I am running for the Vancouver school board because I know I can make a difference. As an Indigenous woman I have been raised to care for the greater good of all children as a collective, and not limited to the well-being of my own children. Even though I have worked diligently to get my own children through the school system, I strive on because it is important for me to continue to see a collective community that is inclusive and looking out for the most vulnerable children and youth.

As an Indigenous person it is important to ensure that education includes all aspects of the four quadrants of the medicine wheel teachings: the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual aspects of education must be addressed in order to engage students so that they are successful in their education and also into adulthood. All students, staff, and teachers must have opportunities to become more culturally aware, sensitive, and responsive to Indigenous cultural beliefs such as the history and traditions of the Coast Salish peoples whose territory we are privileged to live upon. I would also like to acknowledge the importance that education is a social determinant of health. Like health, education has its own determinants that we must consider in order to have successful students in our school system graduating and maturing into adulthood, both thriving and successful.

It has been said that we are not the problem, however; Indigenous people are the solutions to the problems that exist today. Many of these problems are the residual effects of colonization and the systemic racism and discrimination that many continue to endure on a daily basis, from the school yards to the bus stops and beyond. By not having strong Indigenous people in municipal government no one has been advocating directly on our behalf. Our voices have been muffled and silenced in many cases either through policy or through practise.

Because we are not at the table there is no level playing field—there is limited cultural sensitivity and cultural awareness among the members of the municipal government. As a result there is no cultural safety in the education system and generations of Indigenous people have not been successfully graduating from high school and into careers, thereby obtaining their rightful place in society as law makers, visionaries, and contributors to the municipal government.

An example of Indigenous input in local government was my idea to have an Aboriginal choice school for students in grades 8-plus, in 2011. I later learned that this was discussed way back in 1995 with no progress since. As a concerned parent, I discussed this need with the Vision team and they began implementing community forums with parents and students. I attended each forum as a concerned parent and later was told that a steering committee would be struck to come up with recommendations. As it was I who brought the idea to the attention of the Vision team, I requested to be on the steering committee, only to be told that I could not be on the steering committee for the very idea that I had generated. I was told that I needed to be a member of the District Parent Advisory Committee, even though I was the cochair of the local parent advisory committee at Vancouver Technical secondary school. In order to follow-up with my idea for the Aboriginal school and advocate for students’ higher graduation rates, I then became a DPAC member in 2012.

Since I have been a District Parent Advisory Council member, Indigenous graduation rates have risen by 11 percent but we still have a long, long way to go to bring the rates up to par with the rest of the population. There is still no Aboriginal choice school for students in high school and I was told that there is no political will to have an Aboriginal high school. The VSB choose to have an Aboriginal caucus as part of the steering committee which I was not able to be a part of, although I had requested several times. After sometime the Aboriginal caucus decided to have a K-3 class and implemented one at Macdonald school. They have not reconsidered an Aboriginal school for higher grades to this date, although I continue to advocate for such as a District Parent Advisory Council executive member at many of the VSB committee meetings I do attend.

Given that 50 percent of the Indigenous population is under the age of 25 and it’s the fastest growing population, we have the highest rate of everything that is negative, due to colonization, systemic racism, and discrimination. In the last year, 251 Indigenous youth were placed in alternative programs in the VSB system. I find this number rather high, and also an indication that the current system is not actively engaging and fully supporting Indigenous youth. Another alarming statistic is that Indigenous youth in Grade 12 self report being nearly six times more likely to be bullied than mainstream—a figure that has doubled from the prior year.

Indigenous people carry answers to solutions that affect us individually and in turn affect the greater community at large. It is apparent that the City of Vancouver does not have the political will to seriously address and find solutions to issues affecting a large proportion of Indigenous people such as graduation rates, homelessness, poverty, discrimination, and mental health issues. Most politicians are so far removed from Indigenous people, and have no awareness or background of the historical negative impacts that Indigenous people have survived through and I would be in a position to bring this knowledge forward if elected.

In terms of policies, I would like the school board to have a review of the current anti-racism policy in place and have it upheld—including the removal of any and all textbooks from the VSB curriculum that contain racial slurs in them. I would also have mandatory training for all staff from janitors, principals, and superintendents and also all students on anti-racism and anti-bullying training. There are many programs that do exist already such as UBC online mandatory training for students and staff.

I would also like to see that all children in ministry care are also provided the necessary supports that they require in order to succeed. There are some policies around their care but I believe they could be improved to include an education plan for each child in care. I would also like to see multicultural workers and English second language supports in place upheld to support our vulnerable students who need these services. In addition the anti-racism worker must be restored to a full-time position to ensure all students are supported and respected. I would also like to see the Aboriginal Education Enhancement Agreement to have targets, outcomes, and indicators in place to ensure they are fully supporting the success of the students.

In closing, the B.C. Confederation of Parent Advisory Councils passed five resolutions last spring at their AGM which had to do with Indigenous people—teaching of residential schools history and developing and implementing age appropriate curriculum. I would support this resolution as a VSB trustee, to ensure that all schools in Vancouver are culturally aware, sensitive, and able to provide environments that are culturally safe—not only for Aboriginal students but for the many cultures that exist within Vancouver. Everyone must be respected and be respectful of one another without humiliation or degradation to ensure acceptance of all human beings.

As a single parent of two amazing teenagers, and working full-time as a leader in Aboriginal health with Vancouver Coastal Health, as well as a community volunteer for education, I would like for you to vote for me as a member of the Vancouver school board to ensure the success of some of the most vulnerable students in our school system and also to advocate and defend the public school system from further ministry cuts.

Thank you so much, and remember to vote for Day on voting day.

Nia:wen.