Super Saturday

Posted July 20, 1998


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - July 20, 1998
98-07-06-OTHER

Super Summer Camp Begins Today at the
U of S!

The first of two week long summer camps for First Nations children
kicks off today!

The Super Saturday program follows the traditional belief is that each
child is born with their own special gift or talent. The aim of these
camps is to stimulate these special gifts or talents by providing
interesting and unique activities which have First Nations traditional
knowledge within modern teachings.

The program, which is a collaborative venture between the University
of Saskatchewan and the Saskatoon Tribal Council (STC), will
expand to include fall and winter programs on selected Saturdays for
First Nations children.

"The Super Saturday project is an exciting innovation that we at the
University of Saskatchewan are pleased to be part of. It has been
especially encouraging to observe members of the Saskatoon Tribal
Council working cooperatively with several faculty, deans and senior
university administrators to get this project off the ground," says Tom
Wishart, Acting Dean of the College of Arts and Science.

"Super Saturday is about creating dreams for the future and teaching
our young people that they can become doctors, scientists or great
literary writers. If we help them nurture or discover their innate gifts
and talents, the enthusiasm and eagerness to learn more of a specific
subject follows naturally," says Chief Harry Lafond of Muskeg Lake
Cree Nation. "This program is a great mechanism to show our youth
that they are important to us and we are pleased that the University of
Saskatchewan is committed to Super Saturday and the Super
Summer Camps."

During the July 20 - 24 camp, instructors from different disciplines
including Biology, Fine Arts, Agriculture and Engineering, will open
some doors to the magic of their disciplines, while incorporating the
Aboriginal culture into the five day program.

Super Saturday was developed to promote educational activities
geared toward building self-esteem and fostering healthy attitudes
towards education among First Nations Youth.

"One of our goals is to let our Indigenous peoples know that this is
their university too and that they are welcome. Our expectation is that
introducing young people to the campus will reduce the culture
'shock' they would otherwise face when they come to the university
for the first time. We also want to open some doors for native students
and to raise their own expectations of what they can do and achieve.
We are particularly interested in encouraging more of these students
to think about careers in the sciences and professional colleges,"
says Wishart.

Media are invited to come to the camp's headquarters in Room 104
Memorial Union Building at the University of Saskatchewan on
Wednesday, July 22 from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm. All media will have
the opportunity to view the sessions, speak with students/facilitators
and tour the facilities.


For more information, please contact:

Joy Starr or Brenda Ahenakew
Super Saturday Co-ordinator Director of Educational
Saskatoon Tribal Council Inc. Programs
(306) 856-6100 Saskatoon Tribal Council Inc.
(306) 856-6100