Six Nations Polytechnic (SNP) recently celebrated an announcement made in 2020 where the institution gained accreditation from the Indigenous Advanced Education and Skills Council (IAESC) for a period of ten years. This now means Six Nations Polytechnic is able to grant certificates, diplomas and degrees at the same level and quality as publicly-funded colleges and universities. The celebration took place on Friday, April 22 after being delayed by the pandemic for the past two years.
The 2020 announcement also allows SNP to provide "stand alone" or "signature" programs. In the past, SNP would need to do programs in partnership with other Ontario colleges and universities. SNP President and CEO Rebecca Jamieson says "it's important for an Indigenous institute to be able to offer the full range of credentials that you can get anywhere in Ontario". SNP will introduce their Signature Bachelor of Arts in Ogwehoweh Languages this fall.
SNP has had language programs before but never one that offered a formal education degree, Jamieson spoke on the importance of that saying "language is so important in the community and we have a lot of things happening in the community for language development but to have that formal process of having a university degree, leads into other opportunities for people".
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