1. Financial Empowerment: First Nations University of Canada
FCAC 2017
National Conference
November 2nd, 2017

2. Financial Empowerment Course
In the Fall of 2016, First Nations University of Canada offered Financial Empowerment, a course designed to introduce students to the basics of personal finance and financial literacy.
In total, 80 students enrolled in the course from two FNUniv campuses (Regina and Prince Albert) and from four Northlands College campuses in La Ronge, Buffalo Narrows, Île-à-la-Crosse, and Creighton.
FNUniv’s Financial Empowerment course seeks to support students in building the capacity to make solid financial decisions through an introduction to key concepts such as credit, debt, saving, interest rates, and more.
The course utilizes many of the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada’s (FCAC) resources and tools in order teach students key financial literacy concepts.
The course also utilizes many Indigenous financial literacy resources written by First Nations Development Institute, First Nations Oweesta Corporation and AFOA BC as well as other culturally-relevant materials.

3. Reconciliation and Financial Literacy
One of the 96 calls to action issued by the TRC is to develop culturally appropriate curricula that incorporates culture, history, and worldviews.
Dominque Collins (2011), author of Aboriginal Financial Literacy in Canada, asserts that culturally adapted and relevant training has been developed and shown to be effective.

4. Culturally-Relevant Teachings
The course attempts to teach certain financial literacy concepts through the history and worldview of Indigenous peoples.
The course was inspired by research that was done with the Newo Yotina Friendship Centre (NYFC) on culturally relevant financial literacy through an Urban Aboriginal Knowledge Network grant.

5. Culturally-Relevant Teachings
The Financial Fitness Handbook, written by the Aboriginal Financial Officers of Canada of BC (AFOA BC), emphasizes the strong values demonstrated by Aboriginal peoples during pre-contact times and how these values “guided how resources and assets were used, how people traded with one another and how wealth was shared” (AFOA BC, 2011, p. 6).

6. Culturally-Relevant Teachings
The Building Native Communities financial literacy curriculum, produced by First Nations Development Institute and First Nations Oweesta Corporation, places great emphasis on traditional resource management as a financial literacy concept; it teaches us how “our actions today affect the resources that we will have available in the future” (FNDI and FNOC, 2015, p. 74).
As Oweesta and First Nations Development Institute point out, “For years, our people have understood and practiced the present-day concepts of budgeting and savings. We managed our resources through conservation so that they lasted throughout the year by saving additional supplies for future use. Our people also saved for the purpose of acquiring goods that we could not produce ourselves. By producing more than the community needed, we had goods to trade,” (First Nations Development Institute First Nations Oweesta Corporation, 2015, p. 1).

7. Elder Interviews
Six elders from FNUniv were interviewed as part of the adaptation of The Saylor Foundation’s Personal Finance open textbook.
Financial Empowerment: Personal Finance for Canadians was adapted by Bettina Schneider and produced by the University of Regina (UofR) Press as a part of the UofR Open Textbook Publishing Program.
The elder interviews will be easily accessible through the free open textbook once it is published in 2018.
To learn more about the University of Regina Open Textbook Publishing Program, please visit

8. Forward Visions Games
In the fall of 2016, FNUniv leveraged Forward Vision Games’ technology, lessons and instructor supports.
FVG’s signature financial simulation game provided students with the opportunity to manage a virtual store over the course of the semester.
The primary purpose of the game was to support students in grasping key topics as well as competency and skill development in financial literacy, including: saving, debt, credit, interest, and more.
Through making decisions about the store’s management, as challenges and opportunities arose within the game, students were empowered to see the causes and effects of their financial decision-making over the long-term.

9. Key Goals and Outcomes
Improved financial decision-making: 93% of students indicated that the course influenced the way they make financial decisions.
Knowledge sharing with friends, family and community about learnings: 67% of students indicated that during the course, they shared what they had learned in class with family, friends and/or community.

10. Key Goals and Outcomes
Increased use of financial goal setting and financial planning: In a post-course survey, 80% of students indicated that they had financial goals that they would pursue after having taken the class.
The FCAC financial goal setting resources were heavily relied upon.

11. Key Goals and Outcomes
Distance student retention/engagement: the course was provided to students via videoconference in six classroom locations.
Two of the top performing students in Forward Vision Games were from La Ronge, SK and were accessing the course from a remote classroom.

12. Key Goals and Outcomes
Learning to manage financial products: The course, and in particular their Forward Vision Games’ game play experience, provided students with life-like opportunities to practice using these tools, giving students greater confidence in their ability to properly manage financial products.

13. Key Goals and Outcomes
Improved entrepreneurial confidence: In post-course surveys, many students expressed gratitude that the course had provided them with the opportunity to learn financial literacy both in the context of their personal lives and within the context of entrepreneurial endeavours experienced through the game.

14. Conclusion
Students indicated having developed proactive plans for debt-management, and a number even noted ways they would leverage new financial products to support savings targets and debt management.
Furthermore, students found the course helped them to learn more about themselves and how to apply this learning to improve their personal finances.

15. Conclusion
Course findings also demonstrate strong evidence of better financial decision-making and management.
Evidence indicates that this course has the potential to not only contribute to the long-term financial well-being of students, but also their nations and communities.

16. References
Aboriginal Financial Officers Association of British Columbia. (2011). First Nations Financial Fitness: Your Guide for Getting Healthy, Wealthy and Wise. Retrieved from:
Collins, Dominique. (2012). Aboriginal Financial Literacy in Canada: Issues and Directions. Retrieved from:
First Nations Oweesta Corporation and First Nations Development Institute. (2016). Building Native Communities (5th Ed). Retrieved from: