They were funded by the Department of Indian Affairs branch of the Canadian government, and administered by Christian churches across the country. The school system was created to remove Indigenous children from the influence of their own culture and assimilate them into the dominant Canadian culture.[1][2] The residential school system ran for over 120 years, with the last school closing in 1996. A significant number of Indigenous children died while attending residential schools, with some schools experiencing rates as high as 1 death per 20 students.[3] An exact number of school-related deaths remains unknown due to incomplete records from negligence.[4] The Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report estimates the number of unmarked graves to be 3,200.