The Writing Centre offers support to Indigenous and non-Indigenous students at any stage of the writing process. We are here to answer your writing-related queries.
Please note that a strict scent-free policy is maintained for any in-person appointments.
Brenda Blondeau
Brenda Blondeau is Métis (Cree and European), originally from Saskatchewan, with degrees in Gender and Women’s Studies from the University of Regina and York University. Since 2011, she has provided writing support for Indigenous students in York’s Centre for Indigenous Student Services and for Indigenous and non-Indigenous students in the Writing Centre.
Since 2004, she has taught the pre-university Bridging Course for Women in the School of Gender, Sexuality and Women's Studies at York as well as undergraduate courses in the School of Gender, Sexuality and Women's Studies and in the Department of Languages, Literatures and Linguistics. She incorporates a trauma-informed perspective in her teaching, her research, and her writing instruction.
Please note: Students meeting face-to-face with Brenda must maintain a scent-free policy.
Rebecca Lazarenko
Rebecca Lazarenko (she/elle/iskwêw) is Franco-Métis and a citizen of the Métis Nation of Alberta. One important lesson Rebecca has learned is about reciprocity and how important is to maintain a balance of give and take. As such, she is committed to making academic (and also non-academic) spaces safer and more open to Indigenous peoples and cultures.
Her doctoral research is looking at Prairie Francophone and Indigenous colonial relationships, with a concentration on Métis peoples, through a comprehensive examination of the francophone newspapers of the time. The purpose of her research is to illustrate the colonial project of the francophone communities of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba - which was to colonize the lands and peoples to ensure the implantation and supremacy of the French people, the French language, and the Roman Catholic religion to the detriment of the “sauvages” – Indigenous Peoples.
