she asks.
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Source :
Nadia Kherif
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Service des Relations médias
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