Honouring Aboriginal Academic Achievements Ceremony

As told by Tammy Webster (committee member).
I was originally invited to attend Honouring Aboriginal Academic Achievement Ceremony in Ottawa, which is closer to my home community, but due to commitments I was unable to attend. I felt that being in Southern Ontario, we needed an opportunity to honour our Aboriginal students as well. As a post-secondary student, I never felt connected or truly honoured at a University level convocation and thus never attended any of the convocation ceremonies offered by the post-secondary institution that I attended. As an Aboriginal student, I wanted to feel honoured by my elders, by my friends and by my family. To speak on behalf of all Aboriginal students, it is important for us to feel as though our sacrifices and contributions will make a difference to future generations as well as those around us. By recognizing Aboriginal achievements in a traditional manner, we demonstrate the value of our students and hope that they will continue to instil the positive message and hope that education can bring to the next generations that will follow.

Initially, I emailed a contact at Wilfrid Laurier University about my idea and from there, she sent out emails to her contacts and we had our first meeting. Aboriginal leaders in our local community saw the need for recognizing Aboriginal achievements on a local level and thus began the steps to the Honouring Ceremony.

I believe that our idea does make a difference. Many students who spoke at the ceremony to thank the elders and to give their stories stated how meaningful the ceremony was to the student and how important it was to receive their eagle feather. The reference letters testify to the emotional and personal impact, which will also translate into the social and physical impact that the ceremony can have for Aboriginal students.