Indigenous Affairs - Senior Advisor & AVP

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THE OPPORTUNITY: SENIOR ADVISOR AND AVP, INDIGENOUS AFFAIRS
UBC has long practiced an approach that asks every UBC community member to take responsibility for moving forward and implementing the work of the 2020 UBC Indigenous Strategic Plan (“ISP”) the successor to UBC’s pathbreaking 2009 Aboriginal Strategic Plan. The ISP advances UBC’s vision of becoming a leading university globally in the implementation of Indigenous peoples’ human rights. It commits UBC to the recommendations of the Truth & Reconciliation Committee, the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People (UNDRIP), the BC Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA), and the Calls to Justice from the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. UBC was the first university in North America to commit to implementing the UNDRIP principles and to take a human rights-based approach to its Indigenous strategic framework.

The Indigenous context at UBC extends beyond the ISP, based on a decades-long commitment to supporting Indigenous learners, faculty, staff, and communities, setting UBC apart from other institutions. UBC’s proactive approach to building its Indigenous communities is demonstrated by targeted academic advising services in every faculty. Indigenous counsellors, career strategists, accessibility advisors, and enrolment services advisors all work together to ensure services are linked and responsive to student needs.

UBC seeks a Senior Advisor and AVP, Indigenous Affairs (“Sr. Advisor”) who will be instrumental in furthering and deepening the University’s Indigenous engagement, initiatives, and efforts to advance justice and reconciliation. Operationally reporting to the Provost and Vice-President Academic, the Sr. Advisor will play a key convening role for Indigenous initiatives at UBC’s Vancouver campus. Described by a member of the President’s Advisory Committee on Indigenous Affairs as “the one who steers the boat”, the Sr. Advisor is intended to be a convenor, working relationally to move ahead UBC’s commitments to its Indigenous Strategic Plan.

This is an outstanding opportunity for an Indigenous scholar and administrator to make an institution-wide impact at one of Canada’s leading universities. Bringing a relational and inclusive approach, the Sr. Advisor should engage across UBC’s many communities to meaningfully operationalize the core pillars of the ISP, while serving as a key advisor and advocate to leadership across the organization. Building relationships with local First Nations and situating their work within the Coastal BC and broader Canadian Indigenous contexts, the Sr. Advisor should instill an ethos of reciprocity into UBC’s institutional culture and operations.

Key Responsibilities:

• Provide leadership to the various committees of the ISP’s Guiding Network, the Indigenous Leads of the Faculties, and the Faculty Network, to best distill and represent the voices of UBC’s Indigenous communities; the Sr. Advisor may participate in these committees in a leadership or convenor role;
• Serve as key senior advisor to the President, Provost, Executive, Deans and others on Indigenous matters and help to design strategies and approaches, both centrally and with units, and to track and report on progress; they will serve as a member of the Provost’s Office Leadership Team;
• Work closely with the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), on whose traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory the campus of UBC Vancouver is located in order to build reciprocal frameworks for advancing the work of the ISP; the Sr. Advisor will help further UBC’s engagements with First Nations, Métis, and Inuit peoples throughout BC and Canada;
• Lead and support the work of the Office of Indigenous Strategic Initiatives; the Indian Residential Schools History and Dialogue Centre; and the First Nations House of Learning, supporting the leadership and staff in these units, which will have their direct reports into the Sr. Advisor;
• Advance UBC’s dedication to Indigenous students by increasing support and outreach to registered students, prospective students, mature students, and students from rural / remote locations;
• Coordinate their work with the Sr. Advisor to the Deputy Vice-Chancellor on Indigenous Affairs at the UBC Okanagan campus; and
• Advance and support the goals of UBC’s Indigenous Strategic Plan.

THE PERSON:
UBC is looking to recruit a senior scholar (Associate Professor or Professor), with strong ties to Indigenous communities; a deep knowledge of Coastal BC Indigenous nations is welcomed. A faculty appointment in an appropriate unit will be arranged. In accordance with UBC’s Indigenous Strategic Plan, and pursuant to the BC Human Rights Code, this search meets the criteria for restriction to Indigenous persons.

The ideal candidate should be a leader who is well experienced with the complexities of decolonizing and Indigenizing systems. Possessing an inclusive and collaborative leadership style, they build engagement with by creating a true team environment, leveraging the considerable expertise that exists across UBC. The Sr. Advisor should leverage their lived and professional experience in Indigenous communities to bring an informed practice rooted in social justice, human rights, anti-racism, and decolonization.

Professional and Personal Qualifications:

• Doctorate degree with a substantial track record of recognized scholarship within their field of study, preferably with a focus on Indigenous issues and frameworks;
• Lived experience and familiarity with the history, stories, ceremonies, cultural norms, and knowledge systems of First Nations, Inuit, or Métis Peoples required;
• Grounding in BC Indigenous communities is an asset; ability to develop relationships and engage with communities, and advise UBC’s executive on how to engage with communities on matters of importance;
• Demonstrated administrative leadership experience within a post-secondary context;
• Experience leading, implementing, and assessing impactful Indigenous-focused initiatives and programs;
• Experience leading and supervising team members and building a department is an asset;
• Knowledge of Indigenous research protocols, and data governance principles and practices is an asset;
• Extensive knowledge of Indigenous Peoples, cultures, and protocols, ideally locally, but also provincially, nationally, and internationally; and
• Knowledge of current issues in Indigenous education and relevant legislation; established relationships with Elders, Traditional Knowledge Keepers, and with Indigenous communities and organizations; working relationships with Elders and Indigenous communities in UBC’s local communities is an asset.

Candidates will be asked to submit a personal attestation of Indigenous citizenship, nationhood, or affiliation that outlines how they meet the criteria of a restricted hire per Section 11 of the BC Human Rights Code.

COMPENSATION:
A competitive compensation package will be provided including an attractive base salary and excellent benefits. The salary range is $240,000—$275,000. Further details will be discussed in a personal interview.

To apply, please visit our website.           

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Shadyar Shirmast or Tony Kirschner
LEADERS INTERNATIONAL EXECUTIVE SEARCH
#880—609 Granville Street
Vancouver, BC V7Y 1G5
Phone: (604) 688-8422
Email: [email protected]