A path of resilience and return to Waterloo – University of Waterloo

June 5, 2026

Seneca Mohawk Rhea Green reflects on overcoming barriers, pursuing her degree and supporting Indigenous students through community and connection

More than 50 years after first attending the University of Waterloo, Rhea Marlene Lickers Green, Seneca and Mohawk of the Haudenosaunee and a member of the Turtle Clan, has returned to finish the degree she once started.

When Green first arrived in the early 1970s as an economics and geography student, Indigenous student life looked vastly different on campus. Today, her return is a powerful reminder of both her personal resilience and the progress Waterloo has made, while underscoring the work that continues to better support Indigenous people.