August '09 WINHEC Conference

WINHEC Annual Meeting

PRESS RELEASE

27 August 2009 - Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory - Jubilation abounded as Indigenous and non-Indigenous scholars, elders and academics from around the globe acknowledged, affirmed and validated FNTI (First Nations Technical Institute) today by granting the Indigenous post-secondary institution 10 year accreditation status under the World Indigenous Nations Higher Education Consortium (WINHEC).

This announcement is the culmination of a 3 year journey of rigorous internal and external examination of the cultural standards, curriculum, programming, administration, governance, community and student engagement, and financing of FNTI. "We decided to engage in this process at the encouragement of Dr. Ray Barnhardt, who advised that we use the process to strengthen our Institute," said Jan Hill, Academic Dean, who coordinated the WINHEC project for FNTI. "It was an opportunity for us to revisit our guiding principles, vision and mission and to affirm for ourselves that we are still on the right path, walking our talk and helping to prepare our peoples and communities for the future", said Hill.

WINHEC was formed in 2001 in Alberta at the World Indigenous Peoples Conference on Education. The vision statement of WINHEC reads: "We gather as Indigenous Peoples of our respective nations recognizing and reaffirming the educational rights of all Indigenous Peoples. We share the vision of all Indigenous Peoples of the world united in the collective synergy of self-determination through control of higher education, committed to building partnerships that restore and retain Indigenous spirituality, cultures and languages, homelands, social systems, economic systems and self determination."

FNTI is hopeful that this achievement of world Indigenous accreditation status will move them one step closer towards provincial or federal accreditation status in Canada. This has been an obstacle for the Indigenous institution as it seeks similar recognition and equitable funding levels to comparable mainstream post-secondary institutions from the Federal and Provincial governments.

For more information:
Jan Hill, Academic Dean
janh@fnti.net
613 396 2122, ext. 135