FORT SEVERN – WASHAHO CREE NATION – Greg Rickford, Minister of Natural Resources and Minister for the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario, on behalf of Bernard Valcourt, Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development, today confirmed $44,541,310 in funding for the new Fort Severn First Nation school. Thanks to the hard work and partnership between our Government and the First Nation , students from Kindergarten to Grade 8 will have access to a brand new school.
The new school for Fort Severn is part of a $44,451,310 design and construction funding project that will also see a new school in the Poplar Hill First Nation.
“A new school will provide our students with the best possible opportunity for reaching their full potential. Not only will it benefit the students, but it is also an investment in the future of the community,” stated Fort Severn First Nation Chief Joseph Crowe.
Fort Severn First Nation has begun to mobilize materials using the winter road and is expected to begin construction in the spring of 2015. Occupancy of the new school is planned for September 2016.
Quick facts
• Fort Severn First Nation has a registered on‐reserve population of 539 and is located in northwestern Ontario, on the shores of the Hudson Bay, approximately 680 kilometers north northeast of the Town of Red Lake, Ontario.
• The new school will be a 1,880 square meters facility, designed for the enrolment of 112 students ranging from Kindergarten to Grade 8.
• Between April 1, 2008, and March 31, 2013, Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada invested approximately $613 million for 372 education facilities projects, including new construction, additions, renovations and minor upgrades of existing on-reserve education facilities.
“Canada recognizes the importance of creating safe learning environments that encourage students from First Nations. I would like to congratulate Fort Severn First Nation on the commencement of this project and for providing their children with a safe and inspiring learning environment. We will continue to collaborate with our First Nations partners across Canada to generate concrete results and to ensure that the First Nations are able to participate fully in a dynamic Canadian economy,” said Bernard Valcourt, Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development.
“Our Government is committed to providing First Nations students with a quality on-reserve learning environment that provides them with the opportunity to acquire the skills needed to enter the labour market and be full participants in a strong Canadian economy. This new school will make a significant difference in the lives of the community and especially the youth of Fort Severn First Nation,” added Greg Rickford
Member of Parliament for Kenora, Minister of Natural Resources and Minister for the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario
