From SḰEL,ḰEL , the University of Victoria Indigenous Education Newsletter, we’re pleased to reproduce Dr Onowa McIvor’s recognition of Charlotte Ross (re-posted here with permission). We’re pleased to offer our congratulations, too!
We raise our hands to PhD Candidate, Charlotte Ross, on being awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal
Congratulation to IED PhD candidate, Charlotte Ross! She was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal for her significant contribution to the province, awarded by the Lieutenant Governor and the Deputy Mayor of Saskatchewan.
Charlotte Ross is a registered member of the Montreal Lake Cree Nation, one of three Woodland Cree Nations in Saskatchewan but now makes her home in southwestern Saskatchewan. Being surrounded by the Woodland Cree language (TH dialect) from birth provided a foundation for her life and she lives with the teachings within, foundationally the principles of mitho-wahkotowin (having good relationships with all of our relatives).
Charlotte is a doctoral candidate in our department specializing in Indigenous Language Revitalization. Her research focuses on Cree adults who are ‘silent’ or latent speakers, exploring how best to meet their unique learning needs with their strong understanding of the Cree language but a limited, or no, speaking ability. Charlotte holds a graduate degree in Adult Continuing Education and an undergraduate with a specialization in Native Studies. In her professional life Charlotte provides consulting and training services to organizations and training institutions in the areas of First Nations history, treaty education, Indigenous language revitalization and organizational capacity training to support leadership, staff, and community members. She believes that our Indigenous histories and languages hold the answers to our current challenges and future growth.
In her ‘spare time’ (haha, fellow doctoral students), she loves to cook for her family and visit with friends and family on the phone. Her rejuvenation place is up north at her family’s traditional trapline where there is no electricity, no running water, sporadic internet and plenty of trees, paths, rivers, and lakes to get grounded. Charlotte is a mother, an aunty, a partner, and a grandmother. Her family roles are the most important and sacred relations in her life. Early this year Charlotte lost two very significant family members in close succession, her younger brother, and her niece, passing away just ten hours apart from one another. In her grief, Charlotte was able to offer the humble reminder that “each day is a gift, the ‘present’, that is to be treated with love and care as no one knows when our last day will be.” She always shows up to class, to our supervision group, and to our gatherings with gratitude, humility, good humour, great cooking(!) and grace. She has an infinite and infectious curiosity and enthusiasm for learning, that brings a bright light to all learning circles. We are so grateful for you Charlotte, as a member of our inaugural PhD cohort, our Department, our Faculty and UVic – kinanâskomitin.
Submitted by Dr. Onowa McIvor (Faculty member and Graduate Supervisor)
