Northern connections
MRU and Łutsel K'é Dene First Nation sign practicum agreement
— Mount Royal University | Posted: October 10, 2023
Chief James Marlowe and Stephen Price PhD, dean of the Faculty of Health Community and Education, make the practicum agreement official at a signing ceremony at MRU.
Mount Royal University has a new connection to the Northwest Territories.
MRU and the Łutsel K'é Dene First Nation have signed a practicum agreement that will enable students from Mount Royal’s Faculty of Health, Community and Education gain valuable experience working with the Nation, helping to support their recreation needs.
Łutsel K'é is a fly-in community on the eastern arm of Great Slave Lake.
Chief James Marlowe’s first connection to MRU came long before the practicum agreement as his daughter Veronica Marlowe is an alumna who graduated in 2019 with a diploma in Social Work.
At that point he hadn’t yet been elected as chief, however he began thinking of ways in which post-secondary institutions could share their knowledge with the Łutsel K'é First Nation.
“Before I was chief I was thinking about ways to improve programs here. To do that you need funding and expertise. That’s when I thought about students in university who are doing practicums.”
He explains that Łutsel K'é has hosted graduate students completing their masters and PhDs, but he wanted to also involve undergraduate students who need and want hands-on experience as part of their education requirements.
In early 2023, Chief Marlowe approached MRU about hosting practicum students with the explicit purpose of having them involved in creating, designing and setting up recreation programs for the community.
Chief Marlowe invited faculty members to visit LutselK’e so they might see for themselves the opportunities the community might offer. Dr. Julie Booke and Dr. Maggie Quance visited Yellowknife and LutselK’e in mid June, and witnessed the summer solstice sun briefly dipping beneath the horizon. Julie and Maggie visited throughout this warm and welcoming community and determined that at this time, the HPED practicums would be the most appropriate. This does not preclude other programs from considering practicum placements.
After a site visit over the summer, MRU and Łutsel K'é have come to a five-year agreement that will see students from the Faculty of Health, Community and Education have the option to take on practicum placements within the Nation.
The agreement was formally signed on Sept. 30, 2023, Canada’s National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
Chief Marlowe, along with Łutsel K'é councillors Mervin Abel and Charlie Catholique, were welcomed to campus, and while it was not the Chief’s first visit, it was a meaningful one.
Epsom tah (Helper) Elder Roy Bear Chief greeted the delegation and offered a prayer before an official signing ceremony took place where Chief Marlowe and Dean Stephen Price made the agreement official. The ceremony involved various health, community and education faculty members and Provost and Vice-President, Academic, Dr. Chad London, PhD.
Bear Chief explained the teachings of Ani to pisi (spiderweb) to the Łutsel K'é delegation as it is a central part of the Health, Community and Education Strategic Plan.
He said with this new partnership, Mount Royal and Łutsel K'é now have an Ani to pisi strand connecting the two communities.
From left to right: Stephen Price PhD, Dean of the Faculty of Health Community and Education; Lori Kearney, Indigenous Work Experience Coordinator, Career Services; Epsoom tah Elder Roy Bear Chief; Łutsel K'é Chief James Marlowe; Łutsel K'é Councillor Mervin Abel; Chad London, PhD, Provost and VP Acadamic; Łutsel K'é Councillor Charlie Catholique; Maggie Quance PhD, RN, Associate Dean for Research and Scholarship for the Faculty of Health, Community and Education; Julie Booke, PhD, Program Coordinator, Sport and Recreation Management.
Chief Marlowe says the hope is that students who choose to take on a practicum in Łutsel K'é can work on programming for youth centered around sports and leisure.
“You have to focus on young people to create a positive future. I think with this partnership we will see beneficial results for our community.”
The partnership is mutually beneficial as students will have the unique opportunity to learn about and be welcomed into one of Canada’s most remote Indigenous communities.
Łutsel K'é and its people are still very traditional, as the community has preserved their language and culture, meaning practicum students will be able to take part in traditional activities and experience the Łutsel K'é way of living.
“It is isolated and is still very traditional. We still have wildlife, water, fish and birds that roam. Our area hasn’t been touched by industry as you see in other places.”
It’s also home to Canada’s newest national park, the Thaidene Nene National Park Reserve.
Chief Marlowe notes the students will become embedded in the community rather quickly.
“Although we lack accommodations in the community, we have decided to allocate one staff unit that has three bedrooms as well as a kitchen and bathroom for students to stay in.”
The signing of the agreement is an important first step in MRU’s relationship with the Łutsel K'é Dene First Nation. Further work is being done to see what other practicum opportunities might be available in the Łutsel K'é community for students in other programs within the faculty such as social work and child studies.
“We are thrilled to sign this agreement with Łutsel K'é Dene First Nation as it will benefit our students and their people,” said Dr. Stephen Price, PhD, dean of the Faculty of Health, Community and Education.
“In addition to having the opportunity for our students to travel to and learn from the Łutsel K'é Nation, our Faculty is wanting to learn about their history, customs and traditions and teach that as part of our Indigenization curriculum for all students. This is reconciliation in action.”