2022-23 Update: Kiipitakyoyis (Grandmothers’ Lodge)
The Indigenous Lodge within the Faculty of Social Work
In our quest to decolonize, the faculty is proud to support with Kiipitakyoyis (Grandmother’s Lodge). The lodge is a culturally safe space that enhances the recruitment and retention of Indigenous students, faculty and staff.
Grandmother’s Lodge also works to educate the community about Indigenous culture, current issues, decolonization and Indigenous ways of knowing through ceremonies and public events, including the well-attended webinar series. For example, Cree/ Métis Lodge Elder and clinical social work therapist Kerrie Moore presented a three-part series on healing intergenerational trauma that had 1,230 registrants.
The Lodge also offers individual counselling, and Elder support and connects students with community resources.
2022-23 Milestones:
Kiipitakyoyis is integral to the faculty's decolonization efforts and the inclusion of Indigenous knowledge. Last year, Elder Kerrie Moore and Lodge Keeper/Advisor Deandra Neufeld significantly contributed to the re-imagining of our BSW, informing the design of a mandatory new course on Indigenous ways of knowing, being, doing and connecting.
Kiipitakyoyis is also co-leading the development of an exciting new graduate certificate specialization — Indigenous Ways of Knowing in Leadership — which we are hoping to launch in 2024.
Lodge Naming Ceremony, Oct. 5, 2022
Blackfoot Elder, Dr. Clarence Wolfleg from Siksika Nation led a unique naming ceremony where he revealed the name, bestowed by the Creator, for the lodge. The name, Kiipitakyoyis — Grandmother’s Lodge in Blackfoot — signifies the vital guidance that grandmothers typically offer in lodges or encampments. Métis Cree Elder Kerrie Moore, the Lodge's Elder and the Faculty of Social Work's Wellness Elder, along with Lodge Advisor Deandra Neufeld and Dr. Ellen Perrault, dean of Social Work, accepted the name on behalf of the Lodge.
