Aleria McKay comes from a Haudenosaunee & Teme Augama Anishnabai mother and Michif & Dene Tha' father. She was raised on Six Nations of the Grand River and is proud to call her community home. Aleria received a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre and Indigenous Studies at York University in 2022, and is currently in her final semester of her Bachelor of Education at York's Waaban Indigenous Teacher Education Program. This fall, she will start her MFA in Creative Writing at the University of British Columbia. A poet and playwright, her past works include And She Split The Sky in Two, Thunderstorms, and Sweetgrass & Cigarettes. Her most recent play, Til Our Bodies Fall Apart, premiered at the 23rd edition of the Paprika Festival in Toronto. Aleria is passionate about animals, pageants, and escape rooms. Upon completing her B.Ed, she plans to offer a free, one-on-one tutoring program for students on Six Nations as her pay-it-forward initiative. This aims to address the educational gaps widened by extended school closures during community lockdowns.