The Northern Nishnawbe Education Council says there’s no standard of living for First Nations schools and their students.
That according to the testimony of Executive Director Norma Kejick, at the inquest examining the deaths of seven remote First Nations students who died while attending high school in Thunder Bay.
Kejick says, for instance, at their high school in Pelican Falls, 14 kids live under one roof with very limited space.
She adds there simply aren’t enough house counsellors to keep an eye on every child in their care.
Kejick again points to students are Pelican Falls, who are required to keep busy during a three-hour window between 7 and 10 p.m., each night. She says many of them leave the grounds and walk the tracks to Sioux Lookout, to buy drugs and alcohol. Kejick notes it’s a problem that’s hard to fix with limited funds.
Sitting resumes on Monday. (File photo)