'Filling a gap': UPEI seeks to hire 3 new Indigenous professors

The University of Prince Edward Island is seeking to hire three Indigenous Canadian professors for three different faculties arts, science and nursing.

Right now UPEI has one Indigenous scholar John Doran, an assistant professor of Indigenous Studies.

"There's been a lot of discussion around, how do we increase our support for Indigenous students, and also increase exposure of our non-Indigenous students to Indigenous culture?" said Robert Gilmour, vice-president academic and research at UPEI.

Gilmour believes there's a reluctance for some Indigenous students to identify as Indigenous. He believes it would help those students learn, and would be helpful to see their culture and history discussed.

'A richness to the lectures'

"There's nothing like having someone that has that background and that experience they can bring a richness to the lectures that someone who's not Indigenous just wouldn't have."

"For us, it's filling a gap we're hiring a group that we don't have," Gilmour said.

The university would like to hire more than three Indigenous professors, but there are several challenges including budget limitations, Gilmour said.

"Frankly there aren't all that many individuals out there who have the qualifications to be university professors, and we're not the only university who'd looking for such people," Gilmour said.

'Along way to go'

The postings for the three positions have closed, and Gilmour said there were plenty of applications for the arts position, "fair takeup" for the science faculty, but that UPEI will need to keep looking for someone with an Indigenous background to teach nursing.

Gilmour isn't sure the new staff in the arts and science faculties will be in place for September, but said UPEI is trying to get them in place as quickly as possible.

"We really have a long way to go, I think, until we are able to represent Indigenous culture and Indigenous way of thinking across the curriculum," Gilmour said.

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