A member of the Fisher River Cree Nation, Verna J. Kirkness is associate professor emeritus at the University of British Columbia. A leading advocate of Aboriginal education, her work has gained international acclaim. Beginning in 1954 she taught in provincial, then federal day and residential schools in Manitoba. In the 70s, she was instrumental in introducing Cree and Ojibway as languages of instruction in several Manitoba schools. Kirkness went to UBC in 1981 where, under her leadership, the Native Indian Teacher Education Program became one of the most successful in the country. In 1987, as the first director of the First Nations House of Learning, she worked to extend support to all Aboriginal students at UBC and oversaw the First Nations longhouse project. She is a member of the Canadian Millennium Scholarship Foundation and the Council on Ph.D. Studies for Aboriginal Scholars at the University of Manitoba, founder of the World Indigenous People’s Education Conference and has been published extensively including seven books. Kirkness was appointed a member of the Order of Canada in 1998.
