Ottawa, Ontario - 23 June 2015
Nellie Taptaqut Kusugak is currently the Deputy Commissioner of Nunavut, a position in which she has served since 2010. She is a retired instructor and teacher of traditional and cultural education in Nunavut and the Northwest Territories. She is fluently bilingual in English and Inuktitut, which has helped to make her an influential member of the education community over the past few decades.
In 2014, Mrs. Kusugak received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for her commitment to preserving and protecting the Inuit language and culture. She advances this work as a member of numerous steering committees and associations and as a volunteer in her community, sharing her passion, knowledge and expertise with others.
Through McGill University, Mrs. Kusugak received a teaching diploma certificate in Native and Northern Education while studying at the ArcticCollege in Rankin Inlet, and a Bachelor of Education in the Nunavut Teacher Education Program while studying at the NunavutArcticCollege in Iqaluit.
Mrs. Kusugak resides in Rankin Inlet. She raised four children with her late husband, Jose Amaujaq Kusugak, and is a grandmother to 13 grandchildren.
