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Charting Our Own Path Forward in Education: COO Education Update – Overview of Activities ONECA Conference May 29, 2017
Charting Our Own Path
Forward in Education: COO Education Update – Overview of
Activities
ONECA Conference
May 29, 2017
CONTENTS
1. Charting Our Own Path Forward Initiative –
Background/Introduction
2. Provincial Activity
3. Federal/National Activity
4. Charting Our Own Path Forward Initiative –
Next Steps
Mandate Focus for COOPF
Initiative
• Resolution 12/12 – directs FNECU to work with First Nations to develop recommendations to the Chiefs in Assembly on systems and funding mechanisms
• Resolution 13/14 – directs scope of work for Unity in Education working group to build on previous activity on systems and funding
• Resolution 13/46 – provides context on First Nation position on our inherent jurisdiction over education
Activity to Date
• Environmental Scan
• Focus Group Sessions
• Education Officer Gatherings
• Large Gatherings – Symposiums, Summit
and Forum
• COO Website – Member’s Forum
E-Scan – Current System
Sources of LLL Funding Early Learning K-12 PSET
Health Canada
•AHSOR
•Prenatal Nutrition Prog
•FASD
•Maternal Child Health
•Children’s Oral Health
INAC
•Child Day Care
•FN&I Child Care
Ontario
•Aboriginal Healthy
Babies Healthy Children
•Aboriginal FASD and
Child Nutrition
INAC
•BOFF
•HCSEP
•New Paths
•EPP (SR)
•FNSSP
•Cultural Education
Centers
•Capital Facilities and
Maintenance Program
Ontario
•Indigenous Education
Grant (EDU - GSN)
•Reverse Tuition
Agreements
External
•MFI
INAC
•PSSSP
•PSPP
•FNIYES
Ontario
•Postsecondary
Education Fund for
Aboriginal Learners-
MAESD
•Ontario Student
Assistance Program
External
•Indspire
COOPF – Our Vision
This vision was developed as an outcome of
focus group sessions held early in 2014.
We are self-determining Indigenous Peoples, united and obligated to assert our jurisdiction over education by transmitting our life ways to our Peoples, as handed down by our ancestors and all of creation.
Our lifelong learning system is derived from our customs, traditions, languages, homelands, knowledge systems, learning ways and spirituality which provide the necessary tools to nurture and reinforce a strong sense of self identity to achieve our personal and collective aspirations and empower and support our communities and nations.
Where are we at?
• COOPF 2016 document
• Evergreen (living) document
– Provides context
– Embraces a spirit of unity, vision and organic
evolution
– Synthesizes collective input to date
– Ideas and options on systems and funding
utilizing the Support Circles Framework lens
Support Circles
Framework
First
Nation
Learner
1st Support Circle
Place of Learning
and Community
2nd Support Circle
Regional
Aggregate/Collective
3rd Support Circle
Independent Education Body
All circles are connected
and support the needs of
First Nation
Learners/Students
Outside
governments,
systems,
agencies and
organizations
4th Support Circle
Provincial Collective
This is the latest version of the ‘living’ Charting
Our Own Path Forward document. It provides a
synthesis of ideas generated since 2013 on the
development of recommendations to the Chiefs
in Assembly on education systems and funding
for First Nations in Ontario.
Options for an
Ontario-wide
Framework for First
Nations Education Further information at http://education.chiefs-of-
ontario.org/article/charting-our-own-path-forward-140.asp and
http://education.chiefs-of-ontario.org/article/coopf-186.asp
First
Nation
Learner
1st Support Circle
Place of Learning
and Community
2nd Support Circle
Regional
Aggregate/Collective
3rd Support Circle
Independent Education Body
All circles are connected
and support the needs of
First Nation
Learners/Students
Outside
governments,
systems,
agencies and
organizations
4th Support Circle
Provincial Collective
COOPF connection to
provincial education system
- Exclusive
- Competitive
- Linear
- Individualistic
- Hierarchical
- Progressive/Exploitive
- Domination
- Human-centered
- Detached
- Independent
- Inclusive
- Cooperative
- Circular
- Collective
- Egalitarian
- Harmony/balanced
- Co-existence
- Spirit-centered
- Interconnected
- Interrelated
Euro-western
Worldview
First Nation
Worldview
Unique needs of First Nation learners in the provincial
education system
First Nation Control of First
Nation Education Statements from First Nation Leadership in
Ontario from Resolutions:
“First Nations in Ontario retain jurisdiction over the education of our children regardless of residency and that this jurisdiction must be asserted in a unified manner as we continue to chart our own path forward in education”
“As Indigenous Peoples, we are obligated to assert jurisdiction over our life journey by transmitting our life ways to our Peoples, as handed down by our ancestors and all of creation.”
Numbers of Students Overall
• 2011 - Statistics Canada’s 55,185 First
Nations students in Ontario
• Federal government records - 14,000 First
Nations students attended school in First
Nations
HOW DO WE WORK TOGETHER
TO ENSURE THE UNIQUE NEEDS
OF FIRST NATION LEARNERS
ARE MET IN THE PROVINCIAL
EDUCATION SYSTEM?
PROVINCIAL ACTIVITY
1. First Nations Lifelong Learning Table
(FNLLT)
2. OSAP Transformation Project
3. AIC – Roadmap to Recognition
FIRST NATION LIFELONG LEARNING TABLE
JOINT 3-YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN
Background
• Since June 2015 the COO and the
province have been working on the co-
development of a strategy to address
issues and challenges related to the
education of First Nation learners in the
provincial education system.
• Result - Bilateral Process – the First
Nations Lifelong Learning Table (FNLLT)
FNLLT Structure
FNLLT - Three Year Strategic Plan
• Is designed to incorporate First Nations as
full partners in the design, development,
implementation and analysis, on a yearly
cycle, of the necessary tools, projects and
programs required to fully support First
Nation learners (lifelong learning) in the
provincial education system.
COO Mandates Covered 1. Resolution 94-40 Setting the Record Straight – A True Version of
Aboriginal History
2. Resolution 08-84 First Nation Provincial Relations – Education
3. Resolution 09-10 Advancing First Nation Education Perspectives
4. Resolution 12-18 Native Languages Programming in Schools Operated by Ontario: Ongoing Commitment to Funding and Maintaining Programs
5. Resolution 12-39 Reverse Tuition on Education
6. Resolution 13-15 Provincial First Nations Education Data and Ownership, Control, Access and Possession (OCAP) Principles
7. Resolution 16-15 First Nations Access to Data
8. Resolution 17-15 Advancing a Defined Political Relationship with the Ontario Premier and Cabinet through the Political Accord
9. Resolution 18-15 Immediate Action on Recommendations from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada
10. Resolution 10-15 Support for the Aboriginal Institutes Consortium Roadmap to Recognition for Aboriginal Institutes
Mutual Priorities
Overarching Priority: Partnership/Relationship Protocol
1. Relationships
2. Languages and Culture
3. Curriculum
4. Information, Access and Accountability
5. Policy Development
Overarching Priority:
Partnership/Relationship
Protocol Objective:
Create and maintain a living foundational
Partnership/Relationship Protocol that
will serve as a guide to collaborative
work and partnerships between First
Nations and the mainstream education
system
Relationships
2 Focus Areas – one Task Team:
School Board/Institution Relationships
Objective - Maintain existing and establish new
effective Board/Institution engagement
practices to enhance and develop strong
ongoing relationships
Community and Student Well-being
Objective - Creating a safe and inclusive
learning environment that is responsive to
the intercultural needs of all
Languages and Culture 3 Focus Areas – 3 Task Teams
1. Languages Strategy
• Objective - Development, implementation and
evaluation of a Languages Strategy that results in
increased access to quality Indigenous languages
programming for First Nation learners along the
lifelong learning continuum.
2. Indigenous Language Instructors Strategy
• Objective - Development, implementation and
evaluation of an Indigenous Language Instructors
Strategy
Languages and Culture cont’d Languages Resources (for year 2)
Objective - Ensure required and appropriate
Indigenous Languages resources are
available and accessible to support
Indigenous Language Instructors and
Indigenous Languages Programming along
the lifelong learning continuum.
Curriculum 2 Focus Areas – 1 Task Team
1. Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC): Calls to Action
– Objective - Alignment of activities to TRC Calls to Action number 62 related to mandatory age-appropriate (K-12) curriculum on residential schools, Treaties and First Nation peoples’ historical and contemporary contributions to Canada.
2. Curriculum Development and Implementation
– Objective - To ensure First Nation partnership throughout the entire curriculum cycle, associated documents, resources and training. Also to develop and implement effective information sharing practices related to curriculum development.
Information, Access and
Accountability 3 Focus Areas – 1 Task Team
1. Data Sharing and Management – Objective - Development of effective Data sharing
agreements and protocols at all levels over the lifelong learning continuum that maintains the principles of ownership, control, access and possession (OCAP)
2. Capacity Building – Objective - Ensure First Nations have the capacity to
access and utilize information as a means to improve education outcomes
3. Accountability – Objective - To ensure adequate accountability is
maintained for all activities and funding directed to support First Nation learners along the lifelong learning continuum.
Policy Development
3 Focus Areas – 1 Task Team
1. Classification of First Nation School – Objective - (K-12 specific) Collaborative exploration of the
possibility of creating a new classification for First Nation/federally operated schools to enhance collaboration between the provincially funded education system and First Nation schools to help build greater capacity (e.g. professional development and learning resources) in First Nation schools.
2. Languages Immersion Programs – Objective - Collaborative exploration of the possibility of
creating space for Indigenous Immersion Languages programming in First Nation/federally operated schools and the provincially funded education system
3. Education Service Agreements, Articulation Agreements and Student Funding
– Objective - To review the legislation and policies that guide the use of funding provision to support the needs of First Nation learners and make recommendations on improvements
Proposed Timeline Year 1
Feb 2017 Steering Committee meeting
Feb 2017 Begin Research Projects
April - May 2017 Hire Partnership Coordinators
June 2017 Establish Task Teams
Jan-Mar 2018 6 Smaller Gatherings
Monthly CPPC meetings
Monthly Task Team meetings (once established)
OSAP TRANSFORMATION
PROJECT
OSAP Transformation Project
• Joint collaboration between COO and the
province
• Purpose – to increase First Nation
understanding of and access to the
Ontario Student Assistance Program
• Steering Committee – meeting since early
January
Information Sharing
• Thunder Bay: Wednesday May 3rd
• Six Nations: Thursday May 11th
• Sudbury: Tuesday May 16th
• Kenora: Thursday May 18th
• Toronto: Wednesday May 24th - webinar
• Toronto: Sunday May 28th
Recent Announcement
• The Ministry of Advance Education and
Skills Development (MAESD) is waiving
the $3,000 student contribution
requirement for FN students.
• Discontinue the consideration of PSSSP
(federal support) as income.
– All will significantly increase access for FN
students to PSE.
Next Steps
• COO to continue to work with MAESD to
address any emerging issues related to
First Nation access to OSAP
• COO to continue to offer support to First
Nations in understanding how to access to
program and maximize use of federal and
provincial assistance available
AIC – ROADMAP TO
RECOGNITION
Budget 2017 and AIC
• Provincial Budget 2017 - significant increase
in funding for Aboriginal Institutes
• $56M over 3 years to enhance capacity and
sustainability of 9 publicly funded Aboriginal
institutes in Ontario
• COO continues to support the AIC as
requested
FEDERAL/NATIONAL ACTIVITY
1. National Joint Collaboration
2. Post-secondary Education
First
Nation
Learner
1st Support Circle
Place of Learning
and Community
2nd Support Circle
Regional
Aggregate/Collective
3rd Support Circle
Independent Education Body
All circles are connected
and support the needs of
First Nation
Learners/Students
Outside
governments,
systems,
agencies and
organizations
4th Support Circle
Provincial Collective
Connection to federal
government for funding
NATIONAL JOINT
COLLABORATION
Background
• The AFN Education Secretariat, CCOE and NIEC have been working with INAC since May 2016 to develop a collaborative and honourable process with regards to funding mechanisms for First Nations elementary and secondary education.
• The ToR was in response to direction from Chiefs-in-Assembly as outlined in several AFN Resolutions
SCOPE
JOINT COLLABORATION between the Assembly of
First Nations’ (AFN) Chiefs Committee on Education
(CCOE) and Canada as represented by Indigenous
and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC) to develop new
funding mechanisms for First Nations Education
that support First Nations development of a holistic,
culturally-responsive, high-quality education for
First Nation students (2016-2018)
Joint Collaboration ToR
Calls for the establishment of a Joint Working Committee (co-chaired by the two parties) and the immediate establishment of 5 national task teams:
1. FUNDING MECHANISMS
2. MEASUREMENT & MUTUAL ACCOUNTABILITY
3. EDUCATION STATUTORY FUNDING
4. EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION
5. POST-SECONDARY EDUCATION
Joint Working Committee
AFN Chiefs Committee on
Education
Funding Mechanisms
Measurement Mutual
Accountability
AFN National Indian Education
Council
Statutory Funding
Post Secondary Education
Early Childhood Education
COO Participation
• CCOE – Grand Chief Gord Peters – PC Education Portfolio
• NIEC – Julia Candlish – COO Director of Education
• Task Team representation – Postsecondary Education - Rebecca Jamieson
– Early Childhood Education - Yolanda Fobister
– Education Statutory Funding - Julia Candlish
– Education Funding Mechanisms - Dobi-Dawn Frenette
– Measurement and Mutual Accountability - Stephanie Roy
NATIONAL JOINT TASK TEAM –
POST-SECONDARY EDUCATION
Objective:
To provide a national forum to use and share technical expertise and knowledge of First Nations post-secondary education. The task team will make recommendations in regards to post-secondary education funding for both First Nations students and Indigenous Institutes of Higher Learning.
NATIONAL JOINT TASK TEAM –
EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION
Objective:
To provide a national forum to use and
share technical expertise and knowledge
of First Nations early childhood education.
The task team will prepare a summary
report.
NATIONAL JOINT TASK TEAM –
STATUTORY FUNDING
Objective:
To provide a national forum for jointly
discussing and exploring options on how
to establish a statutory/legal guarantee of
education funding for First Nations.
NATIONAL JOINT TASK TEAM –
FUNDING MECHANISMS
Objective:
To provide a national forum for jointly discussing
and elaborating options for regionally-based
fiscal frameworks and funding mechanisms for
First Nations K-12 education that would replace
current Indigenous Affairs and Northern
Development (INAC) funding methodologies.
NATIONAL JOINT TASK TEAM –
MEASUREMENT & MUTUAL
ACCOUNTABILITY
Objective:
To provide a national forum for jointly discussing
regional criteria to measure First Nations
student success and to demonstrate the need
for ongoing investment in First Nations
education in order to meet the needs of First
Nations students and overcome the education
outcome gap.
Two New Task Teams - 2017
• Northern and Remote First Nations
• Capital and Infrastructure
POST SECONDARY
EDUCATION
Federal Budget 2017
• Budget 2017 proposes to increase funding to
the Post-Secondary Student Support
Program by $90 million over two years,
beginning in 2017–18
• INAC is in the final stages of determining how
funding will flow to the regions
Federal Budget 2017 cont’d
• The Government will also undertake a
comprehensive and collaborative review with
Indigenous partners of all current federal
programs that support Indigenous students who
wish to pursue post-secondary education
• The AFN National Indian Education Council
(NIEC) and the AFN Chiefs Committee on
Education (CCOE) have proposed to Canada
that they lead the review for First Nations
CHARTING OUR OWN PATH
FORWARD INITIATIVE – NEXT
STEPS
Next Steps
• Missing element in current activity is support
for focused activity in the Ontario region on
systems and funding frameworks.
• Establishment of a Transfer Payment
Agreement to undertake a robust process in
the Ontario region is currently underway
COOPF 2017 Activity
Establish 9 task teams consistent with First Nation priorities
and loosely aligned with the National Joint Task Teams
1. Systems transformation – continue discussions and
refine the Support Circles Framework
2. Funding flow – to explore, analyze and make
recommendations on how education funding transfers
from Canada to First Nations could better support First
Nations control of First Nations lifelong learning
3. Funding levels – to explore the development of a
flexible funding formulae (plural) that could better
support the needs of First Nation learners and
communities
COOPF 2017 Activity cont’d
4. Infrastructure – to undertake an accurate account of current infrastructure and make recommendations on what is required over the next 10 years
5. Federal programs and funding K-12 – analysis of and recommendations for the allocation funding methodology for K-12 funding over the short term (2018/19, 19/20, 20/21)
6. Federal programs and funding PSE – analysis of and recommendations for the allocation funding methodology for PSE funding over the short term (2018/19) and into the future (this includes both PSSSP and PSPP)
COOPF 2017 Activity cont’d
7. Multi-year Agreements (Block – funded communities) – explore options on how additional funding committed in Budget 2016 and 2017 could be provided to these communities over the short term (2018/19, 19/20, 20/21)
8. Informal Lifelong Learning – analysis of programs and funding available and/or required to support lifelong learning outside of formal education programs
9. Remote/Isolated communities – to ensure the unique needs of remote and isolated are considered in the deliberations and activities of all task teams
COOPF 2017 Activity Timeline Monthly Task Team meetings
• May 2017 – June 2018
• Provide recommendations on systems and funding
Four 2-Day Gatherings
• Late September/early October 2017
• Input into the recommendations from Task Teams
Preliminary Position Paper
• By October 31, 2017
• Recommendations on systems and funding to inform Leadership discussions with INAC
Four 2-Day Gatherings
• April – May 2018
• Input into the recommendations from Task Teams
Final Position Paper
• June 2018
• Final recommendations to the Chiefs in Assembly for ratification
Nia:wen
Contact information:
Julia Candlish, Director of Education, Chiefs of Ontario
416 597-1266
COO Education Portal:
http://education.chiefs-of-ontario.org/
