The indigenous student experience at Saskatchewan Polytechnic is at the heart of the Indigenous Student Success Strategy. Indigenous students should feel welcome, inspired and empowered, but most of all they should feel like Sask Polytech is a place where they belong.
Each of the Indigenous Student Success Strategy’s four goals—welcome, inspire, empower, belong—contribute to achieving this overarching objective and to improving the Indigenous student experience.
This month we want to share more information about our third goal: Wiyokihiya, which is the Dakota word for empower, to empower someone, to make someone capable of accomplishment.
Sask Polytech takes great pride in our Indigenous students’ achievements and wants them to graduate ready to contribute to their employers, communities, Canada and the world.
One way Sask Polytech has celebrated Indigenous students over the past 25 years is through honour ceremonies, which celebrate the hard work, dedication and achievements of Indigenous students across the province. Each ceremony welcomes all Indigenous students and their families and friends as well as Elders and other members from the student's home communities. Those attending have dinner as well as an opportunity to hear success stories from current students and a performance of an honour song.
Actions Sask Polytech is taking over the next five years to empower Indigenous students include:
- Build supportive business and industry networks, so that Indigenous students have connections to the world of work.
- Foster an Indigenous alumni network so our Indigenous graduates truly feel part of the Sask Polytech family.
Indigenous students make up 19 per cent of Sask Polytech’s student population and this proportion is growing steadily each year. Sask Polytech supports Indigenous students through tutoring and counselling, assistance with scholarships and funding, summer transition programming, and access to Indigenous students’ centres to meet other students and Elders.
Learn more about the Indigenous Student Success Strategy goals:
For more information visit saskpolytech.ca/indigenous.