Enhancing supports and services for Indigenous students

As of 2023, the number of academic advisors at UC has doubled (since 2018) and the Academic Advising and Registrar's Office (AARO) successfully secured funding for two additional positions, which were created to bolster ongoing efforts to improve the student experience at the college.

As of 2024, the Salesforce Student Success Hub for Higher Education launched for academic advisors in Arts and Sciences. The Hub enables UC advisors to efficiently refer all students to campus services, including First Nations House. This will support student success, quality service, and student retention and graduation.

The Salesforce Student Success Hub for Higher Education will be available to students within the next two years. Once the Hub is available to students, its reporting features may provide opportunities to better address the needs of Indigenous students while strengthening our relationship with First Nations House and other Indigenous partners at the university.

UC has not yet been able to secure an Indigenous academic advisor, but it remains top of mind in each of our recruitment processes for new and replacement hires. We continue to work with HR to strategize on ways we might adapt and frame future job descriptions and postings to ensure they are attracting qualified Indigenous applicants.

UC Orientation Week, organized by the University College Student Athletic and Literary Society (UC Lit), includes Indigenous programming in their activities.

The Office of the Dean of Students has hired a Coordinator, Residence Education Programs. This new position consistently supports Indigenous partners to deliver Indigenous residence programming in UC residences.

The college continues to explore the ways it can support a U of T-wide Indigenous mentorship program.

University College continues to re-evaluate how the student orientation process at UC can better support settler and newcomer populations in understanding their roles and responsibilities within treaty relationships through the orientation feedback process.

The Office of the Dean of Students routinely works with Indigenous partners and relevant offices to deliver Indigenous Cultural Competency Training (ICCT) needs for students.

Since the original recommendation was made, the Academic Advising and Registrar’s Office, has worked to establish ten new financial awards and amend the terms of pre-existing financial awards to prioritize Indigenous students.

Indigenous initiatives are included as a development priority for the Office of Advancement's fundraising activities.

In the 2023-24 academic year, a new Scholarship Sorter filter was created on the UC website to assist Indigenous students in identifying a specific list of UC awards for which they may be eligible. 

The Academic Advising and Registrar’s Office continues to work with the Office of Advancement to communicate with donors about the priority of supporting Indigenous students.

UC fundraising staff have been trained to emphasize the needs of Indigenous students as a key college priority when communicating with potential donors. 

Since 2021, the Academic Advising and Registrar’s Office has also started to offer financial outreach and support to Indigenous students for the Summer term. Registrarial staff have taken a proactive approach in reaching out to Indigenous students registered in the Summer session with an offer to review their financial situation and the various supports available to them and, if appropriate, provide summer financial assistance through need-based awards and scholarships. 

A new UC Residence Curriculum went into effect as of September 2024. One of the four learning goals of the curriculum is Reconciliation and Decolonization: “Students will delve into personal journeys to understand their own positionality in relation to the reconciliation and decolonization efforts in Canada.” 

Student learning outcomes of the UC Residence Curriculum include the following: 

1) Understand Indigenous relationships to the land, including land stewardship, and reciprocity

2) Identify the purpose and significance of a land acknowledgement and what it means to them

3) Identify their own role in reconciliation through processes of learning and unlearning

4) Deepen their understanding of colonial histories (including those of Canada, U of T and UC) and current realities such as treaty relationships and power imbalances 

5) Engage with indigenous worldviews and perspectives

As a constituent college of the Faculty of Arts & Science, UC has implemented an upper-year residence guarantee for Indigenous Students.

Indigenous students who are completing part-time studies continue to be included in the Fall/Winter grant assessment process for part-time students.