She started her career in mining and now she’s digging deep into her passion for education. Kayla Rosteski-Merasty is a Cree and Métis mother of two. She grew up in Pinehouse Lake, Saskatchewan, 500 kilometers north of Saskatoon where she moved seven years ago to attend university. She works as an Indigenous Education Coordinator for the Connected North program at TakingITGlobal, working with six Nunavut-based schools. She meets with their teachers, principals and students to find out what they are learning so she can suggest sessions that would compliment their lessons. In addition, she works as a youth facility worker, working with youth in custody for the government of Saskatchewan.

Before she went back to school, Rosteski-Merasty worked as a radiation technician in a uranium mine site. Working one week on, one week off, she decided it was time for a change when she had her daughter. She wanted more stability and time at home. “So I thought, why not teach? I taught basic radiation to the miners at the mine, and teaching was something that I thought I could do. Little did I know, there's so much to learn,” she recalls.

Instead of going back to work after maternity leave, Rosteski-Merasty attended the Indian Teacher Education Program at the University of Saskatchewan. A four year Bachelor of Education degree with more First Nations, Metis and Inuit content, a close knit community and extra support, the program felt like home. After graduation, she was reluctant to leave the support system she built up, so she got on the substitute teacher list, the casual list at the youth facility and applied at TakingITGlobal.

Initially intimidated by her lack of technical skills but inspired by having grown up in the north herself, she applied and got the job she’s held for two years. She still picks up the odd shift at the youth facility, but juggling a full-time job and parenting means she only does so when she has free time.

When it comes to obstacles she’s faced in life, Rosteski-Merasty became a mother at a young age. She had her son at 17 when she was still in high school so she took her son to class with her, pulling his car seat in a sleigh to finish her grade 12. She went to college two hours from her home community after high school but struggled with budgeting and with focus on her studies.

In university, she learned about injustices Indigenous people faced like residential schools and sixties scoop and it made her reflect on her own upbringing. “I took a look back at how I was raised, and had to learn to overcome and understand that maybe my parents weren't raised in the healthiest of ways either, and they had to learn as they went,” she reflects. She has had to learn and relearn how to be a healthier parent.

Her advice for Indigenous youth considering leaving their home communities is, “if you're thinking of leaving, just take that leap and just do it. You don't have to have everything all figured out. I took a program that I did for a little while, and then I decided I wanted a change ... .It's okay to change your mind…Meet people that are like minded, that will help support you. Because you will get homesick. Sometimes things will get lonely. Try to learn to budget your money properly… Learn about credit cards and interest…Don't just spend a whole bunch of money thinking you don't have to repay it…Keep in touch with your family and your family back home, and just know that your community is always there if you're ready to go back and I'm sure they'll greet you with open arms. Don't be afraid to fail if you leave and you're unable to complete a course for whatever reason. That's okay too. We've all failed.” She also recommends study groups for learning and socialization.

If she could give a message to her younger self it would be “you are worthy of happiness and love and you're safe. I think that a lot of men and women, we struggle with self worth, and we maybe go down different paths and have friendships or relationships with people that maybe we shouldn't have because they're accepting, but just remember that you're worthy of love and happiness and try to recognize positive people in your life."

Looking to the sources of her inspiration, Rosteski-Merasty is inspired by fireside chats and stories of perseverance and resilience. She loves spending time with and learning from her kids. She is motivated by people and conversations.

To keep her mental health in check during times of uncertainty, Rosteski-Merasty practices gratitude every morning. She smudges, sending up prayers and gratitude. Using breathing techniques and reaching out to friends, colleagues and professional support has helped her, too. Honouring her feelings, being gentle with herself, listening to music, taking baths, lighting candles, dancing and letting loose are other ways she has coped.

After starting her career in mining, now Kayla Rosteski-Merasty is digging deep into her passion for education. In her new roles as an Indigenous Education Coordinator for the Connected North program at TakingItGlobal and youth facility worker working with youth in custody, she’s built a new professional life helping young people. She overcame so much as a youth and she’s there to help others do the same.

Thanks to Alison Tedford Seaweed for authoring this article.