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Monday 18 March 2013

Saskatoon Catholic School Board Superintendent Gordon Martell has won Guiding the Journey: Indigenous Educator Award from Indspire.

Saskatoon Catholic School Board Superintendent Gordon Martell has won a prestigious national award for his tireless efforts to improve First Nations education.

Martell will travel to Calgary Friday to accept a Guiding the Journey: Indigenous Educator Award from Indspire.

He is being recognized in the leadership category, which recognizes those who "consistently take on leadership roles in the educational community that foster achievement among K-12 students."

Martell said that he has fought throughout his career to "revision" how native students are educated, and develop culturally relevant programs that teach students the history of their people.

"We need to build that in so children grow up on a curriculum that really tells the whole story, and is more balanced than it was in the past," he said.

Martell, 48, was born on the Waterhen Lake First Nation, which abuts the Meadow Lake Provincial Park.

His mother came to the reserve as a teacher, where she met his father.