Partnership Opportunities

What is the Indigenous Learners in Accounting (ILA) Initiative?

The Indigenous Learners in Accounting (ILA) Initiative was created as a partnership between the Aboriginal Financial Officers Association of Alberta (AFOA Alberta), an Indigenous organization, and CPA Western School of Business (CPAWSB) to begin to address the under-representation of Indigenous people in business and the accounting profession, as well as to take meaningful steps in advancing reconciliation.

What's on this page

How you can support ILA
Partnership Opportunities
Potential Contributions from PSI Partners
General Resources for PSIs
Indigenous Storylines

The vision of the ILA Initiative is to increase accounting knowledge, skills, and capacities within Indigenous communities, to support the improvement of Indigenous social and economic well-being, and to respond to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s (TRC) Calls to Action and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).

These courses are based on the regular CPA certification program but have been tailored to address the challenges unique to Indigenous learners and incorporate Indigenous culture and context in the program.

Learn more about the ILA initiative and watch our video collection

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How you can support ILA

Read more on how to support ILA

Partnership Opportunities

CPAWSB is seeking partnerships with post-secondary institutions (PSIs) to pilot the Indigenous Learners in Accounting (ILA) initiative in collaboration with AFOA Alberta and CPA Canada. This pilot initially aims to deliver Introductory Financial Accounting (IFA) and/or Introductory Management Accounting (IMA) courses locally at PSI locations. The goal is to provide Indigenous learners with opportunities to observe and engage with local Indigenous customs, traditions and practices. 

In this partnership, PSI partners will receive access to Indigenized eBooks developed by CPA Canada in collaboration with guidance from First Nations, Métis, and Inuit subject matter experts, and others.

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Potential Contributions from PSI Partners

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Upon successful completion of each course in the Indigenous program, the institution will ideally grant academic credits that can be applied towards degree program requirements.

Providing Indigenous learners with a safe and supportive environment is paramount. This may include creating learning spaces comprised of Indigenous learners and instructors exclusively, especially during the initial courses of the program, e.g., Introductory Financial Accounting (IFA), Introductory Management Accounting (IMA), where self-efficacy tends to be in its formative state. If an exclusively Indigenous learners’ cohort is not feasible, care and planning should be taken to ensure a safe environment through other means.

  • In-person or hybrid format
    • Courses are delivered in-person or in a hybrid format, with each course requiring a minimum of 40 hours of instructional time.
  • Indigenous representative
    • An Indigenous representative may serve as an Indigenous instructor or mentor/advocate to foster a safe environment for Indigenous learners, provide support, address unique educational and professional challenges faced by Indigenous learners, and promote their success.
  • Academic and non-academic support
    • Provide comprehensive support for Indigenous learners.
  • Traditional opening and closing ceremonies
    • Opening ceremony
      • An in-person traditional opening and learning family session is held at the beginning of the Indigenous program. This typically includes an opening prayer from an Elder, Knowledge Holder, or respected community member, and may involve local traditional practices, such as drumming.
    • Closing ceremony
      • An in-person traditional closing ceremony is held at the end of the Indigenous program in accordance with local or regional Indigenous customs and practices. This typically includes a closing prayer and other traditional local practices.

The institution shall provide CPAWSB and AFOA Alberta with insights on the Indigenous program structure, outcomes, and lessons learned to facilitate meaningful dialogue and foster collaborative learning.

Indigenous communities practice sharing and reciprocity with non-Indigenous peoples. The development of new Indigenous material should reflect this, and developed content should be shared with other partners. This may include other post-secondary institutions, CPA entities, and Indigenous partners.

General Resources for all PSIs

Hearing Indigenous Voices

Mitigating the Challenges and Barriers to the Accounting Profession Faced by Indigenous People is a research project that seeks to understand the barriers and challenges faced by Indigenous learners in accounting programs and to identify ways to mitigate these obstacles, which the ILA initiative aims to address.

Hearing Indigenous Voices: Findings and Recommendations

Indigenous Storylines

As part of CPAWSB and CPA Canada’s commitment to Truth and Reconciliation, the CPA profession partnered with subject matter experts from Indigenous communities to incorporate content relevant to the communities of the First Nations, Métis, and Inuit peoples to reflect their worldviews and experiences, enriching the curriculum with a breadth of Indigenous culture, content, and context.

The Indigenous Storylines created are made available to PSIs across Canada at no cost. This is in accordance with the deeply held value of sharing prevalent in Indigenous communities and the CPA profession’s commitment to Truth and Reconciliation.