NAIITS: An Indigenous Learning Community
2024-25: Flourishing Urban Indigenous Ministries. This proposed planning project would gather Indigenous ministers/leaders to develop an Urban Indigenous Ministry Hub commencing with support and mentoring. This will require relationship building and identifying the areas of support that are needed by those participating in this hub. Due to the inter-generational trauma, cultural genocide, and spiritual violence that Indigenous peoples have experienced, the primary focus of this hub will be to facilitate informal and formal supports embracing Indigenous healing strategies such as sharing circles, ceremony, feasts and even humour. This hub would then identify and develop a strategic plan to dream, develop and design additional hubs for Indigenous ministers across North America in key cities. Utilizing Indigenous Appreciative Inquiry methodology, this hub would commence the first planning sessions by collating ministry experience stories and narratives to identify wise practices (core values). These would create the framework to dream, develop, and design contextual and Indigenized ministry models that would ensure the flourishing of Indigenous peoples in their faith.
2025-26: NAIITS: An Indigenous Learning Community continues to build on its legacy of innovation and partnership in theological education. Founded over twenty-five years ago, NAIITS became the first Indigenous-designed, developed, delivered, and governed theological institute accredited by the Association of Theological Schools. In the coming year, it will expand its partnerships to include Bexley Seabury and the Southeastern Pastoral Institute, while deepening its collaboration with Tyndale University.
To strengthen its growing community, NAIITS will host a four-day retreat bringing together faculty, staff, and representatives from partner institutions. The retreat will offer an immersive experience in NAIITS’s relational Indigenous culture and ethos, featuring teachings from founding elders, reflection on institutional priorities, and community-building activities to sustain its shared mission moving forward.
Shari is Anishinaabekwe (Saulteaux) registered at Yellow Quill First Nation in Saskatchewan. Shari was ordained in1999 with The Salvation Army serving in urban pastoral appointments in Toronto, Winnipeg, and Sudbury. She was the Assistant Field Education Co-ordinate and an instructor at The Salvation Army College in St. John’s, NFLD from 2002-2004 and Winnipeg 2009-2015. Her primary areas of teaching were: Christian education, pastoral care, Human Diversity and Field classes which included theological reflection, practical theology and assessments for preaching and teaching. Shari also served on the Board of Trustees for Booth University College.
Shari is currently the Director for NAIITS: An Indigenous Learning Community providing theological education for Indigenous peoples from around the globe.
The Strengthening Pastoral Formation for Ministry in the City initiative involves seminaries, theological institutions, and churches and intends to help communities and institutions explore and assess their own urban context and church life; gain clarity about their mission and programmatic offerings; and strengthen and support the design and implementation of plans to address key challenges and opportunities for pastoral formation and flourishing congregations in urban settings.
These grants aim to help Bible institutes, seminaries, congregations and related institutions to build their capacity by exploring how to strengthen their unique institutional life in order to be an ongoing gift and blessing to others; gain greater clarity on priorities to fulfill their particular callings; and deepening their institutional life to support the overarching work of pastoral formation and flourishing congregations in urban settings.
