More talks needed on McGill tuition exemptions for Indigenous students, KI says
University plans to give free tuition to Indigenous students in the fall, but Kativik Ilisarniliriniq says more discussions needed over how it will apply to Inuit
Kativik Ilisarniliriniq says a discussion should be done with partners to iron out the details of a McGill University plan to exempt some Indigenous students from paying tuition fees at the Montreal university. (Photo by Cedric Gallant)
Last month, McGill University announced its new initiative of covering tuition costs and mandatory fees for Indigenous students would begin with the upcoming fall semester.
However, this program has a few addendums when it comes to Nunavik students, as Kativik Ilisarniliriniq says more discussions are needed to iron out the details.
Starting in the fall, the university, based in Montreal, plans to only offer full tuition coverage to students from nearby Mohawk communities, including the six Haudenosaunee nations of the Grand River in Ontario.
McGill calls this its “first phase” of the program.
When it comes to other Indigenous students, including Nunavimmiut, the deal only includes prospective or current diploma students enrolled in McGill’s school of social work, school of continuing studies, or the office of First Nations and Indigenous education.
The free-tuition program focuses on nearby Indigenous communities because McGill is established on their land, said Celeste Pedri-Spade, McGill’s associate provost of Indigenous initiatives, in a phone interview.
“[The university] has decades-long relationships with other First Nations and Inuit communities throughout what is now the province of Quebec,” Pedri-Spade said.
“What does it mean to not include students that are enrolled in programs with those communities?”
That is why Inuit students enrolled in those programs through Kativik Ilisarniliriniq, the Nunavik Regional Board of Health and Social Services and Makivvik were also included in this initiative.
Pedri-Spade said this initiative is a response to a call to action from the provost task force on Indigenous Studies and Indigenous education.
The call is to “take concrete steps toward the provision of waivers of tuition and mandatory fees for all Indigenous students enrolled at McGill,” according to its website.
What was announced now is deemed to be the first phase of the initiative.
After that, McGill will evaluate whether the initiative works for everyone, and how expansion could then be done.
“There is a lot of working together that we need to do to make this happen,” Pedri-Spade said.
“We’re hoping to convey the message that we understand, and we will support students as members of their communities and their nations.”
Mamadou Diop, the director of adult education and vocational studies at Kativik Ilisarniliriniq, said in a statement to Nunatsiaq News the “announcement made by McGill University is a very positive development,” and that “it may have a financial impact on the teacher training programs KI offers to the Inuit teachers it employs.”
“We still have to sit down with our partners at the McGill faculty of education’s office of First Nations and Inuit education and at the Ministry of Education to work out how this will affect the budget of our subsidized programs, and the impact it may have on our current and future partnership agreements,” Diop said.
He added that until this is clarified, “it is difficult for us to comment on this new initiative.”
More free stuff… it just never ends.
There are a few barriers left but not many. Short of free childcare and free plane tickets its hard to see how anyone can’t get a university education that wants one.
They already have that!!!!
So pampered: What part of compensation for a land grab and cultural genocide don’t you understand?
So Tuniit students in Nunavut get free Arctic College? Oh wait, there are none left, because real genocide.
People in the north are ignorant or in denial of their own history. According to the founder of the Arctic Rose Foundation, this is the fault of others. She stated on their website (since removed but can be seen in their archives) that “We have an extraordinary past, much of which has been kept from us, and removed from the history books”.
“Kept from us” by whom? The only thing keeping anyone from their past is the effort they wish to expend to learn it. Granted, to blame your ignorance on others is the kind of thinking you might expect when being a victim is your default approach.
I wish more Inuit, at least the most vocal ones, would take their past more seriously. So often I see people leaning into fantasies and the simplistic glossy narratives we often see on parade in the NN comments (note the comment above).
With a rebel yell, we cry, “MORE! MORE! MORE!”🤘
“The free-tuition program focuses on nearby Indigenous communities because McGill is established on their land”
Give me a break
KSB already covers all these costs with the funding they get through the JBNQA. This has nothing to do with the students.
I LOVE FREE STUFF , NOTHING LIKE LIVING IN THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF NUNAVIK !!!
What would happen to Canadian Inuit if the Indian act was abolished and a new law passed recognizing rights of Indigenous groups including Inuit? Has AFN and ITK ever thought of that?
This is the problem with academics is, they try to appear to be as inclusive as possible using the term “Indigenous”, which applies to all First Nations, Inuit, and Metis, when they only mean a few specific groups, e.g., the Indigenous groups that own the land upon which their university is built.
This creates confusion, while they want to appear generous and righteous. Instead, use the correct wording.
Exactly, they wish to send certain signals into the world, without adequately paying enough attention to the nuance and costs that come with those signals.
I disagree with free tuition for indigenous students. It will mean nothing and will fail.
I worked, scrimped, saved, borrowed money just so that I could go to university. AFter graduating, I obtained a professional designation by working and taking the courses in evenings and weekends. . This alone took 8 years. All loans I received were fully repaid. I did not default and declare bankruptcy like so many did.
If I did it, others can too.
Further, I worked many years in international development and have seen first hand how freebies just does not work.