About the grant
The Strategic Initiative Indigenous (SI-I) Grant supports faculty and staff to substantially revise programs, courses, curricula, or learning resources that will help fulfill UVic’s commitment to reconciliation with Indigenous peoples as highlighted in the Indigenous Plan. Projects that develop opportunities for UVic students to gain a better understanding of Indigenous peoples, history and culture, and the impact of colonization will be considered for funding.
Specifically, this grant applies to proposals involving course or program development with a focus on:
- emphasizing, valuing and integrating Indigenous ways of knowing, being, and doing
- deconstructing colonialism and de-centering unequal colonial knowledge structures
- promoting reconciliation of power relations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples
- addressing specific Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) Calls to Action.
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Timeline
Application Guidelines
Materials and submission form available by December 1, 2024.
Grant Deadline
Each grant will be due by 11:59pm, February 24, 2025.
Adjudication Process
Grant committees will meet in the following 30-60 days.
Applicants Notified
Applicants will be notified Spring 2025.
Strategic Initiative Indigenous Grant
Application details
Eligibility
This grant is open to:
- Single or co-applicants who directly support student learning and the student experience at UVic (includes research and teaching stream faculty, sessional lecturers, laboratory instructors, and relevant academic and professional staff)
- Early-career academic professionals or those new to UVic are especially encouraged to apply
- Previous grant recipients for any LTSI grant. If your grant is still active, you must submit obligations prior to applying for another grant.
Preference will be given to those with continued appointments. If you are a sessional instructor and you are designing/re-designing a course, we may also ask you and your Chair/Director to indicate that you are likely to teach the course again in the future. Note: You cannot apply to more than one LTSI grant in the same year for the same project.
Grant criteria
Successful proposals will include:
- a clear specific statement of what the applicant would like to achieve
- a well-articulated plan for how to proceed and the principles that will guide the process
- a description of the proposed significance of the project in terms of contributions to teaching and student learning while improving or enhancing an understanding of Indigenous ways of knowing and being; deconstructing colonialism and decentering unequal colonial knowledge structures; and/or promoting the reconciliation of power relations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples
- a brief, targeted review of the literature that supports the plan
- a plan for sharing the project goals and outcomes to appropriate audiences
- a sustainable budget with justification for each item
Download the application template
It is recommended that you use this template to draft your proposal. Microsoft Forms does not allow you to save your work mid-application. Once you are ready, please go to the SI-I Grant Microsoft Form and copy and paste your answers. Save a copy of your draft proposal so you can send it to your Chair/Director for approval.
Adjudicator's rubric
Adjudicators will use a scoring rubric to assess your proposal, with rating scores ranging from 1.0 to 5.0.
Additional materials and references
Besides the UVic Indigenous Plan, the following resources may be helpful in guiding how you frame your proposal:
- Alberta Regional Professional Development Consortium (nd). Weaving ways: Indigenous ways of knowing in classrooms and schools: An introductory guide. Retrieved on 9-16-2021.
- Allan, B., Perreault, A., Chenoweth, J., Biin, D., Hobenshield, S., Ormiston, T… & Wilson, J. (2018). Pulling together: A guide for teachers and instructors. Victoria, BC: BCcampus. Retrieved on 8-30-2021.
- Gaudry, A., & Lorenz, D. (2018). Indigenization as inclusion, reconciliation, and decolonization: Navigating the different visions for indigenizing the Canadian Academy. AlterNative: An International Journal of Indigenous Peoples, 14(3), 218-227.
References
- Binda, K.P. and Caillou, S. (Eds) (2001). Aboriginal education in Canada: A study in decolonization. Mississauga, Canada: Canadian Educators’ Press.
- Pete, S., Schneider, B., and O’Reilly, K. (2013). Decolonizing Our Practice – Indigenizing Our Teaching. First Nations Perspectives, 5 (1), 99-115.
- University of Victoria (2017). Indigenous Plan
Ready to submit your application?
Note: The application portal will open in December 2024
Past recipients
2023-2024
- Cheryl Aro, School of Social Work
Integrating Local Indigenous Wisdom: Infusing Indigenous Knowledge into Social Work Courses on Campus ($4,000) - Scott McIndoe, Department of Chemistry
Indigenous knowledge – inspiring science ($7,500) - Stephen Ross, Deparment of English
Recovering Family Medicines – Celebrating the Great Mystery Together ($7,500) - Bryan Silverman, School of Child and Youth Care
Supporting the Continuing Indigenization of the CYFCS MA Program ($7,500)
2022-2023
- Jennifer Gruno, School of Exercise Science, Physical and Health Education
Furthering our journey in de-centering colonial knowledge structures in Physical and Health Education Teacher Education (PHETE) [$4,104.30] - Kim McLean-Fiander, Department of English
Decolonizing and Indigenizing English 146: Contemporary Literature ($7,500)
2021-2022
- Gwendolyn Gosek, School of Social Work
Understanding mental health policy and practice from a decolonial and anti-oppressive perspective ($7,000) - Dawn Smith, Indigenous Governance
ĆȺ,I ȻENTOL ÁTOL (work together respectfully) ($7,500) - Suzanne Urbanczyk, Department of Linguistics
Developing a Professional Specialization Certificate in Indigenous Language Documentation and Revitalization ($7,441.50)
2020-2021
- Douglas Stuart, Peter B. Gustavson School of Business
Decolonizing the Financial Management Curriculum: Integrating Indigenous Perspectives into Taxation for Managers ($3,240) - Pierre-Luc Landry, Department of French
Teaching Indigenous Francophone Literatures in Canada and Beyond: De-Centering Lecture-Oriented Learning Strategies ($3,647)