Isaac Brock student teacher is helping to change the face of education

At times in her educational journey, Malaihka Siemens has felt like an imposter. But, by being honest about that genuine feeling, she’s proving to herself and others that she’s the real deal.

Siemens, 19, is a student in Build From Within - Ozhitoon Onji Peenjiiee, a teacher development program that provides a path for Indigenous high school students to post-secondary education and to eventual employment as educators.

Siemens is in her second year at the University of Winnipeg (U of W) and is currently working as a student teacher at Isaac Brock School. In November, she had an essay published in the University of Winnipeg’s “Rooted in Rhetoric” journal.

Her essay, titled “Post-Secondary Imposter Syndrome”, details how she didn’t always feel deserving of being in Build From Within and how she’s worked to overcome that doubt.

“I felt like I wasn’t Indigenous enough,” said Siemens, whose background consists of Ojibway and Cree, as well as Kenyan and German. “I’m mixed and I have lighter skin than a lot of people in the program do. Just looking around I was thinking, ‘Do I really deserve to be here?’

“It’s something that happens with all backgrounds, lateral violence is very present. I think it’s a result of internal racism and colonization. We’ve been separated culturally so we’re all at different stages of our identity. Getting in touch with my culture has helped me realize I’m not in competition with anybody. I’m not better or less than, I don’t have to feel guilty for being me.”

Launched in 2018, Build From Within is a collaboration between Winnipeg School Division (WSD), Indspire Canada, the University of Winnipeg’s Faculty of Education and community supporters such as the Winnipeg Foundation.

Starting in Grade 11, Build From Within students work to complete the Educational Assistant Diploma Program while still in high school. After graduation, students attend the U of W to earn Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Education degrees, while also working part-time as student teachers in WSD.

Siemens is currently student teaching Grades 6 and 7 at Isaac Brock. Last year, she taught Grades 5 and 6 at Victoria Albert School. In university, Siemens is majoring in history with a minor in English. In the future, she sees herself working in a high school, but says she’s open to any subject or school setting.

“When I was a kid, my favourite form of playing was teaching. I would line up my dolls and pretend I was a teacher,” Siemens said.

While attending Grant Park High School, Siemens was approached by Desi-Rae Anderson, the school’s then Indigenous Graduation Coach, who thought she’d be the perfect candidate for Build From Within. However, Siemens denied her. Not once, but twice.

“I was 16. What do I want to do? I don’t know!” Siemens said. “During that time, I was having a rough year. Do I want to graduate school just to end up back in a school? What will people think? Is this really a good career? I remember asking about money because I had so much money anxiety, because my family struggled with money.”

“But she just kept asking. I think she really saw something in me battling with myself. I’m glad she kept asking, not in a pressuring way, but more like, “Hey, this is here. It’s an option.’”

Anderson’s persistence paid off. When Siemens read her essay publicly at the Rooted in Rhetoric launch party, she saw that her story speaks to people, Indigenous and non-Indigenous.

“I had people come up to me and say that they read my story and loved it,” Siemens said. “That’s what I love to hear. Not because, ‘Oh yeah, I’m a perfect writer’, but because somebody connected with me, and we don’t even know each other.”

In addition to Rooted in Rhetoric, Siemens was also featured in the Winnipeg Foundation’s 2022 Vital Signs Report, which identifies the city’s “strengths, gaps and opportunities for our future.”

Currently, there is a clear gap between the number of Indigenous students to Indigenous educators. Siemens said she had only one Indigenous teacher, Frances Smith, who taught her while she was in Grade 3 at Sister MacNamara School.

However, with over 50 students enrolled in Build From Within across three cohorts, Siemens is thrilled that future Indigenous students will get to see more of themselves in their teachers.

“It's one of the main reasons why I’m doing this program. If I can be that face for one person, then I’ve accomplished my goal. I know how much it impacted me when I had my first and only Indigenous teacher,” Siemens said.

“I’m still figuring out who I am as a student and as an Indigenous person, as somebody who is working through the intergenerational traumas that affect my family and how I view school and education, but I really try to be the good that I wanted or needed, the good teachers that I did have, the lessons that my family taught me, and the culture that I grew up with.”

Read Siemens’ essay.