In order to cut $1.8 million and balance the school district’s budget, cuts are coming.
The question remains what trustees will decide to slash and what to keep when the budget plan comes up for a vote on May 12.
“I’m quite sure this is going to generate conversation… What we’d like to do is float this out and, through the feedback process, maybe develop some additional items for consideration and prioritize which would cause the least disruption,” said Sterling Olson, secretary-treasurer.
The school district released a document outlining potential operating budget changes, including significant reductions in student services. The proposal looks at cutting literacy intervention, services for deaf and hard-of-hearing students, eliminating the district’s gifted education program and reducing speech and language supports. A major sector on the list of potential cuts is mental health services for students including proposed cuts to counselling, grief counselling and healthy-living programs.
In his report to the board, Olson indicated the school district is currently funding mental health services that should be provided by other government ministries including the Ministry of Health and Ministry for Children and Families.
“As boards are being required to reduce programs and services to balance their budgets, boards need to focus their financial resources on areas directly related to their mandate,” he writes.
Support for the district’s honour choir is also on the block, as well as additional cuts to music programming.
Maintenance is another area facing cuts totalling $473,000.
This means less maintenance for school buildings including carpentry repairs, painting, electrical and groundskeeping. The school district is also looking at reducing upkeep and watering of school sports fields.
Administration is another targeted area, with proposed reductions in principal and vice-principal administration hours, cuts to administrative services and supplies including travel.
Closing approximately 20 classrooms, which have been deemed as surplus to the district’s needs, is projected to save $150,000 in custodial, heating and maintenance costs.
Other more radical proposals, including charging a fee to families whose children use the school bus and converting to a four-day school week, have been brought up for discussion, but have not been included in the projections at this time.
The proposed cuts do not include any implications from the long- term facilities plan, including the potential $375,000 in savings should Silver Creek Elementary be closed, as these decisions will also be made at the May 12 meeting.
If trustees decide to proceed with the report’s recommendations, those savings would mean that other proposed cuts could be reduced.
More cuts have been suggested than the trustees actually need, giving them some options about what to keep and what to cut.
“There is no doubt that in removing these items… that our level of service will drop and change and we need to recognize that fact and transform our system to deliver the best education possible with the funds we have,” said superintendent Glenn Borthistle.
The complete document is available at www.sd83.bc.ca under the finance tab. Public input on the proposed budget can be emailed to bmarchuk@sd83.bc.ca.