Michelle Johnson-Jennings (left) and Derek Jennings are welcoming a group of Maori scholars from New Zealand to the U of S this month. (Photo by Chris Putnam)

U of S to host scholars from New Zealand

A delegation of a dozen Maori scholars and artists from New Zealand will visit the University of Saskatchewan campus later this month as part of an international trip to Canada.

By SHANNON BOKLASCHUK

Four faculty members from the University of Waikato, along with eight doctoral students and academics who recently completed their PhD dissertations, will be in Saskatchewan from Aug. 28-Sept. 3.

Some of the activities on the delegation's busy itinerary include touring the Gordon Oakes Red Bear Student Centre, meeting with representatives from the U of S International Research and Partnerships Office, participating in a health roundtable discussion at Wanuskewin Heritage Park, presenting at the International and Indigenous Research Forum on campus, speaking at Station 20 West, performing at Remai Modern and visiting the Beardy’s and Okemasis Cree Nation and Willow Cree Healing Lodge at Duck Lake, Sask.

Derek Jennings, a professor in the Department of Community Health and Epidemiology, and his wife Michelle Johnson-Jennings, a professor in the Department of Indigenous Studies in the College of Arts and Science, came to the U of S in February 2018 following employment at the University of Minnesota. They are the main organizers of the Maori visit and have relationships with faculty at the University of Waikato that stem back nearly a decade.

“With the large Indigenous population in Saskatoon and some of the things we have planned, we’re hoping that they have a great experience and that it’s an opportunity for kind of a long-term relationship with the university and its academics,” said Jennings.

Read more on the university's news site.