THUNDER BAY -- The inquest into the deaths of seven First Nations students in Thunder Bay heard more details on the protocols that are followed after aboriginal students go missing.
The draft protocol of the Missing Student Policy was created in 2015. It's a guide for how secondary student support workers should respond to missing students. It gives them wide discretion on whether to involve police agencies in the event of a missing student. Nishnawbe Aski Nation education director Dobi-Dawn Frenette said the policy is more like a guide and support workers can make the adaptions as they see fit.
The policy was drafted by the Northern Nishnawbe Education Council and given to NAN for further revision. It didn't exist during the time of the students' deaths. Lack of funding for education was another focus Wednesday.
Frenette said more than half of First Nation communities do not have a high school. They also don't have a data collection mechanism to measure how many students should be in school.
The inquest is expected to continue Thursday.
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