By purchasing Shingwauk Hall, tensions arose between university members, the community, and the First Nations population. A curriculum was proposed to soothe and entrench understanding and demonstrate Algoma University College's commitment to cross-cultural learning and diversity. The Shingwauk Project was founded in 1979, which laid the foundation for the reaffirmation of a positive and respectful relationship between the post-secondary institution and First Nations people. Algoma University College also received its own emblem, the Thunderbird, as designed by Dora de Pedery-Hunt in 1972.