Experience

inPath

• Canada
• Non-profit Organizations
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Director of Music Programs // Outreach & Partnerships

  • Aug 2018 - Present

  We are a training hub and connection point for artists, educators, and professionals who are committed to supporting Indigenous youth through the arts. Since 2014, we have connected with over 3,000 youth in almost 100 Indigenous communities from coast to coast. Our arts programming creates opportunities for Indigenous youth to share their perspectives through art, music, performances, and public talks. We are committed to building sustainable relationships with youth and the communities with which we work. We innovate through living programs. Our programming is living and responsive, meaning our curricula, workshops and resources evolve in response to insights from people we work with, especially youth! We co-create with communities. We prioritize community input and leadership by collaborating with youth, elders, artists, and leaders in communities. We foster opportunities for experiential learning. We inspire agency, creative literacy, confidence, and resilience through creative, experiential learning. We meet students where they are. Much of what we do is about creating spaces and providing tools for students to engage on their own terms. This approach builds trust and confidence and empowers students to take creative risks as they make choices about how and what they want to express.



HodgesMusic Inc

• Montreal, Canada Area

• CEO of HodgesMusic Inc.

  • Jan 2001 - Present

  David Hodges is a music producer & studio owner from Montreal, Quebec. He has recorded and released 10 full length albums and has collaborated with over 50 artists across the world. He has been actively making beats since 2004 and has sold over 700+ exclusive beats online. He has produced several chart topping projects and has an extensive catalog of instrumentals and song recordings. Blending live instrumentation over high end VST software plug-in sounds and hard hitting drum kits give the 'Hodges style' a professional quality that have all listeners & clients satisfied. If you work with Hodges, he will ensure that the quality of the song is radio ready and will guide the artist in the proper creative and promotional direction. For more information http://www.hodgesmusic.com



N'we Jinan Programs

• Montreal, Quebec, Canada

• Founder

  • Mar 2014 - Aug 2018

  N’we Jinan, whose name means "We Live Here" in James Bay (Eastern) Cree, started in 2014 and was registered nationally in 2016. It began as a platform for participating youth to learn about and acquire skills in sound recording, music production, songwriting, and performance. Through the use of a mobile studio, original songs were created that centered on themes of cultural identity, language, struggle, love, and self-acceptance. To date, more than 500 First Nations youth have participated across 70 communities, resulting in 120 songs and videos that have been viewed more than 15 million times online. N'we Jinan programs are exclusive to First Nations, Inuit and Metis communities and schools. This growing roster of programs, including a mobile recording studio, professional artist teaching residencies, and a year-end cross-country festival celebrates and showcases Indigenous voices in fulfillment of the overall objectives of the organization: to build confidence in creative expression through the development of tangible skills in the interest of empowering youth and strengthening a sense of community belonging. The Mobile Production Studio brings professional musicians and producers to remote communities where participants learn the process and vocabulary of sound recording as well as songwriting and performance. We offer the chance to record original music and film music videos that are then shared with the community, fostering a feeling of safety and validation of the use of their creative voice.



Mikw Chiyâm

• Primary and Secondary Education

• Co-Founder

  • Aug 2015 - Aug 2017

  Alongside Katie Green and Melissa-Ann Ledo, I have been engaged by the Quebec Cree School Board to implement a Arts Education Concentration Program within the 9 Cree high schools in Quebec. This program is an interdisciplinary enrichment program that aims to increase student retention by reinforcing Cree identity through artistic expression. The aspiration for the program is to inspire youth by introducing them to various contemporary Indigenous artists and to create contexts for students to collaborate with professional Canadian artists through four intensive in-school, seven-week artist residencies. This program promotes collaborative work, bringing together students, artists, teachers and community members to create positive learning spaces for creative initiatives to flourish, all the while promoting artistic literacy and recognition of the importance of the arts. This program will connect Cree youth to artists from diverse arts disciplines that include: musicians, visual artists, actors, spoken word artists, filmmakers, dancers, multimedia artists and traditional artisans. The program is rooted in the belief that connecting high school students with current working professional artists can play a valuable role in increasing students’ interest and attachment to school. This program’s aim is to engage working Canadian artists in collaborative programming initiatives to work alongside teachers in generating interactive programming that promotes students’ appreciation for the arts; hooks them to learning through their personal interests; and facilitates the creation of effective, meaningful artistic productions. Our overarching goal is to promote accountability, and to empower students by providing them with opportunities to discover, build and share their personal and collective voices through the arts. See http://mikwchiyam.com/ for more details.



Lester B. Pearson School Board (LBPSB)

• Canada
• Primary and Secondary Education
• 700 & Above Employee

• Teacher

  • Jan 2008 - Jun 2012

  - English/Journalism Grade 10+11. - Music and Jazz History Grade 7-11. - Dance and Ethics Grade 7-11. - Integration Aide - English/Journalism Grade 10+11. - Music and Jazz History Grade 7-11. - Dance and Ethics Grade 7-11. - Integration Aide



YMCA of the USA (National Resource Office)

• United States
• Non-profit Organizations
• 700 & Above Employee

• Program Director

  • Apr 2008 - Sep 2008

  Program Director of Youth Work Initiative at the YMCA. Trained 10 youths how to run their own business. The program focused on leadership, entrepreneurship, love and thinking outside the box. Program Director of Youth Work Initiative at the YMCA. Trained 10 youths how to run their own business. The program focused on leadership, entrepreneurship, love and thinking outside the box.