WELLNESS ARTIST

Scrolling through my feed on LinkedIn, as I do on

a regular basis, I get to see the incredible accomplishments and happenings of colleagues and friends from around the globe. During the spring, likely while we were all still on lockdown, I saw a wonderful announcement that made me smile ear to ear. I came across a notification from Dr. Judith Sayers, President of the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council, that Vancouver Island University was appointing her as Chancellor of VIU in 2020.

WELLNESS ARTIST DR JUDITH SAYERS

KEALY DONALDSON

Sayers noted how surprised and excited she was to receive this special recognition and honourary position; her family supported the opportunity and she was ready and open to new experiences.

Since 2017, Sayers has been the President for Nuuchah-nulth Tribal Council, which is comprised of 14 First Nations representing approximately 10,000 indigenous peoples. Sayers has a great deal of experience to share through her new appointment at VIU, which has been gained through the governance of her people and the roles she has held, from Adjunct Professor to Vice Chair in Law and Indigenous Studies to Legislative Chief of the Hupacasath First Nation; she also practices Law in both British Columbia and Alberta.

Sayers is looking forward to playing a big role at VIU and wants to focus on innovative learning methods, anti-racism and the overall student ‘university’ experience. Through her own educational journey in Indigenous Law, she reflects on her time as a new lawyer and knows there is more to build upon through practicality in academia. “It brings an opportunity to create a more pleasurable and grounding experience for students,” Sayers says. “With VIU as a destination for North and Central Vancouver Island students, we know that different teaching formats need to be implemented to make education a relevant experience for all. As a professor, we are not always able to see the level of our engagement with online learning. Half the battle is connecting the idea or theory you are presenting. I look to my students’ eyes and body language for feedback on their understanding of my lectures.” She has a vision for her three-year term, especially as she winds down with one more year on her Presidency term with Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council.

With the inclusiveness transformation that we are seeing in education today, and Indigeni-

zation of universities and post secondary institutions, a balance is coming closer to a better representation of the student body as a whole. “I see the transformation as a pathway with communication and strong educational teams being a part of this change," she says. "When we review the impacts of First Nation colonization, it is important that this inclusiveness is taught with a solid understanding of what systemic racism is.

Examples of this are seen daily in social work through Indigenous Law in our Justice System. How do we introduce change through education and students? By using traditional stories and oral teachings which transpose different systems for governance; there are many ways of creating acceptance under new standards or historic teachings."

Sayers and her daughter set precedent by changing an accepted academic standard through her daughter’s law-based comps research. At that time, there was no indigenous literature on the academic reading list which hosted over 100 English-based books. It was a fight for change but in the end, they won with a new added list of 60+ Indigenous authors. “We have to create acceptance and lead by example” noted Sayers.

When looking to the future, Sayers will continue to advocate for the rights and futures of Indigenous communities and people and assist in developing additional ways for Indigenous Nation-to-Nation governance.