Territorial Acknowledgement

Thompson Rivers University campuses are on the traditional lands of the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc (Kamloops campus) and the T’exelc (Williams Lake campus) within Secwépemc’ulucw, the traditional and unceded territory of the Secwépemc. Our region also extends into the territories of the St’át’imc, Nlaka’pamux, Nuxalk, Tŝilhqot’in, Dakelh, and Syilx peoples.

Listen to the Acknowledgement Here

As authors, we are deeply grateful to the Secwépemc peoples, on whose lands we have the opportunity to live, work and learn. As settlers and allies, we are committed to working in collaboration and partnership in order to respond to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Calls to Action. We believe that this work can contribute meaningfully to the quality of education so that all students, especially those from Indigenous communities, can see themselves and their knowledge valued in every learning environment.

In particular, using the process of cyclical program review, we aspire to provide leadership and opportunities for programs and departments to take meaningful action on the following Calls to Action:

62. We call upon the federal, provincial, and territorial governments, in consultation and collaboration with Survivors, Aboriginal peoples, and educators, to:

1. Make age-appropriate curriculum on residential schools, Treaties, and Aboriginal peoples’ historical and contemporary contributions to Canada a mandatory education requirement for Kindergarten to Grade Twelve students.
2. Provide the necessary funding to post-secondary institutions to educate teachers on how to integrate Indigenous knowledge and teaching methods into classrooms.
3. Provide the necessary funding to Aboriginal schools to utilize Indigenous knowledge and teaching methods in classrooms.
4. Establish senior-level positions in government at the assistant deputy minister level or higher dedicated to Aboriginal content in education

and

63. We call upon the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada to maintain an annual commitment to Aboriginal education issues, including:

1. Developing and implementing Kindergarten to Grade Twelve curriculum and learning resources on Aboriginal peoples in Canadian history, and the history and legacy of residential schools.
2. Sharing information and best practices on teaching curriculum related to residential schools and Aboriginal history.
3. Building student capacity for intercultural understanding, empathy, and mutual respect.
4. Identifying teacher-training needs relating to the above.

To read more, please see the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s final report.