Welcome to another issue of Hagwil Yaan!
Welcome back to another Hagwil Yaan issue! If this is your first time here, volume three of this student newsletter has the name: Hagwil Yaan which means "walk softly, walk slowly" in Sm'algyax!
In each issue, we focus on an Indigenous language in our region. This month, we are featuring the beautiful language of the Nisga'a Nation.
We are now in buxwlaḵs (February). Dress warm if you go out for a walk. K'il̓hl wilt ii sim ts'axwhl ba'askw ahl hloḵsa Buxwlaḵs. (Sometimes it's very windy during the month of February.) Saahlo'om̓ (February, time to move camp to the oolichan fishery). Hobiyee is done in the month of February, the observation of the crescent moon and the star aligning in the shape of a spoon when it is full . This signifies a bountiful harvest year.
We hope you have had a good start to the semester and are enjoying your studies! Here is a student checklist to success! Please reach out if you need assistance with any of the bullet items listed below. We are here for you! Thank you.
Enjoy, take care, and stay connected!
Meet the FNACs
'Connection is Indigenous' Indigenous Student Handbook
Please check out our Indigenous Student Handbook. It will provide you with valuable information on student supports and resources available to you while attending classes at CMTN!
The online version can be viewed here on our website at https://issuu.com/coastmountaincollege/docs/indigenous-student-handbook_digital?fr=xKAE9_zU1NQ. or with this QR code.
Highlight from Past Events
Cedar Bark Headband Weaving Workshop
We had a great time learning how to weave a cedar bark headband with Todd & Charrine Lace, from Wet'suwet'en Native Arts on January 27, 2026. They made it so easy to follow along and kept a great pace so everyone was able to finish off their headbands. Here are some pictures from the Prince Rupert, Terrace, and Smithers campuses. We will have them back on March 3, 2026, so feel free to send an email to FNAC@coastmountaincollege.ca to sign up. The cedar is provided to all participants.
Grad Cap DIY Workshop
We have some students working on their Grad Caps. We had five beautiful northwest coast designs made by artist Henry Kelly, for students to use on their grad caps. They will use a Cricut machine to adhere the designs to the caps. Some students are beading around the cap. Stay tuned for pics when they are completed! We are excited to see the students wear them on their convocation day.
Upcoming Events
Cedar Headband Weaving Workshop
Date: March 3, 2026
Time: 11:00 a.m. -2:00 p.m.
Locations:
- Terrace - Waap Galts'ap
- Smithers - Gathering Space
- Prince Rupert - Wil Lu Sagaytwan
- Hazelton - Classroom 2
Registration required as limited kits are available per campus To sign up, or for more information, email FNAC@coastmountaincollege.ca
Weekend Warrior Program
Did you know as a registered CMTN student you can access our Weekend Warrior backpack program?
The FNAC team has non-perishable food items that students can take home with provided backpacks.
Just make sure to bring the backpack back to be refilled twice a month.
Connect with one of our FNAC team members to gain access to this amazing project.
Email FNAC@coastmountaincolleg.ca with your campus location to sign up!
‘Xbisuunt Dancers Practice
- Date: Every Monday
- Time: 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
- Where: Waap G̱alts'ap (Longhouse), Terrace Campus.
Join the 'Xbisuunt Dancers group from the Ts'msyen Nation at Waap G̱alts'ap on Monday evenings for singing and drumming. Light snacks and tea/coffee available.
Practices are not held during final exams and statutory holidays.
For more information email FNAC@coastmountaincollege.ca.
Gitlax̱dax Sayt-K'il̓im G̱oothl Nisg̱a'a Practice
- Date: Every Wednesday
- Time: 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
- Where: Waap G̱alts'ap (Longhouse), Terrace Campus
Join the Gitlax̱dax Sayt-K'il̓im G̱oothl Nisg̱a'a Dancers from the Nisga'a Nation at Waap G̱alts'ap on Tuesday evenings for singing and drumming. Light snacks and tea/coffee available.
Practices are not held during final exams and statutory holidays.
For more information call Jill at 250.635.6511 Ext. 5222 or email FNAC@coastmountaincollege.ca.
Bee Kind Initiative
Have you noticed someone Bee'ng Kind at CMTN?
Student, Staff or Faculty? We want to hear about it!
Connect with our team so the person can 'bee' acknowledged for promoting a positive atmosphere on our campuses.
Email FNAC@coastmountaincollege.ca to let us know about lateral kindness on campus!
Bee artwork by Frances Campbell, Gitxsan artist and Freda Diesing alumna.
Community Events
Drop-In Spin Classes
A spin class, also known as a spinning class, involves joining a group of people, jumping on a stationary bike, and cycling indoors.
Mondays | 5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Location: Terrace Campus, Fitness Center
No sign-up needed - just show up ready to ride! Free for CMTN students and employees.
What would Niye'e (Grandfather) say?
Aam wilaa wilina? How are you doing?
Aam wilaa wili'y. I am doing fine.
Luu'aamhl g̱oodiy̓ ni wil ga'an. I am happy to see you.
Aguhl dii jabinis? What are you doing?
Dim hii wilp siwilaaks n̓iiy̓. I am going to school.
Dim k'ax̱ saḵ'ap-yee n̓iiy̓. I am going for a walk
Dim hahlal̓s n̓iiy̓. I am going to go to work.
Dim huxw ga'ay̓ n̓iin. I will see you again.
Check out First Voices at https://firstvoices.com/nisgaa to learn more words and phrases of the Nisga'a language.
Eats with Nits'iits' (Grandmother)
Basic Bannock Recipe
Ingredients: 1 cup flour 1 tsp baking powder 1/4 tsp salt 3 tbsp margerine/butter 2 tbsp skim milk (optional)
Sift together the dry ingredients. Cut in the margerine until the mixture resembles a course meal. Grease and heat a frying pan. Working quickly, add enough cold water to the dry mix to make a firm dough. Once the water is thoroughly mixed into the dough, form the dough into cakes about 1/2 inch thick. Dust the cakes lightly with flour to make them easier to handle. Lay the bannock cakes in the warm fying pan. Hold them over the heat rotating the pan a little. Once a bottom crust has formed and the dough has hardened enough to hold together, you can turn the bannock cakes. Cooking takes 12 - 15 minutes.
Recipe from Bannock Awareness, June 21, 2008
Your monthly meme!
Indigenous Reads
Winner of the 2024 Governor General's Literary Award for Fiction • Shortlisted for the 2024 Amazon First Novel Award From the acclaimed, boundary-breaking author of NISHGA comes a hypnotic and mystifying exploration of land and legacy. Reimagining James Fenimore Cooper’s nineteenth-century text The Last of the Mohicans from the contemporary perspective of an urban Nisga’a person whose relationship to land and traditional knowledge was severed by colonial violence, Jordan Abel explores what it means to be Indigenous without access to familial territory and complicates popular understandings about Indigenous storytelling. Engaging the land through fiction and metaphor, the successive chapters of Empty Spaces move toward an eerie, looping, and atmospheric rendering of place that evolves despite the violent and reckless histories of North America. The result is a bold and profound new vision of history that decenters human perception and forgoes Westernized ways of seeing.
Check out the peer reviews of the book "Empty Spaces" in the CMTN Library.
Indigenous in the Media
Hoobiyee 2025 Gitwinksihlkw Four Crest Dancers Perform in Gitlaxt'aamiks
Hoobiiyee, is the Nisg̱aʼa new year celebrated every February or March. It signifies the emergence of the first crescent moon and begins the month Buxw-laḵs.[2] Celebrations of Hobiyee are done by Nisg̱aʼa wherever they are located, but the largest celebrations are in Nisg̱aʼa itself and in areas with a large Nisg̱aʼa presence like Vancouver. Hobiyee - Wikipedia
Student Support
Coast Mountain Students' Union
The CMSU organiser for the Coast Mountain Students’ Union, is here to support students with events, services, and advocacy. If you’re having trouble understanding your rights as a student, navigating through school procedures and policies, or engaging in campus life, then the Students’ Union is here to support you. Download the CMSU app for virtual community boards, services and support systems in your region.
To learn more about what the student union does, email the student union organiser at organiser@mycmsu.ca or the student union outreach worker at outreach@mycmsu.ca.
2026 Winter Semester Opt-Out Deadlines
Please be aware of the CMSU Health & Dental Plan that you are auto-enrolled into when you register for courses. This has a $295 annual fee that students can choose to opt-out of if you already have coverage. You have 30 days to opt-out from your program start. Connect with CMSU for more details.
Information on the CMSU Health & Dental Plan can be found here: https://cmsu.studenthealthbc.ca/Optout. Here is the link to the opt out form here. Please feel free to contact a FNAC if you need assistance with the form. Thank you.
Student Wellness Counsellor
New Student Wellness Counsellor available for CMTN Students
Available Tuesday, Wednesdays & half-day Fridays
Location Health and Wellness Centre in Waap Amgam
In person & virtually
for more information reach out to mentalhealth@coastmountaincollege.ca
Learner Services
LAS & Advising Help
Having a difficult time academically? We can connect you with the Learner Services Team to make sure you have even more tools to complete your studies successfully.
One on one Brightspace help - if navigating and using Brightspace is making your course more difficult to manage, let us help!
Our Learning Assistance Specialists (LAS) are available to walk you through the finer points of Brightspace so you can focus on your coursework.
To contact the Learner Support team & Accessibility Services, email them at las@coastmountaincollege.ca.
Education Advising
For Education Advising, to book an appointment, please call 1.877.277.2288 or email advising@coastmountaincollege.ca. Follow this link to book an appointment online - https://outlook.office365.com/owa/calendar/AdvisingAppointments@coastmountaincollege.ca/bookings/
Financial Aid
CMTN Awards, Bursaries & Scholarships
Be sure to apply for any of the CMTN awards, bursaries, and scholarships by February 15, 2026 to be considered for an award for the Winter semester. New applications are now only accepted online at https://coastmountaincollege.awardspring.ca/. Contact the FNACs if you would like to know more, or if you need assistance completing your application. Don't miss out on these great opportunities!
Coast Mountain College offers an emergency funding program available to eligible students experiencing unexpected financial hardship during the course of their studies at CMTN. Find more information about emergency financial assistance https://www.coastmountaincollege.ca/student-services/financial-aid/student-emergency-financial-assistance#:~:text=The%20Ministry%20of%20Post-Secondary%20Education%20and%20Future%20Skills%20provides%20grant!
Have any financial aid questions or would like to know more about general awards, bursaries, and scholarships? Please contact the Financial Aid Officer, Monica Barro, at 250.635.6511 ext. 5204 or by email at financialaid@coastmountaincollege.ca or visit the Financial Aid webpage!
Mental Health Check-in
Are you looking for support? Here at CMTN, we can help you explore and find what support works best for you. Follow this LINK to find resources like regional counsellors, mobile apps, and crisis lines.
Need Support right now?
Suicide Crises Helpline Call or text 9-8-8 for a safe space to talk, 24 hours a day, every day of the year. If you are considering suicide, or are concerned about someone who may, please call!
Stay connected and check out our FNAC Facebook group to keep your finger on the pulse!
Have something you want to contribute for next month's issue?
If you have any feedback, story ideas or pictures to share, please contact us:
Credits:
Created with images by Africa Studio - "Tasty breakfast with fried eggs, pancakes and bacon on plate" • javiindy - "Couple in a spinning class wearing sportswear." • Berit Kessler - "Holding a head with a happy smiling face in the hands, mental health concept, positive thinking, support and evaluation"