When Pelican Falls First Nation High School could no longer meet student volume, it opened up the possibility of creating an all-First Nation high school in Thunder Bay.
“The educator up North, the education directors in the Sioux Lookout district realized there was a need for another school,” said DFC principal Jonathan Kakegamic, during the school’s 10th anniversary celebration and open house. “Pelican wasn’t meeting the space need.
“Thunder Bay was a prime location because of resources and opportunities. It was the hub for travel.”
The school plays an important role, Kakegamic said.
He has been at DFC for nine years.
“Every culture, in order to sustain itself, needs its own people to teach itself,” Kakegamic said.
“Through incorporating Elders beliefs and wishes for us, we can make that happen.”
Kakegamic is proud of how the school can mix traditional knowledge with skills to help students succeed in an urban setting.
“We need to educate our youth to be productive students and members of society,” Kakegamic said, adding they must also understand the ways of the past.
I was happy to see my nieces and nephews in Attawapiskat taking the opportunity to learn about the traditional practice of making Nah-mesh-tek, the
I was happy to see my nieces and nephews in Attawapiskat taking the opportunity to learn about the traditional practice of making Nah-mesh-tek, the Cree...
Maachestan, the Cree word for the annual spring river ice breakup, is happening all along the James Bay coast. This is a very important time of year for...