91ÒùĸÊÓƵ

(Left to right): Andy Many Fingers, Kershia Russell, Kimberly Sweetgrass, Brooke White Quills, Tamara Day Chief

When Kershia Russell began university, she felt disconnected. Raised on the Kainai Blood Indian Reserve near Lethbridge, she’d always dreamed of being a teacher — but nothing about her university experience felt right until she discovered the Aboriginal Teacher Education Program (ATEP) at the 91ÒùĸÊÓƵ.

A transformative $250,000 gift to the U of A from an anonymous donor made it possible to launch the first-ever Niitsitapi (Blackfoot) ATEP cohort at Red Crow Community College. Thanks to that generosity, Indigenous students like Russell can pursue teacher certification close to home, in a program rooted in their own cultures and languages.

This donation builds upon a strong foundation laid by several other individuals, corporations and foundations who have believed in ATEP’s mission for over two decades. Together, their generosity has helped shape generations of Indigenous educators and leaders.

Since 2001, ATEP will have graduated 438 students by fall of 2025, each with a blend of academic excellence and cultural teachings rooted in their own ways of knowing, being and doing. Over 240 students are currently enrolled across 11 cohorts — including 20 in the Niitsitapi (Blackfoot) cohort at Red Crow Community College — reflecting the program’s growing impact and commitment to nurturing future Indigenous leaders.

“Having Elders and mentor teachers from our traditions made me feel like we had a place,” says Russell, now in her third year and on track to graduate in 2026. “I have so much gratitude towards the donor. They’ve changed a lot of lives — and will change even more children’s lives.”

, associate dean in the Faculty of Education and ATEP’s director, says the impact on Indigenous graduates is incalculable.

“These students are highly sought after,” she says. “They’re not only working as teachers, but as leaders. Many have gone on to graduate degrees and make a significant difference in their communities.”

Kimberly Sweetgrass, Russell’s classmate and practicum partner at the in Stand Off, near Lethbridge, is living that change. At 42, she’s fulfilling her lifelong dream of being a teacher, after years in early childhood education and mentorship roles in Calgary. ATEP’s flexibility — offering full- or part-time, online or in-person options — allowed her to study without uprooting her life.

“We’re learning from our Elders and Blackfoot resource people,” says Sweetgrass. “I was able to learn from home, in a space that felt safe and grounded.”

ATEP is grounded in miyo wîcêhtowin, the Cree word for living in good relations with others as well as the land.

“We instill ATEP guiding values of kinship (wâhkôhtowin), miyo wîcêhtowin, with numerous essential Cree values that form the foundation of the program,” says Steinhauer. “Indigenous students often feel pushed out of school. We create space where they are seen, heard and valued.”

The success of the Blackfoot cohort shows what’s possible when education honours identity and culture. Through the Shape the Future campaign, donors are helping to build classrooms where Indigenous children can see themselves — and imagine what’s possible. 

“When First Nations children see their people in these roles,” says Sweetgrass, “they say, ‘I want to do that. I can do that.’”