Meet Members of the FNUniv Academic Team

Where are you from?

Home is Ohsweken (Six Nations Reserve), Ontario. There are about 30,000 people connected to the reserve from various nations.  My nation is Kanyen’kehake, Flint Nation, more generally known as Mohawk. Ohsweken is named after Oswego in New York State, and means Under Willow. When the canoes were pulled onto the river banks there, they were under overhanging willow trees, hence the name. I grew up in Hamilton, Ontario, spent 12 years at the University of Toronto, 4 years in Ohsweken, then moved to Regina.

What is something we don’t know about you?

I do partner dancing, and I have for 30 years. Swing is my favourite style of dance: West Coast Swing, East Coast Swing, and Lindy Hop are my most favourite, but I enjoy many other kinds of dance, including Salsa.

What is your area of study?

I am trying to create a new area of study: Indigenous Mathematics as a discipline of its own. I want to know how we can distinguish Indigenous Mathematics from other disciplines, especially what makes it different from NUC (nearly universal and conventional) mathematics (which I also refer to as Global Mathematics). Right now, I’m working on the foundations of Indigenous Mathematics: what does it mean to go “back to basics” in Indigenous Mathematics?

What do you research? Do you publish or have books (and do you want to talk about your publications?)

I publish on the subject of Indigenous Mathematics in a variety of formats. I ask how mathematics can be of service to Indigenous people; I use mathematics to develop word puzzles, and software to automate the construction of word puzzles; I am interested in the role of story in mathematics. My favourite publication of mine so far is a book chapter called Off the Grid.

What are you most proud of?

In my culture, we are told not to brag, but I’m also an academic. I am most proud of learning the Mohawk language. I have not yet risen to the level of fluency, but now the program I took, Onkwawenna Kentyohkwa (Our Language Group), has a second level and I should take it and try harder to develop fluency.

Do you have a 5-year plan? What does it include?

I don’t believe in planning. I recommend the philosophy of Nassim Nicholas Taleb, who advises that we should not plan, because it reduces our future options, but that we should instead prepare. Optionality is having future choices and future options. So, I don’t plan… I just prepare like heck. I build skills and develop relationships, which provide me with opportunities and the ability to pursue them.

Where are you from?

I grew up in the Grenfell area, on the Zagime Anishinabek First Nation in Southern Saskatchewan. I moved to Yorkton during my grade nine year and went to high school and graduated from there in 1986.

What is something we don’t know about you?

I collect angels and I believe in angels. I have an altar of them at home. They bring me great comfort.

What is your area of study?

I completed my Associate Diploma in Business Administration, which is halfway to a BAdmn. I use my age as an excuse for not finishing right now. I will go back one day, maybe in another field… maybe by the time I retire or just after.

What do you research? Do you publish or have books (and do you want to talk about your publications?)

I don’t have publications. I used to write in a journal… I think that everyone goes through that stage in their life.

What are you most proud of?

My family and my grand daughter (mostly). She is my first one, and the daughter of my only son. She is my everything. She is so sweet and is just beginning to test her parents. She just turned 3 on Monday, Aug 4^th.

Do you have a 5-year plan? What does it include?

I just bought a house; we’ve got lots of room to grow. I’ll finish working and hopefully my son & his family will take over so that they can start building their foundation. Then I think that I’ll go back to school or retire and enjoy retirement.