ITK welcomes cash for Nunavut adult education

National Inuit leader Mary Simon welcomes the Feb. 23 news of new federal funding for adult education, delivered by the prime minister on a visit to Nunavut’s capital.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced $27 million in cash for adult education programs across the North — $11 million of which will go to Nunavut Arctic College.

“The number of Inuit students not completing high school means that adult education plays a huge role in our holistic approach to developing culturally relevant education systems,” said Simon, president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami president, in an email to Nunatsiaq News.

Increasing Inuit participating in post-secondary education and adult learning is one of the recommendations spelled out in ITK’s National Strategy on Inuit Education, released in June, 2011.

The strategy highlights the low school attendance and graduation rates among the country’s Inuit students, noting that “adult education will play a disproportionately higher role in Inuit education in the years to come.”

“I call on the Prime Minister to respond with equal vigor to education needs in all of our Inuit communities across Inuit Nunangat, and work… to ensure Inuit who live in Nunavik and Nunatsiavut also benefit from the Northern Adult Basic Education Program,” Simon said.

Following January’s Crown-First Nations summit in Ottawa, Simon has also called on the federal government to meet with ITK and other regional organizations to have an Inuit-focused summit on issues like education and mental health services.

Simon’s hope is that Inuit leaders can pick up on what she calls the federal government’s willingness to revisit its relationship with Canada’s aboriginal peoples.

During his Feb. 23 visit to Iqaluit, Harper said he’s heard the suggestion of an Inuit summit, but made no commitment to such a meeting.

“I would say that we meet regularly with all aboriginal organizations, including with Inuit aboriginal organizations, and we’ll obviously continue to do that,” Harper said. “And we’ll look at any useful ideas.”

ITK is currently working to set up a National Inuit Education Centre to implement the strategy.