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In 2022, Sarah Konwahahawi Rourke, Ed.D., was appointed Director of the Indigenous Health Professions Program (IHPP) in the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. Ms. Rourke, who is Kanien’kehá:ka from Akwesasne, succeeds Kent Saylor, MD, who was the inaugural director of the IHPP when it launched in 2017. Ms. Rourke "will lead the IHPP in the ongoing implementation and evolution of its long-term action plan to increase the number of Indigenous students in all health-related professional programs. Her work will be based on needs and priorities identified by Indigenous communities, in particular within the ±«ÓãÖ±²¥Â Réseau Universitaire Intégré de Santé et Services Sociaux. She is also appointed as a part-time Faculty Lecturer in the Department of Family Medicine.

Ms. Rourke brings more than 15 years’ experience to her new role. She has worked with traditional knowledge holders, teachers and elders, and has extensive expertise in strategic planning, policy development and representing Indigenous communities. She has a Master’s in Educational Leadership from St. Lawrence University, Canton, NY. In 2021, she completed the Executive Leadership Doctoral Program in Social Justice at St. John Fisher College, Syracuse, NY.

In her new role, Ms. Rourke will report to the Dean of the FMHS and develop and implement an FMHS Indigenous Strategic Plan to support all prospective and current Indigenous students, faculty and staff. She will oversee development and delivery of outreach programs to Indigenous communities to attract promising First Nations, Métis and Inuit students to apply to the FMHS and other faculties with health-related programs.

Ms. Rourke will provide support to Indigenous students from pre-admission to post-university, identify and foster relationships with Indigenous alumni, and provide support and guidance in the development of Indigenous health teaching curricula. She will also identify areas of alignment with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action, and act as the Faculty’s liaison with the Elder in Residence." Read more .