Sweat Lodge Ceremonies are a positive way to heal and connect with oneself physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

Join the Indigenous Student Support Team with Elder-in-Residence Paul Guimond and Knowledge Keeper-in-Residence Richard Curé for Sweat Lodge Ceremonies throughout the year. We host Sweat Lodges in the Medicine Wheel Garden at the top of the hill in the north-west quarter of Notre Dame Campus. Sweat Lodges are divided into staff and student groups with a maximum of 20 spots for each Ceremony.

Sweat Lodges typically start at 10am and close out by 1pm with a Feast in the Indigenous Support Centre. If you need help getting to the Medicine Wheel Garden, you can drop by the Indigenous Support Centre in F209 between 9:30am and 10am and join staff to walk out to the hill.

Upcoming Sweat Lodge Ceremonies 2023 – 24

To register, email the Indigenous Support Centre Admin Holly Scherban at hscherban@rrc.ca. All are welcome!

Never attended a Sweat Lodge before? Connect with Holly or drop by an Indigenous Support Centre (F209 at NDC or P407 at EDC) and connect with one of our Navigation Coaches.

Please note: registrations will only be accepted the same month that the Sweat Lodge is being hosted. I.e., registrations for March Sweats will not be accepted until March.

The Indigenous Student Support & Community Relations department recruits students each year known amongst their peers as the R-Crew, or Resource Crew.

The R-Crew positions provide a great opportunity for Indigenous students to get involved with Indigenous-focused activities and events, while learning valuable leadership skills, gaining work experience, and becoming a role model to other students. These students are an integral part of our team and help to build our community on campus.

Every year, we welcome new R-Crew members to take on leadership roles in our community. Read about the 2022-2023 R-Crew ›

Qualified applicants must have:

• a willingness to learn;
• a strong sense of teamwork and dedication;
• time and flexibility to work outside of class time hours, and;
• the ability to serve as an integral part of RRC’s Indigenous Student Support team.

Members who complete 100 hours of volunteer time between October 2023 and June 2024 will be awarded a $1,000 bursary.

Apply by Friday, September 29, 2023.

Students at Notre Dame Campus can submit their resumes and cover letters to Brittany Ross, Navigation Coach at bross4@rrc.ca.

Students at Exchange District Campus can submit their resumes and cover letters to Charmaine Mousseau, Navigation Coach at cmousseau@rrc.ca.

All students, staff and faculty are invited to participate in RRC Polytech’s fifth annual Truth and Reconciliation Week, September 25 to October 6 2023.

Through in-person events and self-guided learning offered by departments across the College, you’ll deepen your knowledge and understanding of Canada’s true history, Indigenous cultures, and spark conversations and take action towards Truth and Reconciliation.

This year’s event has been expanded to two weeks to enhance the opportunities for the College community to participate and includes sessions featuring special guests.

We look forward to fostering learning, healing and building stronger relationships.

Upcoming Truth and Reconciliation Week Events:

Fall Equinox Celebration

Join the Fall Equinox celebration Monday, September 25, from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., in the Roundhouse Auditorium at Manitou a bi Bii daziigae. The celebration will feature a Pipe Ceremony, Sharing Circle and Feast. Learn more here.

Blanket Exercise

The Blanket Exercise will be offered for staff and faculty on Thursday, September 28, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. in the Roundhouse Auditorium at Manitou a bi Bii daziigae. The experience simulates the history of Indigenous people in Canada and the effects of colonization through facilitated interactive activities.

Space is limited to 30 participants. To learn more and sign up, click here.

National Day for Truth and Reconciliation / Orange Shirt Day: Every Child Matters

September 30 is Orange Shirt Day: Every Child Matters, a time to recognize and honour Residential School Survivors, remember those who never made it home, and work towards healing and continuing our commitment to Truth and Reconciliation.

You are encouraged to wear your Orange Shirt on campus on Friday, September 29, and take some time to learn and reflect about Canada’s history of the Residential School System and its intergenerational impact.

This year, orange t-shirts featuring the art of RRC Polytech Graphic Design grad Leticia Spence, and produced by Red Rebel Armour, an Indigenous streetwear outlet owned and operated by RRC Polytech grad Sean Rayland-Boubar, are available through the Campus Store. All proceeds go to the College’s Mínwastánikéwin Truth and Reconciliation Award, which aims to alleviate financial burden for Indigenous students. Learn more about the orange shirt design here.

Stay tuned to Staff and Student News and subscribe to the Indigenous blog here for more information and the full schedule of events.

Join us at Manitou a bi Bii daziigae for the Fall Equinox Celebration on Monday, Sept. 25!

The Fall Equinox is one of the four transitory events that marks the changing of the seasons, along with the Winter and Summer Solstices and the Spring Equinox. The Fall Equinox is the moment in the Earth’s cycle when the Sun crosses the equator into the southern hemisphere. In the Fall, we harvest our crops and prepare for the long winter when the land is protected by a blanket of snow.

To acknowledge the changing of the season, we come together with Ceremony and a Feast. Join us in the Roundhouse Auditorium on Monday, September 25 in Manitou a bi Bii daziigae at the Exchange District Campus. The Roundhouse Auditorium is on the second floor on the west side of the Agora.

The morning will start with a Pipe Ceremony, followed by a Sharing Circle led by Elder-in-Residence Paul Guimond and Knowledge Keeper-in-Residence Richard Curé. The morning will close out with a Feast to celebrate the changing of the season.

All are welcome, no registration needed.

Location: Roundhouse Auditorium, Manitou a bi Bii daziigae

Date: Monday, Sept. 25, 2023

Time: 10AM Pipe Ceremony • 11AM Sharing Circle • 12PM Feast

Phyllis Webstad, whose orange shirt was taken away when she attended Residential School in the 1970s, started the Orange Shirt movement by sharing her story. Since 2013, the Orange Shirt Society has raised awareness of the impacts of Residential Schools and the work Survivors and their families do to heal Indigenous communities. September 30 has been declared the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and recognized as Orange Shirt Day to honour Residential School Survivors, their communities, and the children who never came home.

In honour of Orange Shirt Day, RRC Polytech has partnered with Ininew artist and alumna Leticia Spence to create an original Orange Shirt design and with Red Rebel Armour, owned and operated by alumnus Sean Rayland-Boubar, to produce the Orange Shirts.

The design features a tree made up of florals, Medicines and roots. Hummingbirds flank the tree, surrounded by rosehips, rosebuds and berries. First Nations, the Métis Nation, and the Inuit Nation are represented by symbols deeply intertwined with each nation: the cardinal directions, a wild rose forming an infinity, and fireweed flowers.

“I want whoever is wearing this t-shirt to feel a sense of hope and strength as they honour those who are currently being found while knowing that it’s okay to create space to honour themselves as either direct residential school survivors or intergenerational residential school survivors.”

Leticia Spence, Artist – Graphic Design 2019

The Orange Shirts will be available through the Campus Store and all proceeds from Orange Shirt sales go to the Mínwastánikéwin Truth and Reconciliation Award when applications open in January 2024.

Show your support for Truth and Reconciliation by wearing the RRC Polytech Orange Shirt on Friday, September 29 on campus.

Read more about the 2023 Orange Shirt and Leticia Spence on the RED Blog.

Purchase your 2023 Orange Shirt through the Campus Store.

Learn more about Phyllis Webstad and the Orange Shirt Society on their website.

On August 3, 1871, Treaty One was signed at Lower Fort Garry between representatives of Britain and the Chiefs of seven First Nations: Brokenhead Ojibway Nation, Long Plain First Nation, Peguis First Nation, Roseau River Anishinabe First Nation, Sagkeeng First Nation, Sandy Bay Ojibway First Nation, and Swan Lake First Nation. As the name suggests, Treaty One was the first of the 11 Numbered Treaties and laid the foundation for subsequent agreements between First Nations and European settlers.

Treaty One is a legal agreement based on principles of friendship, peace and mutual thriving, and both parties entered into the Treaty as equals. The signatories negotiated the Treaty with the goal of ensuring their Peoples’ continuity in the face of unprecedented change that would impact generations.

Indigenous Nations consistently played important roles in the fur trade economy and inter-governmental alliances since the Europeans’ arrival, leading the state to conclude that it would be in the Crown’s best interest to form an official agreement with First Nations.

The state agreed to provide services to First Nations typical to what they provided citizens, like education and healthcare; annuities in the state currency to First Nations families and individuals, so they could participate in the new economy; and set boundaries upon which settlers could not encroach, to ensure First Nations’ inherent right to traditional resources and ceremonial grounds. In exchange, First Nations would allow the state to have access to specific land and resources and the economic value that came with that access.

The Treaties are still active today but throughout Canada’s history, the Treaties have not been wholly honoured by the state or understood by settlers. The result is, and has been, immeasurable harm against Indigenous Peoples—in the forms of Residential Schools, institutional discrimination, interpersonal violence, intergenerational trauma, and more.

Raising awareness about the Treaties, their intentions and the agency of Indigenous Peoples is integral to reconciling the damaged relationship between First Nations and Canada. As an educational institution, RRC Polytech has committed to making Truth and Reconciliation a priority and taking action to reflect those values.

In Fall 2022, members of RRC Polytech’s Senior Leadership Team, including President and CEO Fred Meier, organized community consultations with First Nations communities to learn first-hand how the College can make post-secondary education more accessible and more valuable to Indigenous learners. Fostering relationships with Indigenous communities at that level help to inform decision-makers at the College. The Senior Leadership Team intends to continue reaching out to communities annually to continue a collaborative dialogue.

On June 4, RRC Polytech launched National Indigenous History Month with the raising of the Treaty One, Red River Métis, and Pride Flags on the front lawn of Notre Dame Campus. The flags were raised with ceremonies conducted by each respective community: representatives from Peguis and Sand Bay First Nations, the Manitoba Métis Federation, and Two Spirit Elders.

Vic Savino, Director of Communications at Treaty One Nation and Business Administration alumnus, helped to coordinate the raising of the Treaty One flag and advocates for the raising of the Treaty One flag at more prominent places throughout Treaty One. Read Savino’s story on RRC Polytech’s Alumni Blog.

Learn more about the Treaties:

• 4 Seasons of Reconciliation Education RRC Polytech Staff training
• Learn more with The Treaty Relations Commission of Manitoba
• Learn about the communities in Treaty 1

Usually, students look forward to a break in the summer between classes – time to relax and decompress, forget the pressure of deadlines and obligations, maybe stretch out on the sand at the beach or trudge mountain trails.

Tessa Cochrane’s respite from class lasted barely a week. She finished the 10-month College Transition program and intended to apply for Introduction to Trades to eventually secure her spot in the Welding program but when Women of Steel™ presented a tuition-free, fast-tracking option starting in May, she jumped at the opportunity – sacrificing some summer fun to effectively cut down her time in post-secondary by a whole year.

Cochrane graduated high school in 2018 and bounced around various fields from retail, to construction, to peacekeeping. At first, she didn’t see the importance of post-secondary education, but after experiencing employment competition in multiple industries, she decided upgrading would be beneficial.

After high school, she describes her academic level as fairly moderate, but College Transition helped boost her faith in her abilities and her straight ‘A’ grades in the first term reflected her drive and potential. By adding experience to her earnestness, Cochrane was confident she’d find employment but still wasn’t exactly sure what she wanted to do – for her, the best approach was taking it one day at a time to find her passion.

Growing up, Cochrane recalls, she set her sights on becoming a doctor, a veterinarian, a natural resource officer, a firefighter – and countless other things that a kid’s attention might latch onto. She came from a line of firefighters and grew up on a farm, so handiness was inherent in her family. She’d seen her father and grandfather welding on the farm but said she hadn’t considered the trades until she met some influential tradeswomen at the College and was inspired by their success.

“I’ve picked and settled on so many things over the years, my parents ask, ‘Is she going to stick with welding?” Tessa said with a laugh. “Yeah, I think I’ll stick with welding.”

In the College Transition program, one of Cochrane’s assignments was to conduct a career exploration in preparation for the January 2023 Indigenous Career Fair. While researching fields and careers that interested her, Cochrane realized that most of her previous pursuits were influenced by the things she thought people needed her to be – to fill a role that needed filling.

College Transition allowed her to really tap into her potential and discover things that would not only challenge her and put her skills to use, but that she could love doing and be good at. At the Indigenous Career Fair, Cochrane had the chance to explore different opportunities around the province and connected with several employers. She was eventually offered a job placement with an organization closer to home in the Interlake Region.

Cochrane intended to take the summer position at that point but when RRC Polytech posted the Women of Steel™: Forging Forward Program in January, she was among the first in line to apply – taking advantage of the immediate opportunity served up on a ‘stainless steel’ platter by the CWB Welding Foundation, using Federal funding to attract more women to the trades.

When she completes the intensive 15-week program and two-week job placement Cochrane is hoping to have earned four Canadian Welding Bureau qualification tickets making her readily employable for basic manufacturing and prepared for additional post-secondary training or apprenticeship.

Cochrane credits identifying her passion and establishing her career path to the growth she experienced while in College Transition. Although she grew up in a Christian family, the program provided a safe space for her to learn more about her ancestors’ traditional ways and gave her perspective on cultures and the many similarities between Indigenous people all around the world.

Her favourite part, she says, was the fact that support was everywhere for everything. As an aspiring welder she appreciates the bonds that she’s created with classmates and instructors at RRC Polytech and hopes she inspires others to invest in themselves and pursue education.  

“There’s no judgment, there’s a strong purpose here that students find, and that foundation really helps you find what it is you want to do,” said Cochrane.

The Mínwastánikéwin Award, named for the Cree word that means ‘to set it right’, was created in 2019 in partnership with RRC Polytech’s Campus Store during the first Truth and Reconciliation Week. Applicants were asked to write a one-page essay on what Truth and Reconciliation means to them as residential and day school survivors and children of survivors.

To set it right.

When we talk about Truth and Reconciliation, we mean that we want to set it right.

To set right the damage that Indigenous Peoples have endured over the last few centuries.

To set right the broken bones, so they might heal properly, to heal stronger.

To set right the history and perception of Indigenous Peoples, so the world might know the truth, to come together stronger.

This year, two recipients earned the Mínwastánikéwin Award: Rebecca Choken and Wendy Monias.

Rebecca Choken came to RRC Polytech unexpectedly. She’d been considering the future with her three-year-old daughter, who has Autism. Rebecca knew that she didn’t want to continue living off Employment and Income Assistance—she wanted to give her daughter stability. Her love and dedication for her daughter motivated Rebecca to seek new avenues to improve herself.

Rebecca applied for Business Administration and the College notified her of an opening at the Exchange District Campus for January 2023, which she readily took. Rebecca was in a whirlwind within the first few weeks of accepting the offer—she scrambled to find a daycare that could provide specialized care for her daughter, secured funding from her band, and gathered the necessary supplies to succeed in the program. The last time she’d been in school, it was pencils and paper. Everything happened so quickly, but she was ready for that first week of classes in January.

“I never thought I would get this award, at first. Sharing my story and my past trauma—it made me stronger as a person. The healing, just to be here… I sometimes think of my brother, and those that have passed on; they’d want the best for me,” said Rebecca.

The feeling of being undeserving, of being unworthy, of not having it as hard as others, is one of many symptoms of the intergenerational effects the residential school and day school legacy has had on survivors and children of survivors.

To heal, and to recognize when you need help healing, is a lot of lonely work. When much of your life has been painted with strokes of trauma and blots from loss, seeing an end to the cycle can be difficult. The work trauma creates doesn’t end with the trauma itself; the responsibility to heal is also thrust upon you. The mess trauma made in your home is one you task yourself with cleaning up.

Two years ago, on her 36^th birthday, Wendy Monias joined the Red Road—a way of life dedicated to spiritual growth. She woke up that morning and decided that enough was enough and she was going to start a new chapter of her life. Wendy, who’d attended Indian day school, had moved to Winnipeg from Garden Hill First Nation in northern Manitoba when she was 12. The distance the move created was not only physical, but cultural and spiritual. Now, she’s actively reclaiming her culture and working towards her diploma in Business Administration. Last fall, Wendy went on her first hunting trip, caught her first moose, and attended her first medicine walk.

“It’s backwards. Elders are saying goodbye to so many young people, when it should be the young people sending off our Elders,” said Wendy. “I want to be a good example to my kids; to show them you can be strong at home, you can be graceful with yourself. I am accountable to my own healing.”

Wendy’s late kookum, Kelly McKay, was a residential school survivor and graduate of the same Business Administration program at RRC Polytech many years ago. Wendy credits her inspiration to her kookum, whom she recounted as kind, funny, and hard-working: everything Wendy wants to be for her kids and the people she’ll help in the future.

“Her attention to detail, organizational skills and drives inspires me every day. She knew how to keep her home tidy, study regularly and always had time for me. In times where I think I can’t balance everything, I think of her,” Wendy recalled.

The risk of applying for a bursary is not only, “What if I don’t get it?”, it is also, “What if I am taking it from someone who needs it more?” These doubts are echoed all throughout the submissions this year. Despite this, over 25 Indigenous students still applied – more than any other year. Over 25 Indigenous students still bore their teeth and their hearts, and told their stories.

Rebecca says the award was well-timed for her. She’d started her program just days after the new year and with a deadline of January 31, she was able to submit her application just under the wire. The award, she says, will ease the financial strain that’s come with the rapid-fire changes in her life, and help her spend more time with her daughter.

When she’s finished with her diploma, Rebecca says she wants to start her own business. She has friends in the Indigenous hip hop scene with whom she could potentially partner with in business. In the future, she wants to build a fashion apparel brand where she can integrate her beliefs, culture, work systems, and ancestors into the brand. She used to do beadwork as a hobby and has ideas to work accessories into the brand.

“Receiving this award means a lot to me, I’m very honoured,” said Rebecca. “It represents a lot of resilience in Indigenous People, it’s not only just me—there’s a lot of people that have been through similar things. You can overcome that. You can still pursue your dreams as long as you put your mind to it.”

For Wendy, the award helped her to make more time to spend with her kids. Between the time it takes to get to and from school, pick everyone up and head home, cooking meals and prepping for the next day, precious little time was often left in the days for Wendy to spend with her five kids. With the bursary, it freed up cumulative time that allowed her and her kids to sit down to full dinners and connect with each other after their long days.

“We’re really tight, me and my kids. The award’s helped me to catch up on things that needed catching up, and a huge weight has been lifted. I want my kids to have all the opportunities they can; you know, bible camps, winter retreats, school trips. My eldest, he’s 18; we’re fundraising for his band trip to Edmonton,” said Wendy.

Wendy hopes to have an office job when she’s finished with her diploma. She’s majoring in Marketing but might switch to Human Resources. She wants to open more doors and help other Indigenous women see where they can go.

For survivors and children of survivors, confronting your past is like screaming out into the sky, alone: baring your teeth and your heart and telling your story, tearing through your raw emotions and the weight of the things past. And it is, without fail, surprising to hear the sky speak back.

RRC Polytech recognizes the role it has as an educational institution in Truth and Reconciliation, in making it right. When Indigenous learners choose to become students at RRC Polytech, the College seeks to ease the burdens that resonate intergenerationally within survivors and the children of survivors of residential and day schools, while showing the rest of the community why this work is important through the stories of the Indigenous People this work affects.

To learn more about the Mínwastánikéwin Award, see the Awards, Bursaries and Scholarships catalogue.

Every year, RRC Polytech has recognized National Indigenous Peoples Day with an in-house event: a gathering which takes place in the Indigenous Support Centre, with the Elder-in-Residence hosting a pipe ceremony, teachings and storytelling, and breaking bread with a feast for the College community. Our celebration recognizes both National Indigenous Peoples Day and the summer solstice. This year, the School of Indigenous Education and the Indigenous Students Support Team came up with an exciting new approach: a bus tour to participate in various Indigenous events in and around Winnipeg.

National Indigenous Peoples Day is an opportunity for Anishinaabe, Ininiwak, Anishininew, Dakota, Dené, Métis and many other Indigenous peoples to celebrate and connect with their cultures, and is an invitation for the wider community to participate in the celebration together.

The response from the College community was so strong that the 29-seat bus filled up quickly with an additional waitlist of at least 10 people. The team decided to book an additional bus to accommodate the waitlist and invited a few more participants. Many RRC Polytech community members took the opportunity to experience their first National Indigenous Peoples Day at the wonderful events hosted in Manitoba.

The first stop on the bus tour was at Selkirk Park for the Manitoba Métis Federation’s National Indigenous Peoples Day celebration. Participants enjoyed a free pancake breakfast and explored the many booths presented by the Manitoba Métis Federation and their partners, including the Infinity Women Secretariat where they offered to paint attendees’ faces. One tent hosted a workshop where participants learned how to weave sashes.

For the afternoon, the bus shuttled participants through downtown Winnipeg to The Forks for the Wa-Say Healing Centre’s National Indigenous Peoples Day Pow Wow in the Parks Canada Field. Vendors and artists gathered around the park while singers and drum groups clustered around the main stage for their performances. Dancers in regalia and dancers in everyday attire assembled in the circle for Inter-Tribal songs and dance categories.

Close to 4pm, Pow Wow participants joined together for the Friendship Dance, holding hands and rotating around the circle in a demonstration of inclusion and relationality. Free hotdogs, drinks and ice cream were offered throughout the day courtesy of the Southern Chiefs Council, and live music performances extended well into the evening.

Terri-Lynn Anderson, the Events & Facilities Rental Coordinator for the School of Indigenous Education, said the bus tour was an incredible success and she looks forward to hosting more bus tours in the future to offer staff and student more opportunities to explore and engage with the Indigenous community.

“The quiet summer months made me want to venture out into the community to see all the wonderful events that were taking place to celebrate our people and culture. The bus tour was a great way to experience that, especially with the few folks that were experiencing their first National Indigenous Peoples Day ever,” said Anderson.

In addition to the bus tour for Indigenous Peoples Day, RRC Polytech released the new virtual tour of Manitou a bi Bii daziigae to demonstrate the flexibility of the new building and its deep connection to Indigenous art, culture, and entrepreneurship.

Thank you to all who participated in this year’s National Indigenous Peoples Day Bus Tour, and we look forward to next year’s celebration. Miigwech!

June 21 is the summer solstice, the longest day of the year and, despite the beautiful weather for the last few weeks, the official start of summer. After this day, the Earth begins its slow retreat away from the sun.

Many Indigenous nations around Turtle Island recognize the significance of the season through ceremony and celebration, Pow Wows, feasts and cultural gatherings. Many communities and organizations proudly host events showcasing vibrant Indigenous cultures from dawn until dusk.

June is the Strawberry Moon, in recognition of the strawberries that have sprung from the ground and the orange moon that transforms to red. Ode’imin, the heart berry, the strawberry in us, is reflected in the month of June. As the year ripens, June ushers in July’s Berry Moon, miinan.

Elder-in-Residence Paul Guimond says that this time of year, we acknowledge the connection between all things through the strawberries, the plants, the trees around us. Everything is fully grown and life is in full swing.

“The tree we stand with, celebrate and appreciate—it is rooted to the ground. We acknowledge all the Earth, the plant life. Its roots reach all the world, its branches reach out towards the Sky World, to the moon and the stars, the sun and the planets. The Tree World: it’s never just one group of trees growing somewhere. Many different trees take up space together. It shows us that we can grow together, shows us how we can exist together.”

Elder-in-Residence Paul Guimond

RRC Polytech in years past has hosted ceremony with the Elder-in-Residence and staff and students at Notre Dame Campus to celebrate the summer solstice and Indigenous Peoples Day. This year, the Indigenous Student Support Team tried a new approach; the team, with Elder Paul, organized a bus tour for staff and students to participate in events in Winnipeg and the surrounding region. Two buses will shuttle participants to the Manitoba Métis Federation celebration in Selkirk for the morning and the Wa-Say Healing Centre Pow Wow at The Forks for the afternoon. Check back here later this week to read how it went!