Congratulations to Tsleil-Waututh Nation Elder Margaret George for being recognized with an honorary degree from Simon Fraser University (SFU). She is receiving a Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, at SFU’s June convocation ceremony, reflecting a life dedicated to education.
Margaret worked with Simon Fraser University (SFU) for over 22 years. As SFU’s Elder in Residence for a number of years, she impacted the lives of countless students, staff, and faculty members. While working with non-Indigenous students in particular, she taught them about Indigenous culture, history, and deep-rooted customs and connections to lands and waters.
Elder Margaret acted as Special Cultural Advisor with Andrew Petter, who was SFU President and Vice-Chancellor at that time. She delivered many welcomes at conferences and events and advised the President and his staff on Indigenous cultural protocol and history, Indigenous peoples’ interactions with the law and social services, issues with children being taken away, and much more. She was also an active member of the Aboriginal Reconciliation Council, whose final report called “Walk This Path With Us” was published in 2017. The report can be found here.
When President Petter retired, he specifically asked Elder Margaret to stay on in her role with the new president, Joy Johnson. During COVID-19, she worked closely with President Johnson.
“For more than 20 years, Elder Margaret has been a cornerstone of the SFU community. I feel lucky to have worked with her during my time as president and to call her a mentor and a friend,” says SFU President and Vice-Chancellor Joy Johnson. “Elder Margaret has played a critical role in ensuring that Indigenous students feel welcome and supported on campus, opened hundreds of SFU events in a good way and pushed the university to Uphold Truth and Reconciliation in everything we do. We are so grateful for everything she contributed to our community and look forward to conferring an Honorary Degree upon her this June.”
Recently, SFU President Joy Johnson asked informed Margaret of the momentous news that the SFU Senate and the SFU Student Union Body were thrilled to recognize her with an Honorary Degree from SFU.
The degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, will be conferred on Elder Margaret George on Thursday, June 13 at the 2:30 p.m. ceremony (Ceremony F).
Learn more in this SFU article
Read about the June honorary degree recipients
