Roberta Jamieson to say farewell to Indspire
Ohsweken – After more than 15 years of national leadership in Indigenous education, Roberta Jamieson will step aside in February 2021 as the President and CEO of Indspire, Canada’s largest Indigenous-led charity and one of the top ten charities in Canada.
“I am proud of the tremendous growth and development at Indspire,” says Jamieson. “There’s been an eightfold increase in bursaries and scholarships – $115 million now goes to more than 37,500 First Nation, Inuit and Métis students. With our ongoing mentoring programs, this ensures that 90% of our students graduate. We also train educators, so they can provide an education that validates and celebrates the Indigenous identities of our students.”
Jamieson, who is the Executive-Producer of the nationally-broadcast Indspire Awards, says Indspire has excelled in another sphere: educating the Canadian public, breaking down barriers and busting stereotypes.
“Our annual Indspire Awards celebrates excellence in the Indigenous world and shares with the rest of Canada the tremendous contributions our people have made.”
The leadership of Indspire is just the latest in a long string of accomplishments for Roberta Jamieson. She was the first First Nation woman in Canada to earn a law degree; the first woman elected Chief of the Six Nations of the Grand River Territory; and the first woman Ombudsman of Ontario.
“Roberta walks and works in many different worlds,” says the Chair of Indspire, David Tuccaro. “But always as a Mohawk woman. Over the years, she has consistently applied her Haudenosaunee values and culture to ensuring that Indspire fulfills its mandate and succeeds in its commitment to the many sponsors and governments who support the transformational objectives of Indspire.”
Tuccaro says the departure of one of Canada’s brilliant and compassionate Indigenous leaders is tinged with sadness.
“Roberta has turned Indspire into a vital voice for Indigenous education in Canada, and her presence will be missed.”
Laurie Sterritt, Partner with the search firm Leaders International Executive Search, will be in charge of finding the next CEO and President for Indspire.
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For more information or to arrange interviews, contact:
Nick Foglia,
VP, Communications & Marketing
416-987-0260