Trigger Warning//past trauma, death, residential school experience// The following post includes description of the fate of Indigenous children in British Columbia. This content may be disturbing and you may wish to avoid reading further if this will be upsetting. Access emotional and crisis referral services by calling the 24-hour National Indian Residential Schools Crisis Line:…

More than a dozen UFV students gained valuable experience this summer by participating in UFV's second Collaboratorium project. Run by UFV's Peace and Reconciliation Centre under the guidance of Professor Keith Carlson, the Collaboratorium is designed to provide community organizations with sophisticated research services at a fraction of the cost that would be associated with…

éy swáyel Each year, National Indigenous Peoples Day is recognized on June 21. It is a time to reflect and celebrate the history, heritage, resilience, and diversity of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis across Canada. Across Stó:lō Téméxw, there is much to honour. Since time immemorial, the Stó:lō people have been the stewards of the…

If things had turned out a little differently, Naxaxalhts’i Albert ‘Sonny’ McHalsie might have been one of B.C.’s top mechanics rather than a highly valued interpreter of Stó:lō people’s culture and traditions. And much vital knowledge about the culture and history of Indigenous Coast Salish history would have been lost. Because he chose a different…

Lorna Andrews doesn’t have an easy job, but she has an important one. As UFV’s Teaching and Learning Specialist with a focus on Indigenization, she helps faculty and staff understand issues regarding colonial impacts on Indigenous people and the need to work towards reconciliation in Canada. For her efforts, she is being recognized as the…

The University of the Fraser Valley is collaborating with a group of Stó:lō agencies to offer an educational program that will help participants enhance their capacity for reconciliation building. Xwelítem Siyáya: Allyship and Reconciliation Building will be offered by the UFV Peace and Reconciliation Centre (PARC), in partnership with the Stó:lō Nation, the Stó:lō Tribal…

Ana Adamik, a 15-year veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces, has been named Director of the AVP Indigenous office. Most recently, she was the executive assistant to the UFV Office of the Vice-Provost Academic, a position she has held since 2020. As director, Adamik will be responsible for helping raise the profile of the AVP…

For too many decades, forces of colonization actively worked to deny young Indigenous people access to their own language. And language is critical to culture.  Reconciliation with Stó:lō people is a significant priority for UFV, and a diverse group of donors have played a role in funding the preservation of Halq’eméylem language, and supporting Indigenization…

At a UFV Indigenous Studies faculty meeting in early 2022, an idea and opportunity for collaboration for an inclusive new course originated organically. Dr. Mique’l Dangeli and Dr. Keziah Wallis, both relatively new faculty members at UFV, immediately bonded over their shared passion for Indigenous cinema while simultaneously appreciating each other’s unique career backgrounds: Dangeli, the…

Receiving and using an employee card is generally a standard, non-glamorous formality for new hires in any company or organization. The card’s functions are transactional, typically used to access buildings, take out library books, and perform other routine tasks. But for many, an employee card can also represent a sense of identity, belonging, and a…

In April, when UFV presented Shirley Turcotte the opportunity to be a UFV honorary degree award recipient, she accepted. But she did so somewhat reluctantly. It is not that the renowned Métis knowledge-carrier and registered clinical counsellor is not honoured. Or that she has anything against UFV. Simply put, Turcotte hates attention. “When I first…

When Carol Dickson started working as Executive Assistant to the Vice Provost in 2012, she had no idea that the new job was going to take her on a journey of transformation. She was aware that as part of the role she would be working with Shirley Hardman, UFV’s Senior Advisor on Indigenous Affairs, but…

UFV announced a reimagined name for its student residence on March 23 at a celebration held in the new Indigenous garden on the Abbotsford campus. Baker House, which opened in 2007, will now be known as Lá:lem te Baker, appending the Halq’emeylem language word for house to the Baker name. Kyle Baillie, UFV’s Executive Director…

We’ve all heard of COVID hair. A certain segment of the population saw the pandemic as an opportunity to unleash their 1980s hair-band or 1970s prog-rock look as people worked from home and were reluctant to venture out to the hairdresser or barber shop. Now as people gradually return to the office, some come with…

As Canada marks the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation as a statutory holiday for the first time, there are a variety of events at UFV and in surrounding communities where you can learn more about the tragic and painful history and ongoing impacts of residential schools. UFV will be closed on September 30 to…