Indigenous Awareness Month

Indigenous Awareness Month 2023:
Strengthening Relationships Through Connection

The entirety of March at Bow Valley College is devoted to celebrating the unique contributions, histories, traditions, and cultures of and with First Nations, Métis and Inuit Peoples. Every Nation holds their own customs, teachings, languages, and ways of being. And with more than 400 self-identified Indigenous students, and Indigenous staff, instructors, and leaders, we are proud to create opportunities to learn and celebrate the richness of diversity of the college community together.

Awareness is a first step toward meaningful action. Each week will have a thematic focus on critical contributors to our story as Treaty Peoples and as an ally institution. All members of the College community are encouraged to attend throughout the month. These activities can be a foundation for anyone who is looking to increase their understanding and personal journey toward healing for all.

For questions, please contact: iniikokaan@bowvalleycollege.ca

Events at a Glance

Week 1: A Focus on the Iniikokaan (March 1-11)

Indigenous Awareness Month Kick-Off Event

Date: Wednesday, March 1
Time: 11am – 12pm
Access: In-person only
Location: Main Campus, South building Second Floor Atrium (beside the Market)
Description: Start off the month in a good way by observing a pow-wow dance demonstration and an Indigenous-style food showcase featuring a type of fry bread, and traditional berry soup from local vendor, Kokum’s Bannock Kitchen!
Special Guests: Jackie Wabasca and Wandering Spirit Ltd.
Protocol: N/A
Audience: Open to all BVC Community

Beading at Iniikokaan (Tuesdays & Thursdays)

Date: March 2, 7, 9, 14, 26, 21, 23, 28 & 30
Time: Tuesdays (10am - 12pm) * Thursdays (1pm - 4pm)
Access: In-person only
Location: Iniikokaan Centre, Gathering Room (2^nd floor main campus, South)
Description: Learn from experienced student facilitators how to bead the basics. Create your own project or start a lanyard, brooch, set of earrings, etc. All materials provided. Participants should be prepared to come to multiple sessions to complete a project.
Special Guests: Indigenous student facilitators
Protocol: N/A
Audience: Open to all, priority given to students. No experience necessary.
Notes: Space is limited to first-come basis. This session will be offered twice weekly throughout the month of March.

Learn the Bow Valley College Drum Song

Date: Every Friday in March (3, 17, 24, and 31)
Time: 2pm - 4pm
Access: In Person at the Iniikokaan Centre
Location: Iniikokaan Centre, Gathering Room (2^nd floor main campus, South)
Description: Bow Valley College will be transferred a traditional song by Elder Clarence Wolfleg, member of Siksika Nation. Skip Wolfleg (Clarence Jr.) has learned the song and will spend time with us so we can learn and sing it ourselves. All students, staff, leadership, and faculty are invited to hear the teachings, learn the song and drum/rattle in anticipation of the ceremonial transfer. This is a weekly session happening throughout the Month of March. No experience necessary.
Special Guests: Clarence “Skip” Wolfleg Jr., traditional drummer/singer and member of the Siksika Nation
Protocol: Please do not record the session in respect of the traditional information shared.
Audience: Open to all BVC Community
Notes: No experience necessary. Please bring a drum and/or rattle if you have one.

Online Smudge Teachings with Elder Keith ChiefMoon
Event: Online Smudge & Prayer with Elder Keith ChiefMoon
Date: Every Monday throughout March (March 6, 13, 20) with an in-person Elder March 27
Time: 8:15am – 8:30am
Access: Online only via MS Teams
MS Teams Link: Click HERE for the link to join
Description: Join Elder Keith ChiefMoon, a member of the Blood Tribe/Kanai Nation in a guided smudge ceremony and prayer for your week. Hear the Blackfoot language and receive blessings to start your week off in a Good Way. Prayer requests welcome.
Special Guests: Elder Keith ChiefMoon, Blackfoot language speaker, ceremonialist, and member of Bow Valley College’s Knowledge Keepers Network.
Protocol: Participants may ask questions at the end of the smudge and prayer.
Audience: Open to all BVC Community
Notes: Indigenous students are encouraged and welcome to attend in-person at the Iniikokaan Centre.

Iniikokaan Community Update – A Year in Review

Date: Wednesday, March 8
Time: Light refreshments and giveaway @ 12:30; online presentation at 1-2:30pm
Access: Online with a live stream in-person at the Iniikokaan Centre
Location: MS Teams & live stream in the Iniikokaan Centre, Gathering Room (2^nd floor main campus, South)
Description: The Iniikokaan Centre is a cultural hub for Indigenous-related student supports. Serving over 400 self-identified students of Canadian Indigenous ancestry, and housed within the Indigenous Relations & Reconciliation unit, Iniikokaan is excited to present A Year in Review. For anyone interested in meeting the team, learning what we do and how we work, please join us. We will also have a special gift for those in attendance to celebrate International Women’s Day.
Special Guests: Bow Valley College’s Iniikokaan Team, Director of Indigenous Relations & Reconciliation, and Vice President Learner Experience.
MS Team Link: Click HERE to access the online presentation
Audience: Open to all internal and external online guests
Notes: Feel free to submit any questions for the presentation to iniikokaan@bowvalleycollege.ca

Indigenous-Focused Student Club (SABVC): Meet & Greet

Date: Thursday, March 9
Time: 11:00am – 12:30pm
Location: Iniikokaan Centre, Gathering Room (2^nd floor main campus, South)
Access: In-person only
Description: Are you interested in getting involved in an Indigenous-related club on campus? Whether consider yourself an ally of Indigenous peoples, identify as an Indigenous person yourself, or are interested in learning more, this collaborative event is for you! Join the Students Association of Bow Valley College’s Indigenous Student representative to share your ideas, needs and connections.
Special Guests: Lou Lou Al Takach - SABVC Indigenous Student Representative
Protocol: N/A
Audience: Students only
Notes: Lunch will be provided

Week 2: A Focus on Students (March 13-17)

Online Smudge Teachings with Elder Keith ChiefMoon

Event: Online Smudge & Prayer with Elder Keith ChiefMoon
Date: Every Monday throughout March (March 6, 13, 20) with an in-person Elder March 27
Time: 8:15am – 8:30am
Access: Online only via MS Teams
MS Teams Link: Click HERE for the link to join
Description: Join Elder Keith ChiefMoon, a member of the Blood Tribe/Kanai Nation in a guided smudge ceremony and prayer for your week. Hear the Blackfoot language and receive blessings to start your week off in a Good Way. Prayer requests welcome.
Special Guests: Elder Keith ChiefMoon, Blackfoot language speaker, ceremonialist, and member of Bow Valley College’s Knowledge Keepers Network.
Protocol: Participants may ask questions at the end of the smudge and prayer.
Audience: Open to all BVC Community
Notes: Indigenous students are encouraged and welcome to attend in-person at the Iniikokaan Centre.

Beading at Iniikokaan (Tuesdays & Thursdays)
Date: March 2, 7, 9, 14, 26, 21, 23, 28 & 30
Time: Tuesdays (10am - 12pm) * Thursdays (1pm - 4pm)
Access: In-person only
Location: Iniikokaan Centre, Gathering Room (2^nd floor main campus, South)
Description: Learn from experienced student facilitators how to bead the basics. Create your own project or start a lanyard, brooch, set of earrings, etc. All materials provided. Participants should be prepared to come to multiple sessions to complete a project.
Special Guests: Indigenous student facilitators
Protocol: N/A
Audience: Open to all, priority given to students. No experience necessary.
Notes: Space is limited to first-come basis. This session will be offered twice weekly throughout the month of March.

Film Screening: Reel Injun

Date: Wednesday, March 15
Time: 2pm - 4pm (film runs 1 hour 28 mins)
Access: In-person only
Location: Iniikokaan Centre, Gathering Room (2^nd floor main campus, South)
Description: Featuring hundreds of clips from old classics as well as recent releases, the film traces the evolution of the “Hollywood Indian.” Diamond guides the audience on a journey across America to some of cinema’s most iconic landscapes and conducts candid interviews with celebrities like Clint Eastwood, Robbie Robertson, and Jim Jarmusch. The film is a loving look at cinema through the eyes of the people who appeared in its very first flickering images and have survived to tell their stories in their own way.
Special Guests: Featuring Cree filmmaker, Neil Diamond, National Film Board of Canada
Protocol: N/A
Audience: Open to all BVC Community
Notes: Popcorn and snacks provided. A discussion circle will follow the film.

Film Screening: Heartbeat of a Nation
Date: Friday, March 17
Time: 12pm - 1pm (film runs 22 mins)
Access: In Person at the Iniikokaan Centre
Location: Iniikokaan Centre, Gathering Room (2^nd floor main campus, South)
Description: Heartbeat of a Nation is a short documentary by Eric Janvier that celebrates Dene cultural reclamation and revitalization, a father passes on traditional knowledge to his child through the teachings of a caribou drum. Popcorn and snacks provided!
Special Guests: Featuring Eric Janvier
Protocol: N/A
Audience: Open to all BVC Community
Notes: Popcorn and snacks provided. A discussion circle will follow the film.

Learn the Bow Valley College Drum Song

Date: Every Friday in March (3, 17, 24, and 31)
Time: 2pm - 4pm
Access: In Person at the Iniikokaan Centre
Location: Iniikokaan Centre, Gathering Room (2^nd floor main campus, South)
Description: Bow Valley College will be transferred a traditional song by Elder Clarence Wolfleg, member of Siksika Nation. Skip Wolfleg (Clarence Jr.) has learned the song and will spend time with us so we can learn and sing it ourselves. All students, staff, leadership, and faculty are invited to hear the teachings, learn the song and drum/rattle in anticipation of the ceremonial transfer. This is a weekly session happening throughout the Month of March. No experience necessary.
Special Guests: Clarence “Skip” Wolfleg Jr., traditional drummer/singer and member of the Siksika Nation
Protocol: Please do not record the session in respect of the traditional information shared.
Audience: Open to all BVC Community
Notes: No experience necessary. Please bring a drum and/or rattle if you have one.

Week 3: A Focus on the College Community (March 20-24)

Online Smudge Teachings with Elder Keith ChiefMoon

Event: Online Smudge & Prayer with Elder Keith ChiefMoon
Date: Every Monday throughout March (March 6, 13, 20) with an in-person Elder March 27
Time: 8:15am – 8:30am
Access: Online only via MS Teams
MS Teams Link: Click HERE for the link to join
Description: Join Elder Keith ChiefMoon, a member of the Blood Tribe/Kanai Nation in a guided smudge ceremony and prayer for your week. Hear the Blackfoot language and receive blessings to start your week off in a Good Way. Prayer requests welcome.
Special Guests: Elder Keith ChiefMoon, Blackfoot language speaker, ceremonialist, and member of Bow Valley College’s Knowledge Keepers Network.
Protocol: Participants may ask questions at the end of the smudge and prayer.
Audience: Open to all BVC Community
Notes: Indigenous students are encouraged and welcome to attend in-person at the Iniikokaan Centre.

Beading at Iniikokaan (Tuesdays & Thursdays)
Date: March 2, 7, 9, 14, 26, 21, 23, 28 & 30
Time: Tuesdays (10am - 12pm) * Thursdays (1pm - 4pm)
Access: In-person only
Location: Iniikokaan Centre, Gathering Room (2^nd floor main campus, South)
Description: Learn from experienced student facilitators how to bead the basics. Create your own project or start a lanyard, brooch, set of earrings, etc. All materials provided. Participants should be prepared to come to multiple sessions to complete a project.
Special Guests: Indigenous student facilitators
Protocol: N/A
Audience: Open to all, priority given to students. No experience necessary.
Notes: Space is limited to first-come basis. This session will be offered twice weekly throughout the month of March.

Staff Workshop: Guide to Gifting – Indigenous Relations

Date: Tuesday, March 21
Time: 10:00am – 11:00am
Access: Online only via MS Teams
MS Teams Link: Click HERE to access the meeting
Location: Online via MS Teams
Description: If you need to know about the College’s approach to monetary gifting (honorarium), Elder engagement, and Indigenous student volunteerism, this session is for you. We’ll cover the executive-approved Guide to Gifting – Indigenous Relations.
Special Guests: Michelle Fournie, Manager, Iniikokaan Centre – Indigenous Relations & Reconciliation
Protocol: N/A
Audience: Open to staff only
Notes: The act of gifting to show appreciation is a respectful approach to relationship management. Sharing gratitude through gift giving respects trusted community partnerships, respectful employee recruitment and retention efforts, and right relations with Bow Valley College. Join us to learn more.

Indigenous Student Artisan Market
Date: Wednesday, March 22
Time: 11:00am – 2:00pm
Access: In-person only
Location: Main Campus, South, Second Floor Atrium (beside the Market)
Description: Come and support the entrepreneurial spirit of talented students in this Indigenous Student Artisan Market.
Special Guests: Featuring Indigenous student artisans
Audience: Open to all BVC Community
Notes: Please bring cash as there is no ATM located on campus

Indigenous Employee Appreciation Event

Event: Date: Thursday, March 23
Time: 11:00am – 12:00pm
Access: In-person only
Location: Iniikokaan Centre, Gathering Room (2^nd floor main campus, South)
Description: Are you a College employee who identifies as having Canadian Indigenous Ancestry? If so, we’d love to connect with you and share our appreciation for who you are and all you do! Save the date for an Indigenous employee mixer, meet & greet, and appreciation event hosted by the Dr. Maurice Manyfingers, the College’s first Director of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation, and as part of March Awareness Month activities. Please join us to enjoy light refreshments and small gift of appreciation.
Special Guests: Dr. Maurice Manyfingers, Director Indigenous Relations & Reconciliation, Tahira Ebrahim, Associate Director, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion & Access
Protocol: N/A
Audience: Any employee (staff, leader, instructor, etc.) who identifies as having Canadian Indigenous Ancestry (e.g. First Nations, Metis, Inuit)
Notes: Can’t make it? We’ll hold onto your gift for pickup at the Iniikokaan Centre after the event, so please email your name and role to iniikokaan@bowvalleycollege.ca

Experiential Learning Opportunity: Kairos Blanket Exercise

Notes: No experience necessary. Please bring a drum and/or rattle if you have one.

Week 4: A Focus on the External Community (March 27-31)

Monday Smudge with Elder Charlotte McLeod

Volunteering with the Drop-in Centre

Date: March 27, 2023
Time: 11:00am – 1:30pm
Access: In Person Only. Registration Required. Click HERE to Register
MS Teams link: N/A
Location: Drop-In Centre, Calgary
Description: Did you know that the DI feeds 650+ people every evening? With this team-orientated opportunity the Iniikokaan Centre will provide a delicious meal and lend support to the guests who dine at the DI.Providing support through a warm smile, nutritious meal, and connection makes our community stronger. Join the Iniikokaan Centre for this volunteering opportunity with the Drop In Centre. Volunteers will assist with the lunchtime meal service to the community at the Calgary Drop In Centre.
Special Guests: N/A
Protocol: N/A
Audience: Open to BVC Students

Indigenous Student Documentation Support

Event: Indian Registration Service: First Nations Health Consortium Presentation
Date: March 29, 2023
Time: 11:00am - 12:00pm
Access: Hybrid event: online via MS Teams or attend in-person at Iniikokaan Centre, Gathering Space
MS Teams Link: Click HERE to access the meeting
Location: Online via MS Teams or Iniikokaan Centre, Gathering Room (2nd floor main campus, South)
Description: Are you a First Nations Indigenous student who needs to access to official government documentation such as status cards, band registration, or have questions about Jordans principle? Join this presentation provided by the First Nations Health Consortium.
Special Guests: Kathleen Davis, First Nations Health Consortium
Protocol: N/A
Audience: Indigenous Students of Bow Valley College

Smudge and Blessing with the Calgary Drop-In Centre with Elder Keith ChiefMoon

Date: March 30, 2023
Time: 2:00pm
Access: In Person Only. Registration Required. Click HERE to Register
MS Teams link: N/A
Location: Drop-In Centre, Calgary
Description: Students from Bow Valley College, the Iniikokaan Centre, and Elder Keith ChiefMoon will be facilitating a smudge and blessing for clients of the Calgary Drop In Centre. Connection with community, providing cultural programming, and giving back to community are vital to the work of Iniikokaan Centre. If you are interested in assisting Elder Keith ChiefMoon and the Iniikokaan Centre with this event. Interested in volunteering at this event contact Iniikokaan@bowvalleycollege.ca
Special Guests: Elder Keith ChiefMoon, Kainai Nation
Protocol: N/A
Audience: Open to BVC Students

Beading at Iniikokaan (Tuesdays & Thursdays)

Resources

Bow Valley College Library: Indigenous Books Display and Indigenous Literature Guide

Date: All Month Long
Access: Hybrid: In-person and online access
Location: Bow Valley College Library
Description: View the Bow Valley College Indigenous Books Display at the Library all month long. Interested in learning more about Indigenous history, community, and teachings. Check out the Indigenous Literature guide created by the Bow Valley College Library. This guide contains links to physical and digital books that collect examples of Indigenous short stories, poetry, articles, and art from across North America.
Link: Click HERE to access the online collection

Iniikokaan Centre Community Update - A Year in Review

The Iniikokaan Centre is a cultural hub for Indigenous-related student supports. Serving over 400 self-identified students of Canadian Indigenous ancestry, and housed within the Indigenous Relations & Reconciliation unit, Iniikokaan presented “A Year in Review” for our community both internally and externally. This presentation included our past and current projects, an introduction to the Iniikokaan Team, student stories, and more. Thank you to everyone who has joined us, celebrated, and elevated our community here at the Iniikokaan Centre.

Watch the recorded meeting here: Iniikokaan Centre Community Update – A Year in Review

Indigenous Awareness Month

Student Resources/ Student Life/ Iniikokaan Centre/ Indigenous Awareness Month