SASKATOON — University of Saskatchewan (USask) graduate student Mckelvey Kelly knows first-hand the impact community-based research can have when working on a project.
“There are things I would never know unless I talked to the community,” Kelly said.
As a PhD candidate in the Department of History in the College of Arts and Science, Kelly rigorously worked to uncover how Wyandot women from Wyandott City (now modern-day Kansas City, Kansas) resisted removal from their lands through community building.
“My dissertation really focuses on the relationship the Wyandot women had to their land, how they reacted to removal and how they fought for their land through petitions and letter writing campaigns,” said Kelly. “They were able to be recognized as heads of households in treaties and were able to get a lot of land designated to them, becoming landowners.”
Now, Kelly’s groundbreaking work is being recognized on a national level. The USask graduate student was named one of three finalists in the prestigious Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Impact Awards.
Kelly’s work challenges previous historical narratives surrounding Indigenous peoples and works to centre Wyandot women, acknowledging them as the community leaders and activists they’ve always been.
Community engagement has always been at the core of Kelly’s work. For her dissertation, she collaborated closely with an advisory council of women from the Wyandot Nation of Kansas, the Wyandotte Nation, and Huron-Wyandott of Ontario. Kelly has received numerous funding awards including a SSHRC Canada Graduate Scholarship (doctoral program) and the Fulbright research award which allowed Kelly to deeply engage in her work. With this funding, Kelly has been able to travel to Kansas and attend community gatherings and ceremonies, giving her the opportunity to further strengthen the relationships she has built.
“I think engagement is really important, especially if you’re a non-Indigenous researcher like myself, to centre community voices and perspectives on their own history,” said Kelly.
As a finalist for the SSHRC Talent Award, Kelly said that winning would not only help her continue to expand her research but would also acknowledge the important work of the Wyandot.
“I think it’s really good that they could be recognized by important funding agencies for their history and work,” said Kelly. “The SSHRC Talent Award would open more doors that would allow me to really dig into more community engagement.”
Kelly is expanding on her research as a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Alberta, working closely with the same Wyandot women she collaborated with for her PhD project.
The SSHRC Talent Award celebrates research, knowledge mobilization and recognizes outstanding academic excellence researchers holding a SSHRC doctoral scholarship or postdoctoral fellowship.
— Submitted by USask Media Relations
