Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/609048
FALL 2015 simon 53 SFU.CA In 2007, the University established its fi rst Aboriginal Strategic Plan. It aims to create a supportive academic and community environment for Aboriginal peoples while also recognizing their values and traditions. Since then, exciting Aboriginal initiatives can be found throughout the University. These include: PREP SCHOOL The Aboriginal University Prep Program, established in 2007, prepares Aboriginal students for university. The newly revised curriculum features some Indigenous texts and works by Indigenous scholars, authors and fi lmmakers. To date, 45 students have completed the program, earning conditional acceptance into SFU and academic credit toward a degree program. • An SFU Strategic Vision that identifi es "respect for Aboriginal peoples and cultures" as one of its six underlying principles • The Offi ce for Aboriginal Peoples • An Indigenous Initiatives Librarian • An Aboriginal Steering Committee • The Bill Reid Gallery and Bill Reid Centre • A Department of First Nations Studies • A spacious new Indigenous Student Centre • A First Nations Language Centre • An Elders Program to mentor Aboriginal students • New scholarships and bursaries for graduate Aboriginal students • Improved support for Aboriginal graduate students, including a new Indigenous coordinator in graduate studies • More Aboriginal faculty members • Targeted programs, such as the Execu- tive MBA in Aboriginal Business and Leadership • An SFU-led Indigenous Research Centre that fosters Indigenous community- based research, and sponsors an annual Aboriginal lecture series • Lifelong Learning programs that prepare Aboriginal students for university, and for jobs in the health sector • Partnerships with local Aboriginal col- leges and organizations such as the Native Education College and Nicola Valley Institute of Technology • Cultural programming such as the Coast Salish drumming and singing workshops • A summer camp for Aboriginal youth • An introductory First Nations course at SFU-affi liated Fraser International College to introduce international students to First Nations issues SFU'S ABORIGINAL INITIATIVES HOME AWAY FROM HOME The spacious Indigenous Student Centre, which opened in September 2014 at the Burnaby campus, represents a home away from home for more than 600 Indigenous students. Amenities include a smoke- eater for indoor smudging, computers, a dedicated room for the Elders Program and student meeting spaces. Planned with assistance from students and community representatives, the $500,000 centre's wood-and-stone fi nishes pay homage to the Coast Salish territories upon which SFU sits. VISUAL HISTORY The Bill Reid Centre's digital image collection documents the resilience, creativity and vibrancy of Northwest Coast First Nations, from initial contact with Europeans to the present. It includes sketches and drawings created by early travellers and explor- ers, and photographs dating to the mid-19th century. The collection is also a record of the reawakening of Northwest Coast cultural practices in the late 20th century in the face of enforced policies of assimila- tion and cultural destruction. The Centre's objective is to engage in community and academic conversa- tions on Northwest Coast visual culture, and promote public understanding and respect for Northwest Coast First Nations past and present. WORLDWIDE RESEARCH The Intellectual Prop- erty Issues in Cultural Heritage (IPinCH) Pro- gram is an SFU-based international research group. Led by SFU archaeologist George Nicholas, the research group oversees 15 community-driven proj- ects and has nurtured landmark negotiations on Indigenous intel- lectual property issues between institutions and communities glob- ally. The group earned the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada's fi rst Partnership Impact Award in 2013. ■ FIRST NATIONS 1 3 4 2 1 3 2 4