PRINCE ALBERT — The Saskatchewan Rivers School Division board and Elder’s Council hosted their Fall Pipe Ceremony and Feast at Victor Thunderchild High School Monday.
The purpose was to help bring clarity and direction to Indigenous teachings throughout the division. This was the first Pipe Ceremony at the recently renamed high school.
"We had a pipe ceremony for the naming ceremony last year, but this is the first seasonal pipes ceremony that we've hosted there,” director of education Neil Finch said.
The event included student and staff participation in Indigenous cultural rituals like feeding the powwow drums and other ceremonial items in the school. The ceremony was led by Elder Suzy Bear.
"We had a couple agenda items, but part of what we discussed was a review from the pipe ceremony,” Finch said. “We always do a follow-up to see how it went and what went really well and what we can think about changing in the next go-round.”
Following the ceremony, the Board met with the Elders Council and learned about the three ISSI partnerships SRPSD engages in with Muskoday First Nation, Wahpeton Dakota Nation and Montreal Lake Cree Nation.
"Then we also talked about our terms of reference for the Elders Council and what is our purpose and processes that we have,” he said.
According to a release by the division these partnerships have seen successes in credit attainment for students from both Muskoday and Wahpeton, increased attendance for students attending Wesmor, and students demonstrating strong cultural identity and leadership.
The Montreal Lake ISSI is one of knowledge sharing and has produced the first draft of a model of land-based learning that aligns with Indigenous worldview to guide both organization's work in the area.
Finch said that looking at terms of reference helps improve the way the Elder’s Council works.
