Practical side of learning
Students off to excellent start in Niqitsialiurniq program
Darrell Greer
Northern News Services
Wednesday, June 15, 2016
RANKIN INLET
A new program combining cooking skills and literacy is having a positive impact on the community of Rankin Inlet.
The modern world meets the learning of traditional skills as food preparation chef instructor Kelly Lindell and students Charmaine Okatsiak, Lena Siutinuar and Qutik Kaludjak, sitting clockwise from left, work to make pipsi as elder instructor Rosemary Sandy makes a call on a cellphone in Rankin Inlet this past week. - Darrell Greer/NNSL photo
Angela Panika, left, and elder instructor Quluaq Pilakapsi get everything there is to get from caribou parts during an outdoor session of the Niqitsialiurniq food preparation program in Rankin Inlet this past week. - Darrell Greer/NNSL photo |
Niqitsialiurniq: A food prep program, sponsored by the Nunavut Literacy Program, began on May 11 and will run until Aug. 26.
The program was behind the launch of a community soup kitchen earlier this month.
Chef instructor Kelly Lindell said program organizers hope the soup kitchen will carry on after the program.
She said the soup kitchen, being viewed as a pilot project, received funding help from the hamlet of Rankin Inlet.
"We're going to put together a complete report on the soup kitchen," said Lindell.
"It will include how it helped, how many families came, what we served, how much it cost and things of that nature.
"We'll pass the information onto the hamlet and, maybe, it will result in something happening further on.
"Right now it's kind of a combined pilot, information-gathering project."
The soup kitchens are being held at the learning centre on Thursdays between noon and 1 p.m.
The 12 students in the Niqitsialiurniq program were also slated to begin elder afternoons with tea and baked goods this past week.
They also worked on 15 caribou, gaining traditional knowledge on how to properly prepare and dry the meat.
Lindell said the group also worked outside on caribou heads this past week, and invited anyone interested to join them.
She said she's handling instruction duties on modern cooking, elders Rosemary Sandy and Quluaq Pilakapsi are teaching traditional food preparation, and she and her sister, Adriana Kusugak, are teaching the program's literacy component.
"The program was offered to anyone, but priority was given to applicants who were out of work and school.
"After the program is completed, we want to see these students take another step forward in their lives by either entering the workforce, or returning to school to upgrade their education.
"A pre-apprentice cook program is being offered by Nunavut Arctic College this coming fall, which, hopefully, some of our students might consider enroling in.
"We'd also like to see some of them take a cooking position within the community, maybe at a day care, a restaurant, the healing facility or the mine."
Lindell said the students are doing excellent, one month into the program.
She said they may have even surprised themselves with how much skill and knowledge they had all ready.
"They've been really busy in the program, and they're seeing how much effort and physical work food preparation, either modern or traditional, really takes.
"It's been a real eye-opener for them to see how much work goes into some things we take for granted.
"Niqitsialiurniq is following the same ideas as the Miqqut program in that they're doing hand's-on work, learning both traditional and modern skills, and benefiting from literacy being embedded into the program.
"With all the practical work, they're actually doing what they're learning, not just sitting in a classroom reading a text book."
