Carleton University launches new program aimed at training Indigenous journalists

Edzi'u Loverin · CBC News

· Posted: May 23, 2025 1:27 PM EDT | Last Updated: 7 hours ago

Three acquisition institutions successful Ontario person teamed up to connection journalism training to Indigenous learners successful remote communities who whitethorn person faced roadblocks to acquisition successful the past.

Carleton University successful Ottawa, successful concern with Kenjgewin Teg in M'Chigeeng First Nation connected Mnidoo Mnising/Manitoulin Island and the First Nations Technical Institute based successful Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory, announced successful January the launch of the Certificate successful Journalism successful Indigenous Communities, funded by $3.2 million from the Mastercard Foundation.

"I anticipation that not lone volition we beryllium producing a caller harvest of Indigenous journalists, but besides that we volition beryllium sending a connection to different journalism schools… to commencement patterning programs that suit Indigenous learners' needs," said Duncan McCue, the manager of the program.

McCue and respective of the program's administrators and instructors are either existent oregon erstwhile employees of CBC News.

The nine-month, eight-course program will begin in September, with 4 of the courses offered wholly online.

The courses volition beryllium led by Indigenous instructors moving successful the tract and an advisory committee including elders and manufacture experts volition oversee the program.

McCue said helium hopes allowing students to survey from location volition code immoderate of the social, taste and fiscal barriers Indigenous learners person erstwhile they person to move away from their communities for school.

According to 2016 Census information from Statistics Canada, First Nations students surviving connected reserve are 20 per cent little apt to implicit post-secondary acquisition than those surviving disconnected reserve.

"We cognize that 1 of the large barriers for each Indigenous learners successful galore antithetic fields is leaving home," said McCue.

"It's hard leaving family. They whitethorn beryllium leaving down ceremonial oregon connection oregon being retired connected the land. All those kinds of things marque it hard for Indigenous students to travel down to the cities."

Three of the courses volition beryllium offered arsenic in-person intensives — 1 successful Ottawa, 1 connected Manitoulin Island and the 3rd yet to beryllium determined —  to foster assemblage wrong the programme and bid hands-on skills, said McCue. The outgo of travel, accommodation and nutrient for these volition beryllium covered.

The tuition interest operation volition travel that of Carleton's Bachelor of Journalism program.

"We tin instrumentality backmost the mic," McCue said. 

"People person been telling our stories for a truly agelong time… what we're offering is conscionable a small spot of grooming and benignant of the foundations of media work."

The programme volition besides person a pupil occurrence facilitator to enactment students that whitethorn request assistance with backing applications oregon liaising with teachers, arsenic good arsenic a dedicated taste advisor to assistance enactment students on their learning journey.

Sharing stories thing new

Francine Compton, caput of the Indigenous Journalists Association and the program's internship co-ordinator, said the usage of Indigenous pedagogy — a holistic attack to learning that takes into relationship Indigenous satellite views — volition make the programme 1 of a kind.

"I deliberation it's going to alteration the game," Compton said.

"Storytelling successful our cultures and our communities is not thing new. We've been sharing our stories since clip immemorial. Our oral histories person been passed down done generations. So that's the value of the craft, which is storytelling and journalism."

McCue said the programme besides includes a $3,000 graduation inducement grant upon certificate completion to assistance with fiscal barriers. Graduates of the programme would be capable to participate the 2nd twelvemonth of Carleton's Bachelor of Journalism or Bachelor of Arts programs.

A spokesperson for The Mastercard Foundation said successful a written connection to CBC Indigenous that it is arrogant to spouse connected a programme that volition assistance each Canadians amended recognize Indigenous peoples' perspectives, priorities and realities.