Indigenous Faculty at Canadian Universities: Their Stories (2012).

Henry, F. (2012). Indigenous Faculty at Canadian Universities: Their Stories. Canadian Ethnic Studies 44(1), 101-132. doi:10.1353/ces.2012.0005.

ABSTRACT. This paper is based on twenty-three interviews conducted with Indigenous faculty at ten universities in Canada. Only .9% of total university faculty are Indigenous. While Indigenous faculty shared some concerns with racialized faculty such as under-representation, the lack of diversity among senior administration, and the policies around tenure and promotion decisions, most of their apprehensions were unique to their Indigenous heritage and cultural lifestyle. In the first instance, their few numbers are highly concentrated in certain disciplines—the so-called helping disciplines such as social work, education and law. Most of their studies are taught in programs as there are very few departments. Issues such as who should teach Indigenous studies; the design of Indigenous curriculum and whether Indigenous studies should be mainstreamed or “ghettoized” in separate areas of the university were highlighted. They also feared the loss of personal identity as an Indigenous people. A critical concern for Indigenous faculty is that their research is primarily within their own communities and, as such, is not valued or legitimated for tenure and promotion purposes. Some also expressed the view that their entire discipline—Indigenous studies—was not considered a true university discipline.