Cheyenne Cunningham from Katzie First Nation is one of the newest Indigenous PhD students to join the Faculty of Education. Cheyenne is excited to be at UBC and brings with her a great deal of enthusiasm. Her research focusses on the exploration of Katzie place names and stories in relation to the topographical features of landscape within her traditional territory. She plans to examine how land-based knowledge and education contributes to Indigenous language revitalization and Indigenous education. The highlight of her program so far is having the opportunity to meet and learn alongside like-minded people.
As a dedicated student,Cheyenne has received over a dozen awards and scholarships, including several undergraduate awards, the Indspire Post-Secondary Education Award and the Aboriginal Community Engagement Award, just to name a few. Her proudest achievement is graduating with her big sister, both of them receiving their Masters of Linguistics in a First Nations Language. Cheyenne says her biggest inspiration is her mom and sisters.
When she’s not busy doing school work, she loves to spend time with her family, fish and hunt. Pre-COVID interests include travel, going to the movies, concerts and comedy shows. Her future goals including teaching Indigenous Studies or Indigenous Languages in a University setting.