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Saskatchewan Apologizes, Pledges $40 Million to Île‑à‑la‑Crosse Boarding School Survivors

The move follows years of exclusion from the 2006 Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement.

The residential school closed in the mid 1970s. The site is now surrounded by the village's elementary school and high school.
SASKATOON, SK-- JANUARY 24/2023 - 0125 News Ile-a-la-Crosse - Residential school survivor Louis Gardiner, second from back right, speaks at a press conference held by the Ile-a-la-Crosse Survivors Committee, with support from the Metis Nation--Saskatchewan, to provide an update to media, survivors, and their families on their legal pursuit of recognition and justice for the survivors of the Ile-a-la-Crosse residential school. Photo taken in Saskatoon, SK on Tuesday, January 24, 2023.
Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe speaks with media following a meeting with the prime minister on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

Overview

  • Premier Scott Moe issued a formal apology on behalf of the province and announced $40 million for former students of the Île‑à‑la‑Crosse Boarding School and their families.
  • The school operated from the 1820s until it burned in the 1970s, with an estimated 1,500 children attending, most of them Métis from northern Saskatchewan.
  • Survivors have described physical, sexual and emotional abuse, as well as bans on speaking Cree and Michif that led to loss of culture and identity.
  • In March, the federal government reached a $27 million agreement in principle that included a federal apology and a $10 million legacy fund for cultural, language and healing programs.
  • Former students have sought recognition and compensation through legal action for years, including a class‑action lawsuit filed in 2023 against both the federal and provincial governments.