Lethbridge College, with its “We are Aikowania” video and facility reconciliation initiative, has earned the institution the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Innovation Award.
The CCAA Innovation Award recognizes a member institution that has developed an initiative demonstrating unique marketing, communication, or technological advances in its athletic program.
In front of a packed crowd that included 160 Kodiaks student-athletes and coaches as well as other students, employees, alumni and friends, Lethbridge unveiled a new Indigenous logo on its home court last September – and showed the “We Are Aikowania” video as part of the celebration.
The video stunned the crowd at the launch and has been shown many times since. It features Lethbridge College community members and showcases the natural beauty of Blackfoot territory, where the institution is situated, as well as the action and activity inside of the gym. The video captures the pride of place (both the natural beauty of the prairies with mountains in the distance, as well as the gym), shows how the new logo and design “bring Blackfoot territory into the gym,” was created, and celebrates the body awareness and movement (Aikowania).
“At Lethbridge College, we believe it is a privilege to be located on the traditional lands of the Siksikaitsitapi (Blackfoot Confederacy), and that it is our responsibility to honour and respect what that means,” said Todd Caughlin, Kodiaks Athletic Director.
Creating the video was a true collaborative effort involving colleagues from Indigenous Services, Athletics, Marketing and Communications as well as an external videographer. The thought and care put into the video demonstrates how college employees are working toward deepening their understanding of traditional cultures and ways of knowing, while taking definitive action to support the actions laid out by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
The team at Lethbridge knew it was important to ‘go beyond the gym’ and out to the land, and that the artwork on the floor would bring the territory into the facility.
The project had the support of the executive leadership team, but it was important that the college’s Blackfoot colleagues and community leaders guided the project, offered insights and direction, and provided the voiceovers.
Approximately 40 college employees and Indigenous and non-Indigenous community members attended a smudge to cleanse the space before the launch and showing of the video. Since then, chiefs from Kainai and Piikani First Nations have toured the gym and given the college positive feedback on the changes.
Lethbridge is the first institution in the CCAA to incorporate Indigenous culture in its gymnasium floor design. The new design includes the familiar fierce Kodiak bear at the centre, but it is now surrounded by several meaningful Indigenous images, designs and words, including the word Aikowania (ay-GO-aww-nya), which appears on one side of the court next to the painted drawing of a bear. Aikowania refers to body awareness and movement – the strength, stamina and sharp mind needed to be able to spring into action at a moment’s notice. It is the essence of readiness, and something all Kodiaks can strive for.
“Honouring and acknowledging the traditional lands of the Blackfoot people by incorporating these important symbols on the floor and throughout the facility is both a dream come true and a constant reminder of our ongoing commitment,” said Caughlin. “It is a commitment our entire college has made, and it reflects our promise to every student who has passed through our doors, past, present and future.”
The project has made a lasting impact on all of those involved. Because of the facility updates and the video that celebrates the space, the gym makes it clear that Kodiaks Country is truly a part of Blackfoot territory. Every person who now enters the facility sees it celebrated with pride, and they are all reminded about the story that is a step to connecting everyone to the territory by the symbols there.
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The Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) enriches the academic experiences of student-athletes by providing leadership, programs and services that foster development through high-level competitive opportunities in intercollegiate sport.
Media Contact:
Rodney Wilson / rodney@ccaa.ca
Manager, Communications & Events
