Partnership helps NAIT remain true to culture

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A new agreement signed between the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT) and the Maskwachees Cultural College (MCC) on July 26 will result in more programs being offered at both institutions, while still allowing MCC students to keep the cultural components of their classes while attending NAIT.

A memorandum of understanding to jointly pursue training opportunities for students was signed by NAIT president Dr. Sam Shaw and MCC president Barbara B. Louis at the EnCana Aboriginal Students Centre at the NAIT campus in Edmonton.

Under the agreement the MCC Aboriginal social work diploma program will be offered at NAIT this September. Forty-four university accredited courses are offered at MCC, which is located on the four First Nations of Hobbema, south of Edmonton.

"We've come a long way as an institution and now we're prepared to enter into a relationship with Maskwachees Cultural College which is so, so important for creating more access for students and more programs," said Shaw. "We've been working on this for the last four or five months to ensure that everything is right in what we need to do and when you start looking at what we've been trying to do over the last seven years... to create more access for Aboriginal students to more programs. Also, to provide the support in terms of staffing, facilities like this, the EnCana Aboriginal Students Centre, and some of the things we're working on now is better programs that have more cultural orientations."

The Aboriginal social work program offers students teachings in Indigenous values, history, philosophy and how to establish relationships with nations, communities, families and individuals.

"I feel like it's an accomplishment that the two cultures can come together and understand each other. The great thing about this is that (NAIT) has accepted the cultural component of our social work program," said Louis, adding she is looking forward to inking other deals with other learning institutes.

"Maskwachees has the best Cree instructor program and we've developed that over a number of years and we've added a fifth component to that. You now have to have a syllabics to get your certificate. So now it takes five years to get your Cree instructor (certificate)," said Louis. "That's a program that we believe we can broker out to one of the institutions, including the (University of Alberta). There's no necessity to restart or to reinvent the wheel when the Maskwachees Cultural College already has the Cree instructor program."

Harry Fuccaro graduated in 2002 from the MCC Aboriginal social work program and is now working for Metis Child and Family Service Society. Fuccaro said the partnership will be a growing experience for NAIT and MCC, as well as the students of both institutions.

"Maskwachees is growing and wants to be in the community of the Aboriginal people here, out of Hobbema, and this is the perfect partnership," said Fuccaro. " He said keeping the cultural aspects in the programs is "extremely big. What Maskwachees Cultural College did for me was it took me to the past, took me to the present and to the future. It incorporated the whole thing."