Children in the care of the provincial government's child and family services need to be going to school

Children in the care of child and family services are too often forgottern. I have recently learned of children in the care of CFS which are not able to go to school because they do not have the technology or the support to go to school on-line. Every one of the more than 10,000 children in care who of school age should be able to attend school - on-line with the right support. We can not risk the consequences of them not being helped now. I asked the provincial government what they are doing about this in Question Period on May 13.

Children in CFS Care - Access to Online Education

Hon. Jon Gerrard (River Heights): Madam Speaker, it is shocking that there are children in the care of the government's Child and Family Services who are not going to school online during this pandemic.

Schools and CFS agencies are not tracking down all children who've moved. Not all organizations operating group homes are ensuring all children in their care are going to school. The same disaster of kids not going to school happened under the NDP. Then, only 33 per cent of children in care graduated from high school.

The Premier is a former teacher. He says he cares about children and schooling.

Will he act today to ensure every one of the 10,000 children in CFS care who's of school age has the technology and the support and is going to school online?

Hon. Kelvin Goertzen (Minister of Education and Training): I thank the member for the question. It is an important a question.

Representatives from my office have met recently with the Manitoba child's advocate and–to ensure that we're doing all that we can in unprecedented and difficult times, in times that nobody could've predicted only a few months ago, to ensure that all students not just those in care, but are being as connected as possible to the education and the school system. We will continue to have those discussions with all those who care about this issue, which I think is all Manitobans, including the member opposite.

And in difficult and unprecedented times we know that there are many who are doing their best, working their hardest and achieving great things in a relatively short period of time.

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The Gerrard Report

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