'Keep thinking about the goal': 87-year-old U of Sask. grad hopes to help revitalize Cree language
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When Louise Fraser walked across the stage on Saturday afternoon at Saskatoon's Prairieland Park, she felt happy to achieve a goal she worked so hard for. She wasn't just receiving a degree, she said — she was reclaiming something that was almost taken from her as a child.
"When I was a child, I was fluent in the Cree language, because I heard it all the time at home from my family. But when I went to residential school, I was not able to use my language anymore," Fraser said.
At 87 years old, Fraser is the oldest graduate in the history of the University of Saskatchewan's Indian Teacher Education Program, a four-year education program designed for First Nations students who want to get a bachelor of education degree.
On Saturday, she received her degree, along with 38 others in front of family, friends and supporters.
Fraser's Cree name, wîhkaskwa iskwéw, means "Sweetgrass Woman." She's a member of Mistawasis Nêhiyawak, west of Prince Albert, and was taken from her family and sent to residential school in Manitoba when she was eight years old.
"Being at residential school, losing my identity, my language and my culture — we had to leave it behind," she said. "We couldn't follow our culture anymore."
Being forced to abandon her culture planted the seeds for a lifetime of learning and reclamation. She raised four children and got diplomas and a master's degree, and worked in different fields, from libraries to mental health. But there was more Fraser wanted to do.
She applied to the University of Saskatchewan teacher education program in 2023, following in the footsteps of her granddaughter, who graduated from the same program in 2018.
Although she initially felt out of place surrounded by new technology and younger classmates, she soon found strength and community, she said.
The program is centred around Indigenous culture, language and teacher training — something Fraser said is essential for empowerment of the younger generations.
"I heard about many people not speaking our languages anymore. Parents aren't speaking the language to their children. I thought going back to school would be a way of getting it back," Fraser said.
When asked what advice she would give to someone who thinks it's too late to go back to school, Fraser didn't hesitate.
"Figure out what you want to do, make plans to make it happen…. Just keep thinking about the goal," she said.
As for what's next, Fraser says she plans to spend her time teaching Cree and sharing her story in schools and communities.
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