Maintaining a Dialogue with the Mi'kmaw Community

Justice Murray Sinclair (left) Chair of the Indian Residential School Truth and Reconciliation Commission and Jarvis Googoo (right).

Saint Mary’s University graduate Jarvis Googoo is using his background and education to promote continued dialogue between Mi’kmaw and Aboriginal peoples and the Nova Scotia Government.

“My learning experience at Saint Mary's University has prepared me well for my role at the Nova Scotia Office of Aboriginal Affairs,” says Googoo, who joined the provincial government in April 2010.

Googoo, a Mi'kmaw from the We’koqma’q community, graduated cum laude from Saint Mary’s in 2005 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology and Criminology.

As a Senior Policy Analyst in the Office of Aboriginal Affairs, he works closely with the Mi'kmaq-Nova Scotia-Canada Tripartite Forum Education and Health Committees, and often acts as a resource on different aspects of the Mi'kmaw culture, for example the language, where he is asked from time to time for translations and proper pronunciation.

Googoo credits two professors at Saint Mary’s for having left indelible marks on his life.  He said the late Dr. Lloyd Reiber in Business taught him “the importance of excellent communication skills and networking in today's working world.”

Googoo also appreciates the open dialogue that Dr. Val Marie Johnson, a professor in the Sociology and Criminology Department, allowed in her Law & Society Class with respect to his personal experiences as a Mi'kmaw.  He said his input was never stifled in a class that centered on the colonialism, racism and injustices of Aboriginal people and other marginalized groups in Canada.

Dr. Val Johnson remembers Googoo as “a remarkably engaged and intelligent student.”

Googoo and Dr. Johnson remain in contact.

Googoo had the opportunity to be a part of the Indian Residential School Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) of Canada’s logistics committee for the four day National Event held in Halifax last October.

The TRC has a mandate to learn the truth about what happened in the residential schools and to inform all Canadians about what happened in the schools.  The Atlantic Event provided open forums to the Halifax community to learn about the history of Residential Schools.

Not only did Googoo work on the committee, but he also volunteered at the event.

“It was one of the most incredible experiences of my life to be part of the event, and I'm giving serious thought to going to other National TRC events and volunteering,” he says.

After graduating from Saint Mary’s, Jarvis Googoo went on to Law School at Dalhousie University where he graduated in 2008. He was instrumental in the development of the Donald Marshall Junior Memorial Award at the Dalhousie Schulich School of Law, which recognizes a third-year student who demonstrates a commitment to Aboriginal Justice.  Googoo was called to the Nova Scotia Barrister’s Society in 2009. He was also a Torchbearer for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics and is a part-time BODYATTACK instructor with GoodLife Fitness in HRM.

This page last modified Thursday, 26-Jan-2012 13:22:12 AST