Inaugural UM Vice-President (Indigenous) retires after years of impactful leadership
After more than 30 years with the University of Manitoba, Vice-President (Indigenous) Catherine Cook, MD, MSc, CCFP, FCFP will retire at the end of January 2024, moving into a new phase of her life.
Throughout her career, Cook [MD/87, MSc/03] has worked with First Nations, Métis, Inuit, provincial and federal governments, as well as community organizations, to champion the importance of health services for Indigenous Manitobans.
She has served on multiple professional associations, councils, committees and boards as a highly respected advisor who advocates for Indigenous peoples’ health.
In doing so, she has worn many hats: as Vice-President of Population and Public Health at the Winnipeg Regional Health Organization (WRHA), provincial lead of Indigenous health at Shared Health Manitoba; as an associate professor of community health sciences; as head of Ongomiizwin – Indigenous Institute of Health and Healing; as vice-dean of Indigenous Health; and most recently as the inaugural vice-president (Indigenous) at UM.
“It’s been such a privilege to do the work we’ve done and have people trust we could do it. And I say ‘we’, because none of this work is done alone,” says Dr. Cook.
Cook took on the role of vice-president (Indigenous) at UM in 2020. She says that while efforts to address Reconciliation at the university had been underway for years, her goal was to set up a structure that would create real systems change for Indigenous people.
“I think the biggest success in the way this rolled out was putting recommendations in place that focused on having accountability rest with all of the vice-presidents – not just the VP Indigenous,” says Cook.
“Because Reconciliation is about everybody. It’s not up to only Indigenous people to affect Reconciliation. And we can’t achieve anything without the whole country being involved and, in this case, the whole university.”
UM President and Vice-Chancellor Dr. Michael Benarroch highlights Cook’s work to advance Indigenous engagement, success and governance at UM and build a culturally safe environment for Indigenous students, staff, faculty and guests.
“I’d like to recognize Dr. Cook for her visionary leadership as UM’s first-ever Vice-President (Indigenous). Dr. Cook has proven to be a collaborative, patient, yet assertive leader. She serves as a strong mentor for her team and others at the university who are working to transform colonial structures. It has been a genuine pleasure to work with and learn from Catherine since I assumed my role,” says Benarroch.
In December 2023, members of the UM community came together on the Fort Garry Campus to celebrate Dr. Cook’s years of service and her enduring impact on advancing Indigenous engagement and reconciliation at UM.
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