Tinisha Young has been in business since high school, and an advocate for the importance of Indigenous mentorship even longer.

Today, Young holds many titles. She is status through Opaskwayak Cree Nation in Treaty 5, Man., and an Indigenous Knowledge Keeper. She is a member of Lakeland College's Class of 2018 in business administration and a current student at the University of Athabasca. She has been married for three years and is mother to an eight-year-old daughter and a four-year-old son. She is also Lakeland's newest Indigenous Support Services manager - and she was instrumental in first creating the position, while still a student at Lakeland.

An entrepreneurial spirit

It was her love of business that first brought Young to Lakeland.

“The business program spoke to me because I've always wanted to be an entrepreneur,” Young explains. “In my free time, I will literally think of different business ideas and make business plans for fun. When I was little, I would draw pictures of businesses and write down the things I would sell. I've always had that entrepreneurial spirit.”

Young, who has lived in Lloydminster most of her life, got involved in an entrepreneur program at Holy Rosary High School. Students worked together to develop a business and run it, complete with a city administered business license and business bank account. Their project ended up winning a Junior Achievement award and Young was officially bitten by the business bug.

“It was the first time I thought, ‘oh my goodness, this is what I need,'” she says. “And I knew if I took the business program at Lakeland, I would have the tools I need in my toolbox to actually be an entrepreneur.”

Catalyst for change

Young found the experience of moving from high school to post-secondary jarring, however. She had grown up involved in various Indigenous clubs, implemented by her mother, the Aboriginal Program Coordinator for the Lloydminster Catholic School Division. In Cree Club, students from Grades 3 to 7 gathered to learn Cree. The club also brought in speakers and mentors to teach the children about hygiene, makeup, cooking and other life skills. In high school, Young was involved in the Dreamcatcher Mentorship group.

“It wasn't just about learning about the culture. It was about creating those lasting friendships,” Young says. “We were able to encourage each other. The older ones mentored the little ones. When I came to Lakeland College, I was used to that, but there was nothing like it here. I kept to myself and didn't talk to anybody. I missed being able to rely on others and have others rely on me.”

The catalyst for change came in a business class, where Young teamed up with two fellow Indigenous learners on a public relations (PR) project. They were tasked with developing a report with PR suggestions for an existing organization. They chose Lakeland and decided to focus on things the college could do to help Indigenous learners feel more at home and supported.

Their three suggestions included designating a specific space on campus for Indigenous learners, appointing a mentor to guide Indigenous learners through the different resources available to them, and incorporating more Indigenous culture into campus life.

Their project was shared with Dr. Alice Wainwright-Stewart, president and CEO of Lakeland College, who invited them to implement their ideas.

Young and her classmates gathered 75 Indigenous learners in a room on the Lloydminster campus to brainstorm ideas of what changes people wanted to see.

“And so came the Indigenous Student Council,” Young says. “It was really starting to take off and be something. It was phenomenal to be a part of it.”

It snowballed from there - with the creation of the Indigenous Student Lounge on the Lloydminster campus, the hiring of an Indigenous Support Services manager (a position which Young now holds), and the integration of many Indigenous cultural practices into Lakeland campus life, including teepee raisings, Powwows, Blanket exercises, medicine walks and more. Plans are under way to construct an Indigenous Student Lounge on the Vermilion campus as well.

A shift in culture

The creation of the Indigenous Student Council has caused a culture shift for Indigenous learners at Lakeland. In addition to that sense of camaraderie and mentorship, the council builds accountability too, as students lean on each other, study together, and keep each other on track.

“Giving students goals to work towards gives them something fulfilling as well,” Young says. “When they say they want a ribbon skirt workshop and then that workshop comes to fruition, it gives them a voice and lets them know that we're actually listening. I was a student who didn't think my PR project was going to matter. But Lakeland listens to its students.”

Now that she is the Indigenous Support Services manager, Young is in an even stronger position to support Indigenous learners at Lakeland. Her role involves providing comprehensive support to Indigenous students through cultural, wellness, academic, and financial avenues. This includes facilitating cultural reclamation, offering academic resources, fostering connections with Indigenous communities, and promoting overall wellness within the college.

“As a student, I wanted to leave something for future students. I want to give them the chance for mentorship and to create friendships and to step outside their comfort zones and maybe learn something they didn't know before. I feel like I'm driving the bus now where I used to sit in the back. I can help others now. I've come full circle. It's just fulfilling.”

Sparking an interest in emergency services

Young's business endeavours have also been impacted by her mission to increase Indigenous learner success in post-secondary - particularly when it comes to firefighting and emergency services.

When she learned that only two per cent of firefighters in Canada are Indigenous, she was inspired to start Iskotêw Training, which became an official business in 2022. Through it, Young runs a series of emergency training exposure camps designed to encourage Indigenous people to take part in the emergency services industry. The camps operate both on Lakeland's campus at the Emergency Training Centre (ETC) and remotely in various Indigenous communities.

“We thought, how fun would it be to have Indigenous youth from different First Nations come out, put on the bunker gear, play with the hoses, and experience what firefighter training is really like,” she says. “That's why we built this business. And Lakeland's ETC was kind enough to let us use their facilities and equipment for it.”

The camps incorporate Indigenous cultural elements as well, including starting with a Smudge ceremony. Young also ensures students are well fed at the camps, ordering more food than needed so those who need it can take leftovers home. They've gathered a supply of things like toothpaste, laundry detergent and other necessities that have been donated, so if there is a particular student in need, they can give them a bag to take home.

So far, 70 students have participated in the camps, and four have gone on to enrol in the program. Young says many more students are on the path towards getting the requirements they need to enrol, including academics, drivers' licences and a medical test.

“These can be barriers that can stop so many from applying,” Young says. “But we help students get on the pathway towards it. They've decided this is something they want to pursue and we give them the goals they need to walk that path.”

Photos: Top - Tinisha Young. Top-middle: A group sits around the medicine wheel in the Indigenous Student Lounge. Middle-bottom: A group of Lakeland College students and staff participate in a blanket ceremony. Bottom - Iskotew Training Badge.