Innu grandmothers are heading into the classroom after completing teacher assistant program
Elders in Sheshatshiu and Natuashish are among the 11 Innu women heading into the classroom this fall, after graduating from Nipissing University's Indigenous teacher assistant diploma program.
Julianna Rich began the program as a great-grandmother at 60.
She said she had always wanted to continue her education, but grew up in foster care, began losing her language and stopped attending school in Grade 10.
"I lost a lot of my own language," said Rich, describing the early years of school. "But I'm still willing to go for it because I'm here for the Innu here in school."
Rich lost her 26-year-old daughter to an overdose in 2023. There were times when she wanted to give up, she said, but added she was inspired by the other women in the program and the memory of her daughter to continue.
"Here I am. I can't believe I'm done. I'm doing this for my daughter," Rich said.
Julianna Rich and her niece Seraphine Rich have graduated from Nipissing University's Indigenous Teacher Assistant Program. Seraphine hopes to continue her education at McGill University and both hope to inspire others to chase their dreams. (Heidi Atter/CBC)
Rich wants other mothers, grandmothers and great-grandmothers to know they are not alone, and they can continue chasing their dreams even after losing someone.
Even still, Rich said she was nervous about starting a course at 60, but said she believed she needed to do it support the children in her community. During the course she spent time in a number of different classrooms, getting to teach many of the kids.
"I feel good, it makes me like grow because they're still young. [It] gives me strength," Rich said.
Rich said she dreams of going to university to continue her education, but said it's not quite possible with bills. She hopes her journey may inspire young and older people alike to seek higher education.
Reflecting children's cultures in school
It's important to have more Innu in the classroom for the young students, said Kanani Davis, the regional education agreement co-ordinator with Mamu Tshishkutamashutau Innu Education.
"Many of us would like to see ourselves, little children seeing themselves in a bigger role, an important role in the school," Davis said.
"This is your environment, you're working with your children, your family's children," she said. "It's a really important role in the school."
WATCH | Bernadette Piwas on what it means to teach her culture:
The program is a partnership with Nipissing University in North Bay, Ont. The graduates this spring were the final cohort. Mamu Tshishkutamashutau Innu Education is creating a new program in partnership with McGill University in Montreal.
Bernadette Piwas is one of the four graduates from Natuashish. The grandmother hopes to inspire Innu children to learn about their culture by sharing her own personal experience of growing up living in a tent and the Innu legends her father told her as a child.
"I want to let them know that you can survive in the hardest, coldest weather," Piwas said.
Dozens of family and supporters came out to celebrate the Indigenous teacher assistant program graduates. Kanani Davis says it's important for children to see themselves reflected in their education. (Heidi Atter/CBC)
Piwas was taught as a child how to read the weather by the birds, the sun and by snowflakes. Today, children don't know how to harvest from the land and treat animals with respect, and don't fluently speak their language, she said.
"All the students are speaking English and I'm so, so sad that they're going to lose our language. And some of the words right now aren't used, and they're completely forgotten now," Piwas said.
Dozens of family members and supporters came to a graduation celebration of the four teacher assistants in Natuashish on June 17, 2024. The four graduates received their diplomas before cutting a large cake. (Heidi Atter/CBC)
Piwas wants to be part of the change. Beyond sharing her culture, she said she hopes to inspire others to follow their education dreams, no matter their age or the challenges. During the program, Piwas someone close to her died by suicide and she also lost her brother. She found out while in the program.
"But I kept on going," Piwas said. "I got 12 grand kids and I want to show them, even if you don't believe in yourself, you got to. It comes from your heart. You got to do it."
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