For Indigenous Education teacher Kelsey Dick (BA ’09, BEd ’09, MEd ’12), choosing Brock was one of the easiest choices she’s ever made. 

“It was love at first sight,” said Dick. “I knew as soon as I walked through the doors that I would be accepting my offer to the Concurrent Education program in Child and Youth Studies.” 

Dick, who works at Soaring Eagles, a program offered through the Niagara Catholic District School Board, credits Brock with playing a pivotal role in her teaching journey. 

But the impact didn’t end with her convocation ceremony.

In 2016, Dick connected with a former associate professor she had at a First Nation, Métis and Inuit Indigenous Education lecture held at the University. 

Peter Vietgen, who is still an associate professor at Brock, worked with Dick and her students on a project that involved using visual arts to explore the Calls to Action in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Report.

The project included an exhibition curated by Dick’s students, driven by their voices and experiences.

“I really enjoy sharing traditional ways of learning with students and promoting cultural pride with sensitivity,” said Dick. “I am on a journey with my students where we are co-learning together. Connecting with my own Indigenous culture as a citizen of the Métis Nation has helped me grow both personally and professionally.” 

In the 2019/20 academic year, Brock’s Aboriginal Student Services report 435 students at the University self-identifying as being Indigenous, compared with 357 in 2016/17.

Dick said she’s proud of Brock’s leadership in advancing Truth and Reconciliation, including the hiring of Amos Key Jr., the University’s first-ever Vice-Provost, Indigenous Engagement.  

Brock has committed to supporting Indigenous education, as well as strengthening relationships of trust with Indigenous communities and partners across all sectors and activities of the University.

One such initiative was an eye-opening experiential exercise that took place in October, where Public Health and Biomedical Sciences students examined centuries of systematic abuse faced by Indigenous peoples. 

Sandra Wong, Aboriginal Academic Support Program Co-ordinator/Instructor, said the exercise delivered a powerful narrative that provides insight into many of the contemporary issues experienced by Indigenous people.

“We have to promote whatever type of learning needs to be done for our people,” she said. “It’s not competitive and we want to work together. We want our Aboriginal kids (First Nations, Métis and Inuit) and non-Aboriginal kids to learn the history.”

In the 2019/20 academic year, Brock’s Aboriginal Student Services report 435 students at the University self-identifying as being Indigenous, compared with 357 in 2016/17.

Dick adds that the University has cultivated Indigenous learning on campus through various services, including Aboriginal Student Services.

“Brock’s Aboriginal Student Services truly provides a welcoming and supportive environment for Indigenous students on campus,” said Dick. “We have brought our secondary Indigenous students to participate in workshops and transition activities, which were uplifting and really engaged them.”