REGINA — A group of students and staff from Chief Payepot School on the Piapot First Nation had the opportunity to spend a day at the University of Regina and fully immerse themselves in campus life.
Keenan Cummings, Transition Coordinator at the ta-tawâw Student Centre, coordinates Discover Your Direction (DYD) days to give Indigenous high school students an opportunity to come to campus and engage in classes, workshops, and events. By the end of the day, the goal is for them to feel more comfortable on campus and see themselves attending the U of R one day.
“Students have a chance to engage in something they may not have explored before, and it could pique their interest and give them an idea of what they’d like to pursue in university,” says Cummings. “Coming to campus, talking to current students and professors, and seeing the programs that are available can help high school students to think about what they want their future to look like.”
Exploring opportunities in STEM
After attending a morning English 100 class at First Nations University, the group headed over to Dr. Arthur Situm’s lab for a hands-on workshop where they learned about different types of radiation, as well as career opportunities in energy systems engineering and environmental systems engineering pertaining to nuclear power.
Dr. Situm, an Assistant Professor in the Energy Systems Engineering program, is very passionate about getting Indigenous students interested in careers in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) and ensuring that Indigenous peoples and communities have input when it comes to large energy projects that have significant impacts on reducing emissions.
“There are a lot of really good perspectives that Indigenous people have when it comes to ensuring that energy and power projects are set up to benefit future generations, the decisions that we make now will have an impact on multiple generations to come,” says Situm. “There is a lot of underrepresentation in STEM fields, and exposing students to the opportunities that are available is a good way of opening up their options.”
An afternoon of connection
After lunch, the students heard from first-year students and others involved in the nitôncipâmin omâ Student Success Program (OMA Program), an initiative led by the ta-tawâw Student Centre, designed to provide first-year Indigenous students with a supportive learning environment.
Geanna Pelletier-Wesaquate is a Grade 12 student at Chief Payepot School and was one of the participants in Discover Your Direction Day. She’s interested in pursuing fine arts, with a particular interest in visual arts and film.
“Today was very eye-opening, it helped to ease my worries and anxiety about coming to university,” says Pelletier-Wesaquate. “It can seem very overwhelming at first, but getting to experience what a class would be like made it a lot easier to see myself coming here in the future.”
Devon Smoke is an Educational Assistant at Chief Payepot School, and he’s been thinking about what’s next in his career path after spending the past eight years working in schools and group homes. His co-worker Kimberley Whitestar, a Student Mentor at Chief Payepot School, encouraged him to come to Discover Your Direction day after they had conversations about his interest in becoming a social worker.
Smoke is now preparing to attend the University of Regina in the Fall, and he plans to join the OMA Program to ease into campus life.
“I’ve been feeling like I need to move forward in my career, and coming to the U of R really reinforced that,” says Smoke. “I have been working for quite a while now, and I’ve worked in a lot of high stress situations, this has made me feel a lot more comfortable about being in school.”
Community on campus
After a full day on campus, Cummings hopes that students can begin to see themselves at the University of Regina, and feel confident that they belong here.
“It can be difficult for Indigenous students, especially when they come right out of high school, to find their place on campus after living in smaller communities,” says Cummings. “The ta-tawâw Student Centre and the OMA Program can help new students find a sense of belonging in the larger campus community.
