Claudette Commanda is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

university professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a 'person who professes'. Professors ...

, cultural advisor, indigenous rights activist, and an

Algonquin Algonquin or Algonquian—and the variation Algonki(a)n—may refer to: Languages and peoples *Algonquian languages, a large subfamily of Native American languages in a wide swath of eastern North America from Canada to Virginia **Algonquin la ...

Elder who was appointed the 15th Chancellor of the

University of Ottawa The University of Ottawa (), often referred to as uOttawa or U of O, is a Official bilingualism in Canada, bilingual public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on directly to the northeast of Downtown Ot ...

, becoming the first indigenous person and fifth woman to serve in the role.

Early life and education

Commanda is an

Anishinaabe The Anishinaabe (alternatively spelled Anishinabe, Anicinape, Nishnaabe, Neshnabé, Anishinaabeg, Anishinabek, Aanishnaabe) are a group of culturally related Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples in the Great Lakes region of C ...

person from the Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg First Nation in

Outaouais Outaouais (, ; also commonly called The Outaouais) is a region of western Quebec, Canada. It includes the city of Gatineau, the municipality of Val-des-Monts, the municipality of Cantley, Quebec, Cantley and the Papineau Regional County Municipal ...

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

. Her grandfather is William Commanda. Her spirit name is She Who Dances with the Eagles, or Dancing Sky Eagle. She started her studies at the

in 1987, later graduating from the Faculty of Arts in 1993. She then attended the Common Law Section of the University's Faculty of Law, graduating in 1997. While studying she founded a First Nations student association to help improve indigenous representation at the university.

Career

University of Ottawa

She is a professor at the University of Ottawa, teaching with the Institute of Women's Studies at the faculty of social sciences, as well as at the faculty of law and the faculty of education. She also worked with the Indigenous studies program at the faculty of arts, where she taught courses relating to First Nations Women, Native education, First Nations people and history, and Indigenous traditions and decolonization. While at the university she also served as the chair of the Aboriginal Education Council. She also established an Indigenous resource centre which eventually became the Mashkawazìwogamig Indigenous Resource Centre. In 2017, following work done by the Indigenous Law Student Association at the University of Ottawa, the faculty of law created the position of elder in residence to support Indigenous law students through cultural, social, and career related events as well as to provide guidance and advice. Commanda was chosen as the inaugural holder of the position. She was also the special advisor on reconciliation to the dean of the faculty of law. In 2022 she was chosen as the 15th chancellor of the University of Ottawa, replacing Calin Rovinescu, who had served in the role since 2015. With this she became the first Indigenous person to hold the role in the university's history, as well as the fourth woman to serve as chancellor, following

Pauline Vanier Pauline Vanier, Queen's Privy Council for Canada, PC, Order of Canada, CC, Venerable Order of Saint John, DStJ (''née'' Archer; March 28, 1898 – March 23, 1991) was a Canadian humanitarian who was married to Georges Vanier. Her husband was one ...

, Gabrielle Léger, Huguette Labelle, and

Michaëlle Jean Michaëlle Jean (; born September 6, 1957) is a Canadian former journalist who served as the 27th governor general of Canada from 2005 to 2010. She is the first Haitian Canadian and black person to hold this office. Jean was the Organisation i ...

. This also made her the first Indigenous person to serve on the university's board of governors.

Other work

Commanda is the

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

of the First Nations Confederacy of Cultural Education Centres, a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

national organization which protects and promotes the culture,

languages Language is a structured system of communication that consists of grammar and vocabulary. It is the primary means by which humans convey meaning, both in spoken and signed forms, and may also be conveyed through writing. Human language is ch ...

, and traditional knowledge of First Nations people. She is also the CEO of the Maclean Day Schools Settlement Corporation (MDSSC), serving on its board of directors. The MDSSC runs a legacy fund through which it supports Federal Indian Day School Survivors and their families by funding projects related to language and culture, healing and wellness, commemoration, and truth telling. She also served two terms on the board of governors for the

First Nations University of Canada The First Nations University of Canada (abbreviated as FNUniv) is a post-secondary institution and federated college of the University of Regina, based in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. FNUniv operates three campuses within the province, ...

, and three terms on the Kitigan Zibi band council. She was featured as an interview subject in two episodes of the

true crime True crime is a genre of non-fiction work in which an author examines a crime, including detailing the actions of people associated with and affected by the crime, and investigating the perpetrator's Motive (law), motives. True crime works often ...

documentary television series Television documentaries are televised media productions that screen documentaries. Television documentaries exist either as a television documentary series or as a television documentary film. * Television documentary series, sometimes called d ...

'' Taken'', which details stories of Canada's Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. She was featured in the season 1 episode discussing Maisy Odjick and Shannon Alexander, as well as the season 2 episode discussing Hilary Wilson."Maisy Odjick, Shannon Alexander" (25 November 2016). '' Taken'', Season 1. Eagle Vision, Aboriginal People's Television Network /

CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster ** CBC Television ** CBC Radio One ** CBC Music ** ...

."Hilary Wilson" (8 September 2017). '' Taken'', Season 2. Eagle Vision, Aboriginal People's Television Network /

. In September 2017 she spoke at the Standing Senate Committee on Aboriginal Peoples of the

Senate of Canada The Senate of Canada () is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons, they compose the Bicameralism, bicameral le ...

. In 2020 she was featured in an episode of the

Canada School of Public Service The Canada School of Public Service was created on April 1, 2004. The School is the main educational institution for the Government of Canada, and is part of the Treasury Board portfolio. It was created from an amalgamation of the following thre ...

podcast A podcast is a Radio program, program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. Typically, a podcast is an Episode, episodic series of digital audio Computer file, files that users can download to a personal device or str ...

''Sitting by the Fire.'' In 2022 she was announced as one of the 16 member's of the

Minister of Canadian Heritage The Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture is the minister of the Crown who heads Department of Canadian Heritage, Canadian Heritage, the department of the Government of Canada responsible for Canadian culture, culture, Media in Canada, medi ...

Pablo Rodriguez's Survivor-led Steering Committee for the Residential Schools National Monument. In February 2023 she spoke at the Indigenous and Northern Affairs Committee of the

Canadian Parliament The Parliament of Canada () is the federal legislature of Canada. The Crown, along with two chambers: the Senate and the House of Commons, form the bicameral legislature. The 343 members of the lower house, the House of Commons, are styled a ...

Honours

Commanda was inducted into the Common Law Honour Society of the

University of Ottawa Faculty of Law The University of Ottawa Faculty of Law () is the law school at the University of Ottawa, located in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Established in 1953, the faculty is today divided into Civil Law and Common Law sections, the two formally recognized l ...

in 2009. She received an Indspire Award in 2020 for Culture, Heritage, and Spirituality.

Filmography

Television

Podcasts

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Commanda, Claudette Living people 20th-century births Year of birth missing (living people) Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg people Canadian women academics Indigenous Canadian women academics First Nations academics Indigenous rights activists Canadian women activists First Nations activists University of Ottawa alumni University of Ottawa Faculty of Law alumni Academic staff of the University of Ottawa Chancellors of the University of Ottawa Indspire Awards People from Outaouais