Kirsten Larsen
Northern News Services

NNSL (Mar 24/99) - Thirty years ago, Aurora College in Yellowknife started up a program which, today, plays an integral role in increasing the number of aboriginal educators and role models in the North.

The 30th anniversary of Aurora College's Teacher Education program was celebrated in the Great Hall of the legislative assembly on Monday. Celebrations included honouring the program and the 400 Northerners who have graduated from the program over the years.

Among the list of approximately 40 graduates who were honoured during the ceremony for their continuous contribution to education in the North were individuals such as Western Arctic MP Ethel Blondin-Andrew.

Others who were honoured as role models include Sarah Jerome, Margaret Field, Kiatch Nahanni and Peter Silastiak -- members of the first graduating class of 1969.

Charles Dent, minister of Education, Culture and Employment said the program has produced graduates who have gone on to make significant contributions to the benefit of Northern students.

About 400 teachers have graduated from the program and 18 are currently instructors at Aurora College and Nunavut Arctic College.

Dent said although most of the graduates stay in the North, many of them do not stay in the teaching profession, which Dent said is something that has to change in order to increase the number of aboriginal teachers in the North.

"An overwhelming majority stay but how many remain teaching is a different story," admitted Dent.

"Many like Ethel Blondin go on, and you see people in government positions who were graduates."

Former education minister Stephen Kakfwi, who's now minister of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development, set a goal to have 50 per cent aboriginal teachers employed in the North by the year 2000 -- a goal Dent admits won't be reached.

"It was an ambitious goal and we should be ambitious, but it proved to be something we couldn't stick to," said Dent.

"I announced last year that it could not be done. But we already have, today in four regions, over 35 per cent (aboriginal teachers). Some of the other regions are not far behind with 25 per cent (aboriginal teachers)."

Dent said that expanding teacher education programs into the regions has helped increase the number of aboriginal teachers, but more has to be done, and soon.

"There is a new emphasis on having more teacher education programs and we are redoubling our efforts," said Dent.

"We need to get more (teacher education) programs (in the communities) soon. They are only offered in the larger centres so people have to go there for the programs. We didn't start the community programs until the '90s and so far the programs are offered in every region.

"We are going to increase and enhance teacher education programs. We are looking at how we can attract and keep them (teachers) in the profession."

The new goal is to have 50 per cent aboriginal teachers in the North by the year 2003. Dent said that percentage is based on the average number of aboriginal students in the North, but that the number of aboriginal teachers who would be at individual schools would reflect the aboriginal student population in the region.

"That would have to be representative of the student population, so if a region had 60 per cent aboriginal students they would have 60 per cent aboriginal teachers."