Verna Kirkness facts for kids

Verna Jane Kirkness, CM OM was born in 1935 in the Fisher River Cree Nation in Manitoba, Canada. She is a respected Cree scholar and a strong supporter of Indigenous languages, cultures, and education. For over 50 years, she has greatly influenced how Indigenous education is handled in Canada.

Verna Kirkness is now an associate professor emeritus at the University of British Columbia. She lives in Winnipeg. She has received many awards for her important work, including the Order of Canada in 1998. Her work has truly shaped Indigenous education in Canada. She has also written many books and articles about the history of Indigenous education. The University of Manitoba even started a program in her honor in 2009. It is called the Verna J. Kirkness Science and Engineering Education Program.

Early Life and School

Verna Kirkness grew up in the Fisher River Cree Nation. In the 1950s, she went to a private high school. This school was about 160 kilometers away from her home. The Women's Missionary Society of Canada helped pay for her schooling.

Becoming an Educator

Verna Kirkness earned her Teaching Certificate in 1959. She then started her career teaching in a residential school. Later, she taught elementary school in Manitoba's public school system. She also worked as a principal in First Nations schools.

From 1967 to 1970, she was a special consultant for the Manitoba Department of Education. She also supervised elementary schools. During this time, she started a new program. It taught students in the Cree and Ojibwa languages. This program was launched in several schools across Manitoba.

Working for Indigenous Rights

In the early 1970s, Verna Kirkness became the first education director for the Manitoba Indian Brotherhood. This group is now known as the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs. She then worked for the National Indian Brotherhood. In these roles, she helped create two very important documents. These were "Wahbung: Our Tomorrows" (1971) and "Indian Control of Indian Education" (1972). These documents have guided First Nations education in Canada for over 40 years.

Wahbung: Our Tomorrows Document

Verna Kirkness helped create the "Wahbung: Our Tomorrows" paper in 1971. This paper was written by the Manitoba Indian Brotherhood. It was against a plan by Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau. His plan, called the 1969 White Paper, wanted to get rid of the Indian Act.

The government at the time thought the Indian Act was unfair. They wanted to end the special legal relationship between Aboriginal peoples and the Canadian government. They believed this would create equality for everyone. Many Aboriginal leaders, including the Manitoba Indian Brotherhood, disagreed. Because of their strong opposition, the government stopped the White Paper plan in 1970.

National Indian Brotherhood's Impact

Verna Kirkness also helped develop the "Indian Control of Indian Education" policy in 1972. This was the first national policy ever written about Indian education. The Chiefs of the National Indian Brotherhood approved it. They then presented it to Jean Chrétien. He was the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development at the time. This happened on December 21, 1972.

Work at University of British Columbia

In 1981, Verna Kirkness joined the University of British Columbia. She became the director of the Native teacher education program. She worked hard to create new programs and support services for Aboriginal students. She also helped with cultural enrichment. She led the Native Teacher Education Program (NITEP). She also started the Ts’kel Graduate Program.

In 1985, Kirkness became the first director of UBC's First Nations House of Learning. She was also key in planning and building the First Nations Longhouse. This important building opened on the campus in 1993.

Supporting Indigenous Languages

Verna Kirkness also inspired the creation of the Canadian Indigenous Languages and Literacy Development Institute (CILLDI). This institute was founded in 1999. It is an intense summer school for people who care about Indigenous languages. It helps language activists, speakers, linguists, and teachers. It is held at the University of Alberta in Edmonton.

In 2008, Priscilla Settee spoke at the United Nations. She explained how Cree scholars like Dr. Freda Ahenakew and Dr. Verna Kirkness helped inspire CILLDI.

Awards and Special Honors

Verna Kirkness has received many awards for her amazing work. Some of these include:

• The Outstanding Educator of British Columbia award (1990)
• The Golden Eagle Feather Award from the Professional Native Women's Association
• The Canadian Youth Education Excellence Prize as Canada's Educator of the Year
• The Aboriginal Achievement Award (1994)
• The Order of Canada (1998)
• The Order of Manitoba (2007)
• The Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal (2003)

She has also received honorary degrees from several universities. These include UBC (1994), University of Western Ontario (1992), Mount St. Vincent (1990), and the University of Manitoba (2008).

In 2009, the Verna J. Kirkness Science and Engineering Education Program was started. It is at the University of Manitoba. Its goal is to help more First Nations, Métis, and Inuit students graduate from science and engineering programs in Canada. This program has now grown to include other universities across Canada.

Importance of Language

Verna Kirkness believes that language is very important for a person's identity. She says that Indigenous people can keep their identity better if governments support Indigenous languages. She feels this support should be similar to how the French language is supported.

"Language is the main way that culture is gathered, shared, and passed down from one generation to the next. Language shows how unique a group's way of seeing the world is."

In her 2007 doctoral paper, Patricia Settee named Kirkness as a key person in new ideas about language. She said Kirkness, along with Cree scholar Dr. Freda Ahenakew, helped create new ways of thinking about language, culture, and politics. These new ideas included Indigenous ways of seeing the world and using storytelling.