Dr. Angela Jaime appointed vice-provost, Indigenous engagement

Dr. Angela M. Jaime (PhD) has been appointed to the role of vice-provost, Indigenous engagement at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) for a five-year term, effective Dec. 1, 2023, to Nov. 30, 2028.

Dr. Jaime said taking on the senior leadership role at USask is a way to “pay it forward” and honour the people who have supported and lifted her up throughout her career.

“It’s now my responsibility and honour to lift up other Indigenous folks, and to pave the way so that this next generation of Indigenous leaders don’t have to fight the same battles,” she said.

Dr. Jaime’s appointment was approved by the USask Board of Governors on Dec. 12. Reporting to the provost and vice-president academic, the vice-provost, Indigenous engagement works with Indigenous and non-Indigenous stakeholders on and off campus to support USask’s academic mission, intersecting with areas such as governance, teaching, learning, and student experience, and research.

The vice-provost, Indigenous engagement also provides guidance and leadership to students, faculty, administrators, and staff as the campus community engages in Indigenization and reconciliation initiatives as identified through the university’s Mission, Vision, and Values, the University Plan 2025, and ohpahotân | oohpaahotaan “Let’s Fly Up Together”—the first Indigenous Strategy solely created by Indigenous people at a Canadian U15 research institution.

Dr. Jaime is already familiar with the role, after previously being appointed interim vice-provost, Indigenous engagement on Sept. 1, 2021. Prior to that, she held the position of vice-dean Indigenous and full professor in USask’s College of Arts and Science, from July 1, 2020, to Aug. 31, 2021. She teaches and consults in the areas of Indigenous membership/citizenship, equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI), anti-racism/anti-oppression, and social justice. Her areas of research include Indigenous women and their experiences in higher education, Indigenous education, and the experiences of Indigenous and students of colour in post-secondary education.

“We are so pleased to welcome Dr. Jaime to the role of vice-provost, Indigenous engagement,” said Professor Airini, USask’s provost and vice-president academic. “Dr. Jaime contributed significantly to USask during her time as interim vice-provost, Indigenous engagement. Under her leadership, the deybwewin | taapwaywin | tapwewin: Indigenous Truth policy and implementation plan were realized. USask is committed to safeguarding the cultures and integrity of Indigenous Peoples, Indigenous values, and Indigenous languages within the university, and the deybwewin | taapwaywin | tapwewin: Indigenous Truth policy provides a framework for the implementation of Indigenous membership/citizenship verification with documentation. Dr. Jaime and her team members engage the campus community through ohpahotân | oohpaahotaan: USask’s Indigenous Strategy.”

Dr. Jaime is an enrolled member of the Pit River Tribe of northern California. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree at California State University, Sacramento in 1995; her Master of Arts degree at San Francisco State University in 1997; and her PhD in curriculum and instruction at Purdue University in 2005. Her doctoral dissertation was titled Narrated portraits: Native American women in academia. She held several academic and leadership positions at the University of Wyoming in Laramie, Wyoming, before to moving to Canada and coming to USask, including as the director of Native American & Indigenous Studies and as the associate director of the School of Culture, Gender, and Social Justice.

At USask, Dr. Jaime has chaired committees such as the Mistatimōk Committee, the deybwewin | taapwaywin | tapwewin Standing Committee, and the Course Action Committee for the College of Arts and Science. She is also a member of the Planning and Priorities Committee, the Senior Leadership Forum, the Administrative Services Renewal (ASR) Steering Committee, the Indigenous Research Centre Advisory Committee, and many others, including off-campus committees and groups such as the National Indigenous University Senior Leaders’ Association and the Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two Spirit Advisory Circle of the Saskatoon Police Service.

Looking back on her time as interim vice-provost, Indigenous engagement, what stands out for Dr. Jaime is the teamwork that has taken place in the Office of the Vice-Provost Indigenous Engagement.

“We have an amazing team here of individuals who, every day, are doing as much as they possibly can to ensure Indigenous student success, safety and renewal, and all of the commitments from ohpahotân | oohpaahotaan are implemented,” she said. “In that way, it makes me really proud. It makes this job a lot easier when you have a team that is always thinking two steps ahead and is engaged in the work.”

Dr. Jaime said Indigenous students, faculty, and staff at USask “have been so amazing to work with,” and she also appreciates the support her office has received from non-Indigenous allies across campus.

Everyone has a role to play as the Indigenous Strategy is implemented at USask, ensuring the university is a place where decolonization, reconciliation, and Indigenization are valued and realized.

“It’s about navigating and finding a way forward with the right people at the table that can make lasting, systemic change,” Dr. Jaime said.