Page 29 - 2024 October

GRANT PROGRAM COMMITTEE MINUTES (7)
Sherry and Christine were asked about the financial cost for students. The average cost is $27,000 for tuition and living expenses. Some bands (tribes in the US) provide financial assistance, but not all of them do. The proposed award of $10,000 per student will be renewable for 4 years. John noted that the bridging year funding must come from non-traditional sources because the participants are not yet considered full-time students. Another question came up about how much of a presence the engineering school has in the community, which could affect potential recruitment. Christine responded that the newly formed advisory council and Ulnooweg are serving as community liaisons. John added that Ulnooweg has 5 engineers on staff, and there are co-opopportunitieswithvariouswaterandwastewaterfacilitiesinFirstNationscommunities. The question of sustainability was also asked. Christine said that growing the program and increasing the visibility will lead to sustainability. Another question was about the disability aspect of the program. Sherry said discussions are happening about having support in place.
The presenters were asked about the racial makeup of the senior leadership at Dalhousie. Christine said the Chancellor is African Nova Scotian, and there is an Elders in Residence program. She added that Engineering is the first faculty to have a full-time person devoted to EDIA. Christine, Sherry and John then left the meeting.
During the discussion, it was noted that the goals were not spelled out well in the application, though there was more detail in the slide presentation. Also, there is some institutional commitment to the program that was previously discussed but is not well defined in the application. During the site visit, the JSF representatives noted that the Ulnooweg partners were present and seemed very supportive. Besides financial support, JSF’s role also can include networking, such as the recent connections JSF made between Dalhousie and AISES. A motion was made to approve the application with more detailed goals.
The Committee approved a grant to Dalhousie University for a 1:1 matching grant of $1,050,000 CAD over 5 years to provide 45 student scholarships to Indigenous and African Nova Scotians in the Faculty of Engineering. The award is contingent upon Dalhousie providing to JSF detailed goals for each year of the grant.
c. Potential new Entrepreneurship Scholarship schools
Rick had prepared reports on Sitting Bull College (SBC) and the University of Arizona (U of A), which had been circulated. SBC was in the Entrepreneurship Scholarship program from 1998 to 2004. The school has a good track record of producing business graduates, and it has new leadership that is interested in working with JSF. U of A has several support systems in place for Native students, including the Office of Native American Advancement and Tribal Engagement (NAATE) led by Levi Esquerra, who is well known to JSF. Rick’s only concern with the U of A is the small number of Native business students (24), but he sees potential for growth. A recommendation was made to conduct site visits at both schools, with updates to be provided to the Committee.
The Committee approved site visits by staff and consultants to Sitting Bull College and the University of Arizona to determine their eligibility to participate in the Entrepreneurship Scholarship program.
Education / A Powerful force for change Page 27