Truth and Reconciliation Week: Learn, Reflect and Participate

Fleming College is honouring National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30 with a series of exhibits, events, and activities that foster a deeper understanding of Indigenous histories and cultures. Our activities across all campuses aim to raise awareness while promoting healing and unity between all communities. Please join us as we take time to listen, learn, and reflect. 

September 30 is also Orange Shirt Day. We encourage everyone to wear orange to honour residential school survivors and remember the children who never returned home. 

Truth Before Reconciliation: An Art Exhibit Featuring Fleming Indigenous Artists

September 15 to October 15 | 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
The Great Hall, Haliburton Campus

This multimedia exhibition highlights powerful works by Indigenous Fleming alumni, staff, faculty, and other artists that feature ceramics, digital art, sculpture, painting, and more.

Killing the Indian in the Child: Generations Lost Exhibition

September 24 to October 2 | 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
KTTC (D-Wing Foyer), Sutherland Campus

On loan from the Legacy of Hope Foundation, this powerful educational exhibit explores the history and ongoing impacts of Canada’s residential school system through survivor stories, historical records, and educational materials. This exhibit is open to community members.

CONTENT WARNING: This exhibition explores subject matter that may be difficult or triggering for some visitors. Support is available 24/7 through the National Indian Residential School Crisis Line at 1-866-925-4419. Fleming students can also access support through Counselling Services on campus.

National Day for Truth and Reconciliation Events and Activities

On September 30, Fleming is hosting the following events and activities:

• Drumming, Opening Remarks and Survivors’ Flag Raising
  9:00 – 9:30 a.m. | Flagpole, A Wing, Sutherland Campus (outside the main entrance)
  
  Join Interim President Dr. Theresa Knott and Student Administrative Council Board Chair Kaya Thompson as we raise the Survivor’s flag to honour those impacted by the residential school system in Canada, serving as a powerful symbol of remembrance and advocacy. This flag raising ceremony will be broadcast live on Fleming College’s YouTube Channel.
  
  Watch the event live on Fleming’s YouTube page
• Rock Painting and Mindful Colouring Activities
  10 a.m. – 12 p.m. and 1 – 3 p.m. | Main Foyer, Sutherland Campus
  
  Students and employees are invited to take part in rock painting and mindful colouring activities throughout the day. Participants can use this time for creativity, reflection, and learning while recognizing the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

• Live Reading of Phyllis’s Orange Shirt
  11 – 11:30 a.m. and 2 – 2:30 p.m. | Main Foyer, Sutherland Campus
  
  When Phyllis was a little girl, she was excited to go to residential school for the first time. Her Granny bought her a bright orange shirt that she loved, and she wore it to school for her first day. When she arrived at school her bright orange shirt was taken away. This is both Phyllis Webstad’s true story and the story behind Orange Shirt Day.

• Smudging Circle
  12 – 1 p.m. | Learning Lodge, Frost Campus
  
  Join Lori Fournier, Curve Lake First Nation member and Indigenous Perspectives Designation instructor for a conversation about reconciliation followed by a time of reflection. 

• Screening of The Secret Path
  12 p.m. | The Great Hall, Haliburton Campus
  
  The Secret Path is a powerful multimedia project by Gord Downie that tells the tragic story of Chanie Wenjack, a 12 year old Anishinaabe boy who died in 1966 after running away from Residential School

• Orange Shirt Pin Making and Information Table
  TIME TBD | ROOM TBD, Frost Campus
  
  The Frost Student Association will be facilitating a National Day of Truth and Reconciliation information table, and orange shirt pin activity. Come out to learn more about the importance of this day, and ways to take action. 

• Truth and Reconciliation Panel Discussion
  12 – 1 p.m. | C1 220 Library Workshop Room, Sutherland Campus
  
  Join Fleming alumni, staff and faculty for a thoughtful conversation about our role in advancing Truth and Reconciliation.
  
  Panelists will share their experiences and perspectives on Fleming’s ongoing journey, reflecting on what we have learned, where opportunities for continued growth remain, and how education can contribute to respectful relationships and reconciliation. Attendees are invited to listen, learn, reflect, and consider how each of us can contribute to the ongoing work of Truth and Reconciliation.

• KAIROS Indigenous Blanket Exercise
  5 – 7 p.m. | Steele Centre, Sutherland Campus
  
  The KAIROS Blanket Exercise is an interactive educational experience that explores the shared history of Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples in Canada.
  
  Participants step onto blankets representing the land and take on the roles of First Nations, Inuit and later Métis peoples while moving through experiences related to pre-contact life, treaty-making, colonization and resistance. The exercise is designed to build understanding through active participation and reflection.
  
  The exercise will be facilitated by Mshkiki Gitigaan Kwe, Anishinaabe Kwe (Bear clan) artist, consultant, facilitator, and community member born and raised in Nogojiwanong (Peterborough, Ontario) with roots in Alderville First Nation.
  
  Registration is required. The Blanket Exercise is also CCR eligible and can be used toward credit for the Indigenous Perspectives Designation.
  
  Register for the KAIROS Indigenous Blanket Exercise

Learning and Reflection Across Fleming Campuses

Throughout September 30, Truth and Reconciliation information and Calls to Action will also be shared on campus screens, providing additional opportunities for members of the Fleming community to learn and reflect throughout the day.

Truth and Reconciliation is an ongoing responsibility that extends beyond one day or one week. We encourage students and employees to participate in the activities available to them, continue learning about the history and ongoing impacts of residential schools, and consider the role each of us can play in advancing reconciliation.

More information:
studentexperience@flemingcollege.ca