Prime minister announces billions to retool First Nations education
Posted February 7, 2014 7:18 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The federal government has unveiled a retooled education plan for First Nations that it says recognizes aboriginal control over schooling.
Prime Minister Harper Stephen Harper announced the plan on Friday at a high school on the Blood reserve in southern Alberta.
The plan calls for minimum education standards consistent with provincial standards off-reserve.
It also says students will have to meet minimum attendance requirements and teachers will have to be properly certified.
Ottawa is to provide core funding of $1.25 billion over three years starting in 2016, with a 4.5 per cent annual increase.
Another $500 million over seven years is to go toward infrastructure and $160 million over four years is set aside for implementation.
The Assembly of First Nations calls the deal the beginning of a new era for First Nations children.