Aboriginal Services Team
Nathan Matthew
Executive Director, Aboriginal Education
History
Nathan belongs to the Secwepemc Nation, is a Simpcw First Nation member and currently lives at Chu Chua.
Responsibilities at TRU
Nathan is responsible for supporting the recruitment, retention and success of aboriginal students at TRU. He accomplishes this by establishing and maintaining relationships with First Nation communities and aboriginal organizations, providing advice on aboriginal student services, and ensuring all TRU campuses reflect Interior Salish culture in significant ways.
Note to Students
Welcome to all aboriginal students. TRU provides a variety of personal and academic support services for you. Please feel free to drop by our Gathering Place to relax, meet friends, or talk to one of our staff about any issue that is facing you during your time at TRU. TRU is both a challenging and rewarding place. Our role is to reduce the challenging aspects and maximize the rewards. Good luck!
Joanne Brown
Coordinator, Services for Aboriginal Students
Responsibilities at TRU
Joanne provides all aspects of student support services including, but not limited to: funding applications, advocacy to external agencies throughout various organizations, liaison with faculty and other networks, and referrals to appropriate departments based on student and faculty need. Additionally, Joanne manages all services and programs at the Gathering Place.
Dory La Boucane
Aboriginal Transition Planner, Services for Aboriginal Students
History
Dory is a proud Métis woman who has travelled and lived all over British Columbia.
Responsibilities at TRU
Dory facilitates the successful transition of aboriginal students to TRU by developing and implementing individual transition plans in collaboration with Aboriginal Education Coordinators, aboriginal communities and organizations.
Note to Students
Waytk, Tansi:
I was drawn to the Secwepemc territory because of the beautiful Thompson Rivers and the arid climate. My Métis nomadic nature has taken me around the province through employment opportunities and educational pursuits. Aboriginal Education is my passion and chosen career path and I especially enjoy working in the post secondary system. I struggled in my first year of college and fully understand the barriers that students can face. It gives me great satisfaction in assisting students with their transition into the fast paced academic life style.
Elizabeth Rennie
Instruction & Outreach Librarian
History
Elizabeth was born and raised in Calgary, Alberta. She moved to Williams Lake in 2002 and was the TRU Williams Lake Campus Librarian until 2009, when she transferred down to the Kamloops Campus.
Responsibilities at TRU
Elizbeth is an Instruction & Outreach Librarian who coordinates and teaches library instruction classes; if your instructor has booked a couple of hours of in-class library time, it is quite likely that Elizabeth will be the librarian you are going to see, although you may see some of the other friendly TRU librarians in your classroom as well. Elizabeth also offers drop-in workshops and spends time at the Library Information Desk answering student research questions. Elizabeth believes that, "The 'outreach' part of my job is the fun stuff: spending time at the Gathering Place, getting to attend student conferences on behalf of the library, organizing library displays for orientation, etc."
Note to Students
I look forward to meeting students, both at the Gathering Place and at the Library. And remember that I’m not the only TRU librarian; if I’m not around, any one of the TRU librarians or library technicians at the Information Desk would be happy to help you out. We’re kind of geeky (ask to see my Librarian Action Figure at some point) but the fact is, we all love what we do. Answering student questions is the best part of any day!
Wendy Chernivchan
Vernie Clement
