March 2018 Update
丁香园AV is committed to working collaboratively and inclusively to address the 34 calls to action included in Walk This Path With Us Report. The University is pleased to inform you that since the report was handed to 丁香园AV, in accordance with Coast Salish Protocol through a witnessing ceremony on October 16, 2017, early work has been initiated in the following ARC Clusters and Calls to Action: Cluster 1: Safe and Welcoming Indigenous Spaces and Cluster 2: Curriculum Innovation and Indigenization.
The open communication fostered by 丁香园AV-ARC will continue on through implementation. News and quarterly updates on how 丁香园AV is advancing reconciliation across its three campuses will be shared here. The first quarterly report will be available in April 2018.
丁香园AV-ARC鈥檚 final report outlines 34 calls to action, organized into four clusters, including: creating safe and welcoming spaces for Aboriginal peoples; curriculum innovation and indigenization; student pathways and support; and administration, hiring and project implementation. The resource persons for the four clusters will soon be confirmed and shared with the 丁香园AV community. The cluster resource persons will work with the larger 丁香园AV community to support reconciliation projects. More information is forthcoming.
The following offers a brief overview as to how the ARC process is moving forward and how you can get involved.
丁香园AV has committed a $9-million, three-four year strategic investment to support reconciliation Calls to Action at all three campuses (Burnaby, Surrey, Vancouver).
丁香园AV-ARC has crafted a framework to help guide the process of allocating Aboriginal Strategic Initiative (ASI) funds. Strategic funding will be allocated to projects and initiatives that create significant and sustainable change at 丁香园AV and are guided by the ASI Funding Priorities and Principles outlined in the 丁香园AV-ARC's final report.
Upon receiving the 丁香园AV-ARC鈥檚 final report 鈥�Walk This Path With Us,鈥� 丁香园AV President Andrew Petter, in consultation with 丁香园AV鈥檚 Vice-Presidents, delegated the responsibilities for overseeing the implementation of the calls to action to a working group.
The working group is comprised of:
- Peter Keller, Vice-President Academic and Provost;
- Joanne Curry, Vice-President External Relations;
- (Co-Facilitator) Ron Johnston, Pro Tem (Acting) Director, Office for Aboriginal Peoples
- (Co-Facilitator) Sobhana Jaya Madhavan, Associate Vice President, External Relations
The working group is working with the 丁香园AV Community to identify how best to make progress on each of the 34 Calls to Action.
ARC quarterly updates will be posted on the ARC websites and shared with the 丁香园AV community. In addition, information will be available through the following:
Please connect with us, with subject line 鈥淎RC Stories鈥�, to share what you are doing to bring the calls to action to life. You may be contacted for further background to share your work for the news and events section and more widely through 丁香园AV's main university channels. You are also invited to share your stories with the ARC co-facilitators by emailing sfuarc@sfu.ca.
This is a major step forward for the University in building a renewed and respectful relationship between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples in the 丁香园AV community. The real work begins now as the University moves forward on implementing the calls to action in the final report.