Tiana Weasel Moccasin
First year, Early Childhood Education
For one week in March, Tiana Weasel Moccasin got a glimpse of what her future may hold – on Parliament Hill in Ottawa. Weasel Moccasin was joined by 337 other young women between the ages of 18 and 23 from coast to coast to coast to represent her federal riding and communicate her vision for Canada at a historic national initiative called Daughters of the Vote.
The initiative was organized by Equal Voice, a national, bilingual, multi-partisan organization dedicated to electing more women to all levels of political office in Canada. The event overlapped with International Women’s Day (March 8) and was designed to mark the 100th anniversary of women’s formal political engagement in 2016 along with Canada’s 150th birthday this year.
Weasel Moccasin is a Kainai High School graduate, powwow dancer and was the 2016 Miss Blackfoot Canada. She says she was thrilled at the opportunities she had in Ottawa, including talking about the three issues she discussed in her application – the fentanyl crisis on First Nations reserves, the need for expanded FNMI education in all schools, and missing and murdered Aboriginal women.
“We got the chance to speak with female leaders from the House of Commons, talk about your three main issues, learn how to run for office, find your courage, learn about indigenous rights and so much more,” she says.
The young women also learned about Canada’s political institutions and those women and men serving in them, with the goal of becoming equipped and inspired to participate in the formal political sphere in the years and decades to come.
“I really wanted to show my people that I care and that I want the issues to be heard and their voices to be heard,” says Weasel Moccasin. “I want to show them that I care and how far I’ll go to show them that I value our culture and history.”
Weasel Moccasin speaks passionately about the fentanyl crisis and the need to advocate for effective support systems to help children and youth in unstable environments. “There are children who are orphans now because of this drug,” she says. “Families have been torn apart because of it.”
She also advocates for the expansion of teaching Aboriginal history in all Canadian schools. “I feel it’s important for Aboriginal history to be recognized,” she says. “I don’t want people who are a minority to feel they don’t have a voice.”
The issue of missing and murdered Aboriginal women is the final topic she would like to see addressed. “This is something we face on a daily basis,” she says. “I worry for families who aren’t able to find their loved one out there, and I want to help address this.”
**
Mallory Kristjanson
{ General Studies 2017 }
Mallory Kristjanson is a single mother who earned academic honours while working as a part-time paid employee and completing extra research work for the Citizens Society Research Lab. She also conducted research on FNMI issues for the college’s Institutional Planning and Reporting team.
Sarah Phillips
{ Business Administration 2017 }
Sarah Phillips spent a number of years working before deciding to come to the college and left a good job with growing responsibility to open doors for her future. Her instructors appreciated that she often shares her experiences in class for the benefit of all.
Justine Schmidt
{ Child and Youth Care 2017 }
Justine Schmidt overcame many challenges before finding the CYC program. She says she appreciated that her instructors genuinely care about students as individuals, and that her classmates were like-minded, compassionate people who want to make a difference.
Nina Knight
{ Health Care Aide 2017 }
Nina Knight was a mature student and juggled school and parenting with grace. Her instructors said her drive, personality and passion for the course put her at the top of the class.
Amy Russell
{ Ecosystems Management Bachelor of Applied Science 2017 }
After earning a BSc in Biology, Amy
Russell came to the college to enhance her hands-on skills with this new applied degree program. She developed her senior project from a college NSERC-funded grant on the aquatic impacts of the EnviroSpan Modular Culvert system.
Danielle Crawford
{ Ecosystems Management Bachelor of Applied Science 2017 }
Danielle Crawford is one of the first two graduates of the Environmental Management and Restoration stream of this new program. She came to the college as a mature student and earned her Environmental Assessment and Restoration diploma in 2015.
Aurora Eggert
{ Agriculture Science 2017 }
and Francoise Fabre
{ Culinary Careers 2017 }
Aurora Eggert is the first recipient of the Meszaros International Scholarship and took an extra semester so she could go through Convocation with her mom, Francoise Fabre, who came to the college from France to enrol in the Culinary program.
