Maureen Black

"What’s important to me in Indigenous education is that our children maintain their strong connection to the land, culture, language, ceremonies, and traditions while nurturing a strong sense of identity. What troubles me as an Indigenous educator, is the constant struggle to disrupt the colonizing, Eurocentric discourses that are embedded in our educational experiences. For our urban Indigenous youth, these experiences still exist as they continue to encounter barriers within the educational institutions. This motivates me to challenge the current established systems that privileges Eurocentric practices that have silenced our ways of knowing and being."

Maureen Black is a member of the ‘Namgis Nation and has Scottish/Irish ancestry on her paternal side. As a fourth-generation fisherwoman, she has a strong cultural connection to land and water, ingrained from her experiences fishing in her traditional territory of the Kwakwaka’wakw. Her family teachings, connecting to her culture, and learning from Elders have strengthened her passion for enriching learning environments that are inclusive of Indigenous ways of knowing.

Maureen worked as an early childhood educator for 26+ years before beginning a new chapter working as a Cultural Advisor at BCACCS. She currently works as an Indigenous Education Enhancement Worker at the Vancouver School Board. She has a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education, a business administration certificate for Aboriginal Learners, and is a certified Gladue report writer. Maureen’s pathways as an educator are related to social justice, anti-racism, land/place-based pedagogies, decolonization, and critical literacies.