Graduate students in The University of Winnipeg’s MDP in Indigenous Development program gathered September 12 to share their summer experiences working with organizations and communities on Indigenous approaches to development in Winnipeg and beyond.
The annual MDP Field Placement Symposium is an opportunity for fellow students, faculty, staff, and community partners to hear firsthand about the meaningful, and frequently transformative, work placements that are an integral part of this unique master’s degree.
“Experiential learning is a core pillar of the MDP program,” Dr. Patricia Fitzpatrick, Acting Chair, told those assembled for the presentations.
I think we’re stronger when we work together.
Jackie Dormer
Each MDP student completes two community work placements during their studies. Dr. Kyle Devine, Dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies, called experiential learning placements “a cornerstone of the student experience” at UWinnipeg. Dr. Chantal Fiola, Associate Vice-President, Indigenous, said the symposium is “a highlight for me every year.”
“I am consistently inspired by the MDP students’ presentations and their efforts contributing to local and global organizations and communities mobilizing Indigenous approaches to development,” Dr. Fiola continued. “As a result, the MDP program has built longstanding, reciprocal partnerships with Indigenous communities with far-reaching positive impacts.”
The 11 student presentations ranged from restorative justice work here in Manitoba to lessons in Indigenous resilience on the Caribbean island of Dominica.
From campus to Camperville
Métis student Jackie Dormer shared about her placement with Prairies to Woodlands Indigenous Language Revitalization Circle, a non-profit grassroots community organization co-founded by Prof. Heather Souter, a Michif (Métis) faculty member in the Department of Anthropology and the Indigenous Languages program.
The placement involved remote work in Winnipeg and two trips to Camperville, a small Métis community located an hour’s drive north of Dauphin, where P2W is based.
Dormer is in her second year of the MDP program. She is the recipient of a Canada Graduate Scholarship from SSHRC (the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada), and is the first MDP student to receive UWinnipeg’s President’s Distinguished Graduate Student Scholarship.
Dormer’s major research project explores how language revitalization and reclamation are connected to well-being, making P2W a great fit.
Jackie Dormer presents on her summer work placement.
“P2W focuses on revitalizing Southern Michif and other languages spoken by Métis people and their kin, and on community-building and creating environments where languages can thrive,” Dormer said.
At P2W, Dormer assisted with weekly Southern Michif classes, collaborated on a policy chapter with Souter, and worked on an endangered languages resource for Indigenous communities. She also presented on P2W at WAVES 2025, a global Indigenous languages summit held in Ottawa in August.
“My favourite part of WAVES was just running into people,” Dormer said.
She greeted scholars she had only interacted with online, and met Dustin Gerald Morrow Aagimewikamig, who voiced Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars: Anangong Miigaading, the Anishinaabemowin (Ojibwe) version of Star Wars: A New Hope that premiered last year in Winnipeg.
Dormer said berry-picking in Camperville was another highlight of her summer.
“It’s a very beautiful community, and it was also eye-opening as someone who’s always lived in and around Winnipeg,” Dormer said.
Dormer said her work placement taught her to be flexible in her work.
“You kind of have to go with the flow, you have to be willing to adapt and take on new responsibilities,” she said. “They’re great learning opportunities and there’s always something good that comes out of it.”
Dormer also learned the importance of relationships in academic work.
“Communication is always so important and relationships are what this work is based on,” she said. “I think we’re stronger when we work together. Collaboration is essential.”
