UNIVERSITY OF SASKATCHEWAN
Creating safe and accountable spaces for USask's Indigenous students

Hosting the ohpahotân | oohpaahotaan spring symposium, marking Red Dress Day on campus, and managing a national conference centered on Indigenous citizenship and membership has required an all-hands-on deck approach with the OVPIE team.

"Every single person from our office had something to do with every project," said Trenna Vanghel, project manager, student experience, and one of the many team members who made the events possible.

From left to right: OVPIE team members Chantelle Fleury, Amaranta Sokol, Trenna Vanghel, and Nahanni Olson. (Photo: Vanessa Hyggen)

"The shared responsibility not only helps to hold us all accountable, but it keeps us feeling like a team," said Vanghel. "We all have a fingerprint on all of our initiatives and there's something really lovely about that."

A graduate of the University of Regina's SUNTEP program, Vanghel is a former elementary school teacher and an educator at heart.

"I love teaching. I love education," said Vanghel. "What I enjoyed the most about teaching was taking students who felt like they didn't have a place in school and help create that for them."

"I see what our office is doing, we're trying to make that a reality here at USask, too."

That starts with creating connections and pathways to post-secondary for Indigenous youth.

Experiences that aren't as well known as OVPIE's spring events include programs like the Building Intercultural Resilience Mentorship (BIRM) program which connects Indigenous high school students with USask students. The Indigenous Summer Institute also offers Indigenous high school students the opportunity to experience university life by spending a week on campus, sleeping in dorms, eating at Marquis Hall, and visiting different colleges.

"It's always about creating safe and accountable spaces," said Vanghel.

Another way OVPIE drives to achieve it is by uplifting Indigenous student leadership on campus.

"There's a few different Indigenous student leadership groups on campus," said Vanghel. "A lot of them are doing similar things without enough resources."

By creating an Indigenous leadership community, OVPIE endeavours to bring them together and create a network of Indigenous leadership on campus. Although this program is in its infancy, Vanghel has high hopes for what can be accomplished.

"We'd like to help them meet their goals," said Vanghel, "and provide training and support."

The importance of the work being done in OVPIE is not lost on the team, but they strive for balance in all that they do.

"We enjoy our jobs and enjoy coming to work," said Vanghel. "Our office is a really safe space where we all feel valued and heard. The team dynamic is really fantastic, we hold each other accountable, but we also laugh a lot."

It's also fair to say that no project is bigger than another.

"Of all the initiatives we've undertaken, everybody has invested interest, care, and love for each project," she said. "Even if it's not something we're leading, we see the importance and come together as a team."