NSCC Black Community Council
We believe in the power of community and first voice. With the establishment of a Black Community Council (BCC), in fall 2022, we strive to pursue meaningful systemic change and improve the economic and social prosperity for African/Black Nova Scotians.
African Nova Scotian recognition
NSCC recognizes the African Nova Scotians as a distinct group who arrived here 400 years ago. From that time on, they have contributed to the infrastructure and economic wealth of the towns and cities they helped to build, but from which they could not benefit.
Let us learn more about how our respective communities were shaped by the historical contributions of African Nova Scotians to Mi'kma'ki.
The Council's work
Using a collaborative Africentric model, the BCC will provide guidance and insight to NSCC's president and executive team. It will help ensure an inclusive, anti-racist and equitable learning environment for African/Black Nova Scotian students.
Areas of focus for the BCC include:
- Recruitment, retention and supports for African/Black Nova Scotians
- Advancement of educational and employment equity
- Programming and fostering an inclusive learning environment for African/Black Nova Scotians
- Disruption of racism and systemic barriers
- Partnership development, capacity building and accountability
The concept of Sankofa, an African symbol based on a mythical bird with its feet firmly planted forward and its head turned backwards, will form the foundation of the Council's mandate. The BCC will ensure the knowledge of the past and the harms done to African/Black Nova Scotian people are honoured and never forgotten.
Council membership
The Council will be Co-Chaired by NSCC’s President (or designate) and the other co-chair will be a community member of the Council. The council consists of five to seven volunteer members.
Council's membership is reflective of the provincial scope of the College and the diversity of the African/Black Nova Scotian community. One Council seat belongs to a community elder or spiritual leader, and one seat is for an African/Black Nova Scotian student or recent graduate.
Council members must:
- Be a member of the African/Black Nova Scotian* community, as defined by the African Nova Scotian Decade for People of African Descent Coalition
- Have knowledge of contemporary systemic issues facing African/Black Nova Scotian learners
- Possess significant understanding of anti-Black racism, educational equity, social justice, and systems change
- Play an active role within the African/Black Nova Scotian community
- Demonstrate alignment with the vision, mission, values and strategic priorities of NSCC
- Commit to a term of two to three years
Council members
Kimberley Bernard
Halifax, Nova Scotia
Mary Desmond
Monastery, NS
Javiere Gordon
Berwick, NS
Carmelita Johnson
Cornwallis Park, NS
Nicole Johnson
Dartmouth, NS
Lillian Marsman
Sydney, NS
Colter Simmonds
Cole Harbour, NS
Questions
If you have questions about NSCC’s Black Community Council, contact , Senior Advisor, Black and ANS Initiatives.
- Members and descendants of the 52 historic land-based Black communities, from as early as 1605, including descendants of enslaved peoples, Black Loyalists, Black Refugees, Jamaican Maroons. African Nova Scotians, also referred to as Indigenous Blacks, Africacadians, AfriScotians or Scotians, are a distinct people.
- All persons of African descent (Black) living in Nova Scotia, whether by birth, resettlement or immigration.