The little college that could

Kahtou Newspaper April 2003, page 4

There is something exciting happening at the Institute of Indigenous Government (IIG), Canada’s First Nations College in downtown Vancouver. At a time when many of British Columbia’s educational institutes are in financial crisis, encountering labor unrest, and expanding tuition costs, this little college is flourishing with fully accredited university transfer courses, balanced budgets, and a relaxed, happy environment. How has this little school, with few resources and a troubled past been able to run themselves around? More importantly, what have been the results of the change? And what has this school become?

The Liberal government’s budget announcements in early 2002 prompted the IIG to examine itself. Like all colleges in the BC system, the amount of funds provided was insufficient to meet its needs and, as a result, the staff agreed that changes were necessary. A detailed and exhaustive transformational plan was adopted and has been followed. Noel Hanuse, the IIG’s Healing Counsellor says that “The changes the shool have undergone have been miraculous and it due to the commitment that all the staff made”.

Professor Steve Courchene agrees; however, he notes that “change is not always easy and it caused a great deal of conflict at our school, but it was a necessary consequence.” He further states that this isn’t unusual since any large-scale change inevitably meets with resistance. Steve thinks the reason that the IIG was so successful in its change is because there was continuous communication about the changes that would be occurring. Indeed, Tom Edwards, a student indicates, “Yes, some people were upset, in particular the staff who were laid off, but this was minor in comparison to the layoffs in other schools.” Another student Tabitha Gerhaghty said, “There is now a strong sense of community here.”

In addition to gaining a happier work environment, the IIG has made some notable achievements: in fact the IIG is experiencing the highest enrolment in the Fall, Winter, and Spring semesters in the history of the school; the IIG is the only school to have lowered tuition; it is the only school to have experienced double digit growth; it has moved into a vibrant, upbeat location in the heart of Yaletown; its faculty all have no less than a Masters or a professional degree; almost all of its courses now have direct course for course transferability; and the staff and faculty have opted to give up union representation because of their strong belief in the direction the school is going and their commitment to the Indigenous values of working together by consensus.

Professor William Lindsay says, “The proof our new and positive attitude is the Our Gift to BC celebration.” The staff and faculty have agreed to donate some of their time and energies in offering a unique “gift” to British Columbia. Terri Walker, Director of Finance, remarks that “We wanted to say thank-you, in some tangible way, to the people of BC for supporting our school and to kick-off our new Social Work program.” Professor Catharine Crow, who will be teaching the social work course scheduled for the spring semester (May 5^th to June 17^th ) agrees “We wanted to return something back to the community and we thought of offering the chance to ‘take a course on us’ –no tuition – it is our gift to you.” Furthermore, the IIG has experienced tremendous growth in this area, which parallels the government’s New Era commitments to increase opportunities for Aboriginal women and youth, and to expand access to post-secondary education…for Aboriginal learbers….”

Due to tremendous interest, the IIG has embarked on a slightly different approach to deliver some of its courses. Professor Eric Ostrowidski explains, “By offering courses by e-mail, we are able to satisfy those learners who cannot make it to the school, either because they are to far away, or because they are too busy during the day.”

Cherron Beadnell, the Deputy Registrar, affirms, “That the IIG has become a school with a broader academic focus while maintaining an Indigenous point of view.” The IIG is a fully accredited and publicly funded college that welcomes Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students who want to take university transfer courses in First Nation Studies, Commerce, Social Work, and Science. There are also plans to launch a Public Administration program commencing in 2004.

This school has taken a leadership role in modelling education for and with Indigenous people. The IIG is BC’s true “Cinderella” story. It has gone from being an expensive, poorly attended, narrowly focused institution to one where growth, innovation and excitement are the norm. It will be interesting to see if the Provincial Government is really committed to improving the lives of Aboriginal people by supporting a school such as the IIG.

***

The IIG is a public institution that follows the Colleges and Institutes Act and is apolitical, without any affiliation to any political or advocacy organization. It welcomes students of all backgrounds who want to learn in an Aboriginally-oriented environment. The IIG is located at 342 Water Street in Vancouver BC. Their telephone number is 604-602-9555 and their President is Sean Kocsis a First Nations citizen hired in 2001 to “transform” the school. He is the only Native president in the entire BC public system and is the youngest President in the province. He welcomes any interested person to call him directly or drop in to the school for a visit.

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Institute of Indigenous Government

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Kocsis

Sean Kocsis