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.

1. Honouring students as well as letting people see that education is possible. 2. Reclaim our heritage of education, knowledge and understanding in an Aboriginal perspective. 3. Offering role models to the youth. Our inaugural ceremony had over 80 friends and families attend with the graduates.

With the cultural component of the ceremony, we anticipate an increased number of graduates attending the ceremony since Aboriginal students will continue to weave their traditions with contemporary education and strike a balance between the two. The ceremony can create stronger connections between community members since community members and organizations are part of the committee as well as graduates (former and future) themselves. There is more cohesion among all since options and resource people are readily available between institutions. We anticipate increased graduation statistics for the education institutions and when combined with the recruiting and retention of Aboriginal students in these institutions, the ceremony can encourage and motivate students to complete their studies.

as told by Tammy Webster (committee member and graduate) Throughout my post secondary career, I was never vested in the convocation ceremony of the schools. I attended a few to watch others graduate, but never felt the desire to attend my own. Personally, I felt that the only way I would attend is if the person giving me my diploma was someone that I knew and respected. When I received an invite to attend an Honouring ceremony close to my home community, I knew that I wanted to be part of that event and was heartbroken when my work commitments kept me from attending. As I reflect back on the difference between formal university convocation and the Honouring ceremony, I recognized that the Honouring ceremony had Aboriginal graduates, community members and family. These individuals acknowledge the challenges faced by Aboriginal students and yet praise and value the accomplishments that each student achieved. Each student brought strengths and gifts to the ceremony in what they achieved and when presented as an entire group, I was reminded of traditional Aboriginal culture where individuals often work for the larger whole and for future generations. Since geography and time was a limiting factor in my attendance, I also considered the fact that there were other Aboriginal students who study and graduate from institutions that are distant from their home communities as well. It is at this point that I approached some local Aboriginal leaders and proposed my idea of hosting our own Honouring Aboriginal Academic Achievements Ceremony for those students who attend the number of institutions in our community. At the ceremony, I had finally felt as though my accomplishments and sacrifices were acknowledged by friends, peers and family. A sash was placed on my shoulders by two committee members, who I felt were friends. An eagle feather was passed around amongst the elders who whispered prayers and thoughts into the feather. A respected elder, who would laugh at my absurd jokes while we attended organizational meetings, spoke to me directly referencing some common conversation we had, while he passed me my eagle feather. This was followed by a hug and a whisper of congratulations. As I stood with fellow graduates, we looked at each other, smiled and nodded knowingly at our accomplishments. I looked over at my spouse and smiled and he gave me a nod and a wave of his hand. As other graduates were receiving their sashes and feathers, I took a brief moment, inhaled deeply the smell of sweet grass and knew that I graduated. I knew that I received the final motivation to write my final draft of my thesis and within six weeks, I had submitted my thesis for review and ultimately completed my Master’s of Education. This story is how the Honouring Ceremony made a difference in my life.