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Ontario Tech acknowledges the lands and people of the Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation.

We are thankful to be welcome on these lands in friendship. The lands we are situated on are covered by the Williams Treaties and are the traditional territory of the Mississaugas, a branch of the greater Anishinaabeg Nation, including Algonquin, Ojibway, Odawa and Pottawatomi. These lands remain home to many Indigenous nations and peoples.

We acknowledge this land out of respect for the Indigenous nations who have cared for Turtle Island, also called North America, from before the arrival of settler peoples until this day. Most importantly, we acknowledge that the history of these lands has been tainted by poor treatment and a lack of friendship with the First Nations who call them home.

This history is something we are all affected by because we are all treaty people in Canada. We all have a shared history to reflect on, and each of us is affected by this history in different ways. Our past defines our present, but if we move forward as friends and allies, then it does not have to define our future.

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Joe Stokes

Joe Stokes' headshotDr. Joe Stokes is the University Registrar at Ontario Tech University, and an Adjunct Professor in the Faculty of Education.  Joe’s portfolio includes the leadership of enrolment management, including domestic and international admissions & recruitment, student awards, financial aid, records, registration, scheduling, and convocation, university-wide student communication and the international office. Joe is the past Chair of the Ontario Universities’ Council on Admission, and is the President of the Ontario University Registrars’ Association, Dr. Stokes has led work across the post-secondary sector on governance, student retention and student success. His research interests include student involvement theory and connections to undergraduate persistence, Leader Member Exchange in higher education, Higher education policy and governance, international student mobility, and online learning modalities.