A group of Indigenous students and staff posing together in a bright indoor atrium with large windows.
Beyond their capstone projects, the Indigenous Leadership Program regularly brings students together through gatherings, lectures and workshops that support ongoing learning, connection and growth.
Estimated Read Time:
4 minutes
Indigenous

Indigenous Leadership Program students driving community impact

Student-led projects support youth, uplift women and strengthen community connections.

Estimated Read Time:
4 minutes
Beyond their capstone projects, the Indigenous Leadership Program regularly brings students together through gatherings, lectures and workshops that support ongoing learning, connection and growth.
By

Sue Wang

This year marks the largest cohort of the University of Manitoba’s Indigenous Leadership Program (ILP), with 35 students completing  Paskwamostos Wawiyaw (Bison Circle, formerly Indigenous Circle of Empowerment) and 11 students completing the Bison Spirit program for first-year students. 

Coming from faculties across the university, these Indigenous students are not only learning about leadership — they are putting it into practice. 

Students present to an audience in a classroom, reading from notes at the front of the room.
A small group of students sit around a table in a classroom, working together on a project.
A group of students pose together in front of a display case of artwork in a campus building.
Southeast Collegiate building exterior and students working on beadwork designs at a table.
Left two images: The Resurgence Project team and a scene from their activities. Right two images: Craft and Chat team and a scene from their activities.

From October to March, the Paskwamostos Wawiyaw participants designed and delivered capstone projects centered on community impact. Leadership programming director Justin Rasmussen explains, the projects focused on supporting youth, responding to community needs and raising awareness — demonstrating how students translate leadership from theory into meaningful, visible action. 

From cultural connection to university pathways

Two of the capstone projects focused on creating opportunities that help Indigenous young people see themselves in post-secondary education. 

The Resurgence Project, developed in partnership with CanU, brought 125 students from 21 schools to campus over five weeks. The participants, primarily Grades 5 and 6 students, reflected the diversity of the community, with approximately 92 per cent identifying as BIPOC and 15 per cent identifying as Indigenous. 

Through cultural teachings, campus exploration and conversations with university students, the program helped participants imagine themselves in higher education — many for the first time. 

Project team member Victoria Stagg, a Master of Arts student in anthropology at the University of Manitoba and a member of Pauingassi First Nation,emphasized the importance of removing pressure around life paths: 

“You don’t need to have it all together. It ’ll come when it comes. Don’t try to force it.” 

She was struck by the depth of  students’ responses during activities, where they shared what it means to be a good friend.

“There’s a lot going on in those little minds of theirs,” she said. 

Another group, Craft and Chat, partnered with Southeast Collegiate — a Manitoba-based boarding school that supports Indigenous students from First Nations across the province. Using beading as a cultural entry point, the team created a space for open, informal dialogue. 

Team member Mariah Hanslip shared that while the sessions were initially expected to draw about 10 students, more than 20 — and at times nearly 30 — participated. As they worked on beading, students asked questions about university applications, program choices and future pathways, including fields such as pre-law and science.

We just wanted to provide an opportunity for high school students… to ask university students about their experiences.

Mariah Hanslip, a fourth-year Bachelor of Science student in microbiology

Two students at a table displaying beadwork and informational materials.
Handwritten notes outlining community issues.
International Women’s Day donation drive poster and donated hygiene items on a table.
Students interacting in a classroom during a group activity.
Left two images: Threading Power project at UM and a student project mind map. Right two images: International Women’s Day Donation Drive poster and donations, and students engaging during the capstone presentation.
Supporting women and responding to community needs

Two other projects focused on addressing immediate and pressing needs within the community, particularly in supporting women. 

The Threading Power project partnered with Women Helping Women Beadwork, an initiative founded by Sandra Burling, to support the sale of beadwork created by incarcerated Indigenous women. At campus and community events, students not only sold the pieces but shared the stories behind them, helping amplify voices that are often unheard. 

The project resulted in the sale of 57 pieces and raised $3,389. For the team, the impact extended beyond fundraising — it was about visibility, recognition and meaningful support. 

We just really wanted to be an advocate for it… and kind of advocate for Indigenous women because it’s a huge deal.

Mackaila Bruce-Tapley, a second-year science student and a Red River Métis student from Winnipeg with ties to St. Laurent 

Meanwhile, the International Women’s Day Donation Drive collected more than 130 items for Ndinawe Youth Resource Centre and North Point Douglas Women’s Centre. These donations included both essential supplies and items that support dignity and self-care. 

For team member Essence Wandering Spirit-Mordoch, a third-year social work student, the motivation was deeply personal:

“They deserve to be pampered. They deserve to feel loved. They deserve to be taken care of.” 

Students sitting in a circle during a group discussion session.
Group portrait of students dressed formally, posing together against a studio backdrop.
Students posing together, some holding baby dolls during a hands-on activity.
Students gathered in a classroom listening during a group session.
Through the Indigenous Leadership Program, students deepen their sense of identity and belonging while building the skills and confidence to lead—learning from one another, connecting with community and turning ideas into meaningful action.
From student growth to community impact

These projects reshaped how students understand leadership. 

For many, this meant embracing uncertainty. As Stagg shared: “You don’t need to have it all together.”  

That mindset — openness to growth and change — became part of the students’ own leadership journeys. 

Students also learned to navigate collaboration in real-world contexts. 

“Sometimes if somebody has more capacity, they would take it on,” Wandering Spirit-Mordoch said. 

Leadership, in this sense, is not a fixed role but a shared and evolving responsibility. 

The Indigenous leadership programs emphasize relationships — building trust with community partners, using culture as a bridge and responding to peoples’ lived realities. 

This approach is reflected in the new name given to the Indigenous Circle of Empowerment, which was renamed Paskwamostos Wawiyaw (Bison Circle) following student feedback that the previous name no longer reflected their experiences. 

Rasmussen explained that Paskwamostos Wawiyaw represents leadership as “collective, relational and grounded in community.” 

In nature, bison form a protective circle around those who need care. It reflects shared responsibility — each member contributing their gifts to support others.

Justin Rasmussen, Director of Indigenous Ieadership programming

When resources and support are meaningfully nurtured within Indigenous students, the impact does not stop at individual growth — it extends outward, through relationships, into communities as demonstrated through the capstone projects.

Sustaining and expanding this work means continuing to invest not only in programs, but in a model of leadership rooted in culture and collective responsibility. 

The Indigenous Leadership Programs are supported by the Mastercard Foundation’s EleV Program. If you’re looking for ways to support Indigenous excellence at UM, please see more options online.