Manitoba First Nations SchoolNet

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Manitoba First Nations SchoolNet Opportunities
for E-Skills Development In the 21st Century
Crystal Chercoe, Project Manager March 24, 2003
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Crystal Chercoe, Social Entrepreneur Project
ManagerManitoba First Nations SchoolNet
Regional Management OrganizationKeewatin Tribal
CouncilThompson, Manitoba
The Connecting Canadians Youth Employment
Strategy gave me the opportunity to develop the
skills needed to participate in the knowledge
economyI am truly a product of e-learning. To
show my gratitude, I am committed to transferring
this knowledge and sharing what I have learned
with First Nations youth to help them better
participate in the knowledge economyand maybe
they will then share it with othersand through
these efforts ,we, as Canadians, will become
world leaders in innovation
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Manitoba First Nations SchoolNet Vision Statement
Encouraging First Nations communities to access,
participate and develop skills for the
information economy...  
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Access, Participation Skills Development

• Infrastructure Access
• Connectivity
• ICT Equipment
• Help desk support
• Increase participation
• Generate interest in ICTs
• Build community capacity (Educators,
• students, stakeholders citizens)
• Digital content development
• Skills Development
• Techno-confidence
• Human capital formation
• Lifelong learning

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Principles for Success

• Capability develop and utilize the experience
  and/or capacity of the IHAB and the RMO to
  successfully implement the business plan and meet
  the targets in a timely manner
• Commitment Solicit community and government
  support and commitment to increase the
  participation, rate of success and long term
  sustainability of the First Nations SchoolNet
  project
• Community Need through community involvement,
  collaboratively assess need and deliver
  programming based on assessments whilst improving
  access to information and communication
  technologies

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Challenges facing First Nations Youth

• 25.2 of Status on reserve youth between the
  ages of 15-29 complete high-school compared to
  62.7 of non-Aboriginal youth
• First Nations in Canada are a very young
  population growing at twice the rate of the
  non-Aboriginal population
• MB has a higher proportion of its on-reserve
  citizens living in isolated, fly-in communities
  than any other province 32 according to INAC
  data

Source 1996 Census Data, Statistics Canada
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Simply providing computer rations is not the
answer
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• Priority Focus
• Human capital formation - at the community level
  will
• Ensure that youth have the skills to utilize
  technology effectively
• Participate in the knowledge economy
• Serve as knowledge brokers to others within the
  community

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Opportunities for Improving Access to E-Skills
Development

• First Nations SchoolNet youth development cluster
  that will respond to the special needs of First
  Nations youth in Manitoba Canada as it relates
  to ICT literacy
• Complement the FN SchoolNet activities and
  strengthen capacity at the community level
• Create opportunities for e-skills development
  through employment and produce information
  enthusiasts or knowledge brokers
• Recognize the challenges (and the length of time
  required to overcome the challenges) and respond
  with ample program supports
• Require multi-year programming
  inter-departmental support

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Questions? Crystal Chercoe E-mail
chercoe_at_shaw.ca Phone [phone]