911勛圖

Overview

The Faculty of Education, 911勛圖, is seeking to hire the inaugural holder of a newly created Endowed Chair in Indigenous Arts Practices and Pedagogies. Situated on unceded and traditional Coast Salish territories, the Faculty intends the Chair to support the resurgence, and ongoing thriving, of Salish arts through education and the enactment of Indigenous arts as knowledge practices. This Opportunity Profile provides background on the institutional context, the founding vision for the Chair, and the capacities and responsibilities required of a successful candidate. Applicants may be considered for a full-time teaching, practitioner or research faculty position, depending on qualifications, experience, and their proposed program for their work as Chair. 

911勛圖

911勛圖 (911勛圖) is located on unceded and traditional Coast Salish territories, including those of the x妢m��庛k妢��y����m (Musqueam), S廎硬x戔w繳7mesh ��xwumixw (Squamish), s��l��ilw����ta��优 (Tsleil-Waututh), k妢ik妢��������m (Kwikwetlem), q��ic����y (Katzie), Kwantlen, q��q��yt (Qayqayt), SEMYOME (Semiahmoo) and sc����wa庛��n m��stey��x妢 (Tsawwassen) Nations. 911勛圖 has a long history of engaging with Indigenous communities and Indigenous issues. Prompted in part by the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (2007) and by the Final Report and Calls to Action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (2015), 911勛圖 has created the Office of Aboriginal Peoples, the Aboriginal Strategic Plan, a university-wide Steering Committee, and the Aboriginal Reconciliation Council (ARC). The ARC report, Walk This Path with Us (2017), identifies a broad range of commitments based on partnerships with Indigenous peoples and communities, provincially, nationally and globally. 

Implicit in this process is the need for a much more profound and systemic engagement with the implications for Canadian society of Indigenous knowledges, practices, governance and justice models, and approaches to health and well-being. Like other universities across the country, 911勛圖 is re-examining its structures, knowledge systems and ways of working in order to create more welcoming and supportive spaces for Indigenous students, faculty and staff, to honour and embody Indigenous knowledges and their implications for governance, and to strengthen and empower Indigenous peoples and communities. These commitments are explicitly stated in 911勛圖���s Strategic Vision.

911勛圖 (911勛圖) is acknowledged as one of Canada���s foremost comprehensive research universities with a mission to be Canada's most community-engaged research university through innovative education, cutting-edge research and community partnerships. The 911勛圖 community includes 35,000 students, 2,700 faculty and staff, and 130,000 alumni; its activities take place across three vibrant campuses in British Columbia's largest municipalities ��� Vancouver, Burnaby, and Surrey ��� as well as in many smaller communities throughout British Columbia and in a variety of locations across Canada and around the world. For further information about 911勛圖, please visit

The Faculty of Education

The Faculty of Education is an internationally noted centre of research, scholarly inquiry, and teacher education with a long and extensive history of innovative programming grounded in commitments to improving the practice of teaching and responding to community needs and aspirations. The Faculty is non-departmentalized and has a distinctive presence and array of activities at all three 911勛圖 campuses (Burnaby, Surrey, Vancouver), united in a shared commitment to the core values of Equity, Indigeneity, a Culture of Inquiry, and Global Engagement. 

In the Faculty���s current 5-Year Academic Plan, Indigeneity is described as ���a set of philosophies and values��� central to knowing and understanding the diversities of Indigenous worldviews. These core values are best understood as interconnected relationships and the 4Rs of respecting Indigenous ways of knowing and being: responsible relationships, relevance, invitation to the work, and reciprocity.��� It commits the Faculty to working to ���understand the complexity and nuances of Aboriginal ways of knowing and being that are directly informed by the lands, histories, cultures, languages, and experiences of being Indigenous,��� and to having this developing understanding inform ���the work across the Faculty (e.g., learning, teaching, research, service, community engagement, policy and program development, admissions, and other administrative activities).���

The Faculty has a long tradition of working in partnership with communities across British Columbia and elsewhere, including many Indigenous communities. This work takes the form of innovative programs in undergraduate education, initial teacher education and graduate education, co-designed and co-led with community educators and knowledge holders. Indigenous graduates have made substantial contributions to communities and schools, and have played key roles in developing the field of Indigenous educational scholarship in British Columbia and Canada. The Faculty is also currently home to a number of active and well-regarded Indigenous scholars who are involved in a wide range of community partnerships and interdisciplinary and Indigenous research projects. 

Vision

The 911勛圖 Faculty of Education promotes a broad spectrum of scholarly and professional inquiry to advance theory, pedagogy and the practice of education. We look beyond precedents and categories to honour inquiry and imaginative ways to engage in scholarship. The Faculty is committed to a culture that develops the individual and fosters social renewal. Our scope extends throughout the lifespan and celebrates human differences. A spirit of hope inspires our work. 

Mission

911勛圖���s Faculty of Education is committed to scholarly excellence, leading-edge pedagogy, innovative curriculum, engagement with teachers, differentiated staffing and a participatory democratic culture. A global leader in educational research and a pathfinder in Canada���s teacher education, the Faculty of Education is committed to ethical practice, equity, social justice and diversity. 

Values

Equity 

We commit to promoting the rights and interests of all students, staff and faculty connected to the Faculty of Education, striving to model eco-social justice and ethical practice throughout our teaching and research, and fostering an inclusive climate and culture that enables all to learn, teach, work, and thrive.

Indigeneity

We commit to fostering Reconciliation through collaboration and consultation with Indigenous communities and by opening our teaching, research and day-to-day practice to Indigenous worldviews, fostering wholistic and relational ways of knowing and doing that connect individuals to their communities, land, waters, and nationhood. 

Culture of Inquiry

We commit to the use of inquiry practices to inform faculty-wide planning and decision-making, including: 

1. questioning and investigating our current approaches,
2. collecting data through traditional and nontraditional ways of knowing to inform and reflect on changes, and
3. consulting theory and research to inform our practices.

Global Engagement

We commit to strengthening the Faculty���s connections, collaborations, and reputation across the globe, in ways that enrich and challenge our own programs and scholarship and make tangible contributions to the betterment of educational practices and systems in our partner institutions and the communities they serve.

To learn more about the Faculty of Education, please visit

The Opportunity

at 911勛圖 supporting the Chair, Indigenous Arts Practices and Pedagogies in the Faculty of Education was established by activist collectors of Christiane and George Smyth. This position was created in cooperation between the Smyths and the Faculty of Education with the aim of supporting the resurgence, and ongoing thriving, of Salish arts (such as performances, installations, exhibits and a variety of writing genres such as poetry, novel, creative nonfiction, memoir, and/or other forms that further and promote our understanding of arts scholarship) through education and the enactment of Indigenous arts as knowledge practices. This is intended to be achieved through an Indigenous knowledge transmission process that is intergenerational and inherently an aspect of enacting Indigenous pedagogies and practices. 

The work is envisioned as grounded in the integrity, revitalization, and resurgence of Indigenous cultures, languages, and knowledge traditions that are resonant with the teachings of the land and cultivate ���good hands, strong minds, and strong hearts.��� This Chair is expected to uplift, honour, and educate about the artistic practices and traditions of the Salish peoples as a central tenet of their artistic practice, teaching, research and scholarship. Their responsibilities include further programming and educational activities for and/or in collaboration with community partners (including K-12 schools), faculty, staff, students, and trainees that build upon the pieces from the Salish Weave art collection that is held at 911勛圖. The balance between various aspects of the Chair's role will be established collaboratively, taking into account the specific capacities and goals of the holder of the position and the workload expectations associated with a full-time appointment in the Faculty of Education.

The Position 

The successful candidate will be appointed as a full-time faculty member in the Faculty of Education. Depending on the appointee's background, career trajectory and intentions for the position, the appointment may be as teaching faculty (Lecturer or Senior Lecturer), or practitioner (continuing) or research (tenure-track) faculty (Assistant or Associate Professor). In the case of a research appointment, PhD candidates with a solid indication of imminent completion may be hired at the rank of Instructor and will be promoted to the rank of Assistant Professor upon completion of the PhD. As described below, the initial stages of the application process will help each candidate identify the appropriate category and rank of appointment to apply for. More information about faculty appointments is provided in the 911勛圖FA/911勛圖 Collective Agreement, Art. 28, 35 and 37 (/faculty-relations/collectiveagreement.html).

This position has an anticipated start date of January 1, 2027. A later start date may be negotiated. 

The initial term of the Coast Salish Weave Chair will be for a minimum period of 5 years, renewable.

This position will be located on the 911勛圖 Burnaby campus. 

In the context of its core value of Indigeneity, the Faculty of Education wishes to cultivate scholarship that honours and embodies the values inherent in Salish arts practices with a focus on Indigenous knowledges and processes of education through art-making ecologies. The inaugural Salish Weave Chair will be an Indigenous scholar with a history and practice of immersion in and engagement with Indigenous arts, education, cultures, and communities. The successful candidate will have a deep understanding of Indigenous inquiry and of the potential of transformation through the enactment of Indigenous arts and education practices in supporting the resurgence and continued thriving of Salish knowledge practices.

This opportunity is open to applicants who self-identify as Indigenous Persons who are First Nations, M矇tis and Inuit in Canada *, and Coast Salish peoples in the United States. (*Pursuant to section 42(3) of the BC Human Rights Code, the University received approval from the British Columbia Human Rights Commissioner to limit recruitment and hiring for various faculty positions to those who self-identify as Indigenous Persons (First Nations, M矇tis and Inuit). Under Section 1 of the Code, Indigenous Peoples meaning is as defined in the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, which further states that "Indigenous Peoples" has the same meaning as aboriginal peoples in section 35 of the Canadian constitution.) Candidates are required to complete a self-identification survey as part of their application package by the deadline indicated in this job posting. By completing the survey, you will be supporting academic units in tracking potential job applicants who identify as Indigenous in keeping with the University���s intention of hiring at least 15 Indigenous faculty by 2030, to meet our obligations under 911勛圖���s Employment Equity Policy (GP19), identify and remove systemic barriers to recruitment and hiring and enhance equity, diversity and inclusion in hiring faculty. The information will be used in conjunction with your work experience, abilities and qualifications to determine your appropriateness for this position. 

911勛圖 is committed to advancing equity, diversity and inclusion. We ask applicants to fill out the administered by the Equity Office. Candidates who do not complete the Applicant Demographic Survey will not be considered for this position.

Key Responsibilities

Relationship Building and Connections 

• Being aware of and sensitive to traditional protocols in order to build and sustain reciprocal relationships with local Indigenous communities (e.g., artists, Elders, youth) to support the visioning and enactment of educational and research partnerships that support knowledge mobilization and transmission related to Salish arts practices. Such partnerships would further support those communities��� goals with respect to self-determination, knowledge transmission, and sovereignty.
• Helping the Faculty cultivate and deepen reciprocal recognition and respectful relationships with Indigenous communities and contributing to the strengthening of responsible and relevant relationships and understandings across the Faculty. 
•  Involving academic colleagues from a diversity of disciplines (including teacher education and the Marianne and Edward Gibson Art Museum), along with Indigenous community and K-12 school partners, in developing and sustaining mutually beneficial research and educational collaborations focusing around Salish arts practices, including the Salish Weave collection held at the Gibson Art Museum.
•  Communicating academic and community knowledge in ways that contribute to provincial, national, and global dialogues on Indigenous resurgence through Indigenous arts practices and pedagogies. 
•  Participating in the Salish Weave Board -

Research and Scholarly activity 

•  Deepening the understanding of Indigeneity and Indigenous (including Salish) knowledges, and their implications for educational processes, in ways that contribute to transformative reconciliation and Indigenous resurgence related to Indigenous arts practices and pedagogies.
•  Securing a range of external funding in support of these forms of scholarship. 
•  Creating places and spaces for dialogue and knowledge sharing across communities, university, and other settings.

Teaching 

•  Enacting (or uplifting) and exploring Salish arts practices grounded in Indigenous knowledges and Indigeneity.
•  Mentoring colleagues, graduate and undergraduate students, teacher education candidates, and in-service teachers through Professional Development programming in Indigenous arts practices in respectful, responsible, relevant, and reciprocal partnership with local Indigenous knowledge holders, scholars, and communities. Please note, in the case of a tenure-track position, the expectation of graduate supervision occurs post-tenure. 
•  Cultivating the capacities in undergraduate and graduate students to make significant contributions to Indigenous arts (and/or arts education) practices, scholarship, programming and activities that enact and empower ongoing Indigenous resurgence across university and K-12 contexts. 
•  Enacting (or uplifting) Indigenous arts (and/or arts education) practices in courses and programs (e.g., undergraduate, graduate, and teacher professional development) across the Faculty of Education.

The Candidate 

The successful candidate will have demonstrated strength and practice in Indigenous arts, education, and knowledges, and in Indigeneity and Indigenous community engagement. In the case of a tenure-track appointment, a scholarly track record of research excellence (which may include creative practices) is required. As well, this person will have demonstrated their potential for creating strong collaborations with Salish artists, their families and communities within the term of the Chair to further an innovative and high-quality research, teaching and/or art practices program, including the translation, activation and animation of knowledge in dialogue with Indigenous communities and knowledge holders.

The Faculty of Education recognizes and values scholarship in the fine and performing arts and its multiple forms of inquiry, research creation and making, including (but not limited to) performances, installations, exhibits and a variety of writing genres such as poetry, novel, creative nonfiction, memoir, and/or other forms that further and promote our understanding of arts scholarship. 

Education

• For a tenure-track appointment, a PhD in a relevant field. PhD candidates with solid indication of imminent completion, and whose area of scholarship and arts (or arts education) practices align with the position, are encouraged to apply. They may be hired at the rank of Instructor and will be promoted to the rank of Assistant Professor upon completion of the PhD. 
• For a teaching or practitioner appointment, a PhD or other academic or professional qualifications or credentials demonstrating a high standard of knowledge and achievement in an artistic or arts-related field. 

The search committee acknowledges that no single individual is likely to meet all of the following criteria in equal measure; nevertheless, the successful candidate will be expected to demonstrate: 

Experience

• Strong, respectful, reciprocal relationships and engagement with Indigenous artists and communities. 
• An extensive network of colleagues and organizations engaged in collaborative efforts related to Indigenous knowledges, education, and Indigenous arts practices. Experience with intergenerational artist development and commissioning of new works is considered an asset.
• The capacity to build sustainable partnerships and secure external research grant funding. 
• Success in working collaboratively with colleagues, students, and/or staff in academic, research, artistic, K-12, and community contexts.
• Participation in research, educational and/or community/social development collaborations across diverse disciplines and forms of knowledge creation related to Indigenous arts practices. 
• Contributions to knowledge exchange, integration, and mobilization with Indigenous communities, specifically Indigenous arts practices.

Interpersonal Skills 

• The ability to foster respectful and reciprocal relationships across disciplinary, cultural and community differences, both within academia and with external partners.
• The ability to cultivate a sense of respect, trust, and leadership among research collaborators, community partners (including K-12 schools), faculty, staff, students, and trainees. 
• The ability to communicate Indigenous and academic approaches to reflecting on complex and sensitive issues in ways that promote dialogue, understanding, and the building of consensus within the academy, with Indigenous communities and among wider audiences.

Personal Characteristics 

• The highest standards of ethics and integrity according to both academic and Indigenous traditions of right action and ethical relationality.
• A respectful and open approach informed by Indigenous values and traditions and a commitment to the building and sharing of advanced knowledge in academic and public institutions honouring relational accountability. 
• A willingness to think creatively and ability to innovate, including ongoing engagement with a diversity of approaches to knowledge creation.
• Demonstrated vision, resilience and perseverance. 

To Apply

The initial stages of the application process are handled by Pathways Executive Search, a national recruitment firm offering Indigenous-focused professional services. With a mission to make recruitment and career journeys less challenging and more equitable, Pathways is guided by Indigenous values and principles of Indigenous inclusion, which underscore the capacity to build an inclusive process for all racialized and equity-deserving professionals.   

As a first step to exploring this important strategic leadership opportunity, applicants are asked to email separate files (Word or PDF), to applications@pathwaysexecutivesearch.com, that include the following elements:

1. A signed application letter consisting of the applicant���s personal self-identification narrative as an Indigenous person, artist, educator and scholar, reasons for interest in the position, and potential contributions to the Faculty of Education as they align with the role of the Chair, Indigenous Arts Practices and Pedagogies set out above; 

2. a current curriculum vitae, highlighting achievements that fall within the broad definition of scholarship within the Faculty of Education; in arts-related fields, these may include, but are not limited to, performances, installations, exhibits and a variety of writing genres such as poetry, novel, creative nonfiction, memoir, and/or other forms that further and promote our understanding of arts scholarship; dance, music, theatre, visual and/or multi-media arts;  sculpture, multi-media, photography, painting, performance art, and/or textile arts; as well as community transformation through scholarly informed intervention, ceremonies, practices, etc., and effective knowledge translation/mobilization within diverse communities;

3. A proposed program of research, education and/or arts practices (2-6 pages single spaced), including the following:

   1. an explanation of how the proposed program supports engagement with and/or resurgence of Salish arts practices;
   2. an explanation of how the proposed program is grounded in a particular understanding of Indigenous knowledges and Indigeneity; 
   3. an explanation of how any proposed research responds to the ethical framework outlined in Chapter 9 of the
   4. an explanation of how the proposed program aligns with and advances 911勛圖's Academic Plan 2025-30, the Faculty of Education's Academic Plan 2025-30, and where appropriate the relevant Strategic Research Plans (911勛圖, Education). 
   5. a description of how this Chair would strengthen undergraduate education, initial and ongoing professional development of teachers, and graduate studies in the Faculty of Education.
   
   These materials will provide the basis for initial conversations about the position. Subsequently, applicants may be asked to provide additional materials, including:
4. Two to four examples of refereed published scholarly work, and/or other forms of scholarship (as broadly defined above) that reflect originality and high quality; and
5.  The names of four referees (with contact information). Please do not ask referees to send letters of reference; they will be contacted directly as needed.

At this later stage of the process, applicants must complete the to be considered for this position (see Equity and Eligibility section below for more details). 

Applications received by September 4, 2026 will be given full consideration. Applications received after this date may be considered until the position is filled.

Compensation

Faculty salaries at 911勛圖 are based on the salary scales bargained between the University and the 911勛圖 Faculty Association.  

Tenure-track/tenured or Practitioner position:

A reasonable estimate of the salary range for a tenure-track or practitioner faculty position at the rank of Assistant Professor is $104,700 to $133,322. Candidates with experience commensurate with higher ranks may also be considered for appointment at the Associate Professor rank. A reasonable estimate of the salary range for a tenure-track/tenured or practitioner faculty position at the rank of Associate Professor is $130,142 to $155,584. PhD candidates with a solid indication of imminent completion may be hired at the rank of Instructor and will be promoted to the rank of Assistant Professor upon completion of the PhD. A reasonable estimate of the salary if the successful candidate will be starting as an Instructor is $98,340.

Teaching faculty position:

Reasonable estimates of the salary ranges are $98,340 to $114,241 for a Lecturer and $111,061 to $142,863 for a Senior Lecturer. 

To access the most up-to-date salary scales, please refer to the Faculty Relations website here.

Equity and Eligibility

911勛圖 is an institution whose strength is based on our shared commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion. Diversity is an underlying principle of our Strategic Vision, which pledges 911勛圖 to ���foster a culture of inclusion and mutual respect, celebrating the diversity reflected among its students, faculty, staff and our community.��� 911勛圖 is committed to ensuring no individual is denied access to employment opportunities for reasons unrelated to ability or qualifications. Consistent with this principle, 911勛圖 will advance the interests of underrepresented members of the work force, including Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, racialized persons and women; embrace gender and sexual diversity; ensure that equal opportunity is afforded to all who seek employment at the University; and treat all employees equitably. 

All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadian citizens and permanent residents will be given priority.

Personal information that forms part of an application is collected under the general authority of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, applicable University Policies, and the 911勛圖/911勛圖FA Collective Agreement. For further details see the full Collection Notice. 

For more details, please contact:

Laurie Sterritt ��� Managing Partner	Meaghen Fillion ��� Consultant
Pathways Executive Search	Pathways Executive Search
Telephone: 778-838-4569	Telephone: 204-292-8937
LaurieS@PathwaysExecutiveSearch.com	MeaghenF@PathwaysExecutiveSearch.com

911勛圖 acknowledges the x妢m��庛k妢��y����m (Musqueam), S廎硬x戔w繳7mesh ��xwumixw (Squamish), s��l��ilw����ta��优 (Tsleil-Waututh), q��穩c����y�� (Katzie), k妢ik妢��������m (Kwikwetlem), Qayqayt, Kwantlen, Semiahmoo and Tsawwassen peoples on whose traditional, unceded territories our three campuses stand.