AANO Committee Report

As Chair of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development, I am honoured to have participated in the Committee’s study on Aboriginal post-secondary education in Canada, and to present this report on the Committee’s behalf.

Education is so important. We all hope our children will be able to have access to the best educational resources at all levels, resources that are affordable and suited to their needs and aspirations. To that end, we hope to minimize present obstacles and to prevent future ones. We believe Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Canadians share these objectives. Over the course of its hearings, the Committee has learned that much progress has been made in improving opportunities and developing resources in Aboriginal post-secondary education. At the same time, much remains to be done.

It is rare to find unanimity on any topic in the realm of public policy. When it comes to Aboriginal education, however, the now overwhelming consensus view of experts and officials within and outside government, of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Canadians alike, defies the rule. All agree, quite simply, that improving educational outcomes is absolutely critical to the future of individual Aboriginal learners, their families and children, their communities, and the broader Canadian society as a whole. The Committee agrees with Roberta Jamieson of the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation, who told the Committee that “[a]lthough certainly the task is daunting … we must do what we can, in our time, in our generation”.¹ We endorse the view of the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and Federal Interlocutor for Métis and Non-Status Indians, that “of all the matters that we work on, education is surely the one that we have to get right”.²

Therein lies the challenge for us all. The cost of not meeting it is too high in too many lost opportunities for too many Aboriginal people, and for Canada. The Committee is convinced that it is possible, and essential, to meet the challenge, starting now. It is incumbent on all of us, moving forward, to ensure that Aboriginal Canadians have all the educational opportunities and all the resources necessary to enable them to realize their potential.

On behalf of the Committee, I want to express our thanks to the witnesses who appeared before us, frequently on very short notice, to share their experience and recommendations with us. We also commend those who made written submissions to assist the Committee in its process. Committee members acknowledge these contributions with gratitude.