Gabriel Dumont Research Chair in Métis Studies and new graduate scholarships established at U of S

Both initiatives are part of a new five-year partnership agreement between the U of S and Gabriel Dumont Institute of Native Studies and Applied Research (GDI).

The Gabriel Dumont Chair in Métis Studies is a new chair position that will increase research and teaching capacity in Métis studies at the U of S and further develop academic engagement between the university and GDI.

“The Gabriel Dumont Research Chair in Métis Studies will help enhance our research and teaching capacity in Métis studies and the College of Arts and Science vision of ‘Research, learning, knowledge-keeping, reconciliation, and inclusion with and by Indigenous peoples and communities,’” said Peta Bonham-Smith, dean of the College of Arts and Science at the U of S.

GDI will contribute a total of $200,000 over five years to fund the new chair’s research initiatives, as well as $100,000 over five years to support new graduate student scholarships. That scholarship funding will be matched by the College of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies at the U of S, to create two annual awards of $20,000 each over the five-year term.

The search for the new Métis chair is expected to begin shortly, with a projected start date of January 2019. The first student scholarships are scheduled to be awarded during the 2018/19 academic year, with preference given to graduate students who self-identify as Métis.

“The new initiatives not only build on a long-standing relationship between our two organizations through Gabriel Dumont College and the Saskatchewan Urban Native Teacher Education Program, but they also create more opportunities for Métis students, increase Métis cultural engagement at Saskatchewan’s largest university, and enhance research collaboration between the College of Arts and Science and the Métis community,” said Earl Cook, Minister of Education for the Métis Nation–Saskatchewan and chair of the Gabriel Dumont Institute Board of Governors.

GDIwas incorporated in 1980 to serve the educational and cultural needs of Saskatchewan’s Métis community. Through partnerships with post-secondary institutions in Saskatchewan, GDI offers a variety of accredited educational, vocational, and skills-training opportunities to the Métis across Saskatchewan. 

Established in 1908, the College of Arts and Science is the largest and oldest college at the U of S. The college has an enrolment of more than 10,000 students. 

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