Cash-strapped Alberta school boards can’t expect more funding help this summer, Education Minister Dave Hancock told school trustees at their spring meeting in Red Deer on Monday.
If school trustees were hoping for a repeat of last summer, when the province announced millions more in funding in July, Hancock dashed those hopes.
“This year, we were pretty clear that the budget was the budget,” Hancock told about 360 trustees and senior school officials from across the province.
Last year was a different situation because the provincial government was in arbitration talks with teachers and didn’t know the final budget number. When that was known, the government met its commitment and provided the extra cash, said Hancock.
This time, the government planned for a 4.4 per cent increase, which was later boosted to 4.54 per cent, which he acknowledged has not met all needs.
“But that’s not going to put us in a position where we would be looking for an adjustment this summer,” he said after a school board address. “We’re part of the overall government need to restrain spending.”
Hancock said his department came out better than most. It was one of only two to get more than the 2.2 per cent increase dictated by the government to rein in finances in a year when a $4.7-billion budget deficit is forecast.
Local school officials have complained that they are not getting the money they need. Red Deer Public Schools District board recently voted to dip into its reserves to cover a $1.7-million budget shortfall.
Wolf Creek Public Schools plans to cut 60 positions — mostly support staff — and slashed five bus routes to save money.
“It’s a difficult budget,” said Hancock. “Would I rather not have had this difficult budget? Absolutely. We’re focusing on building for the future, we’re focusing on a lot of things.
“And quite frankly, fiscal restraint is a bit of a distraction and, in some cases, even a derailer.”
But his is only one department in a government determined to bring back break-even budgets, he said.
The Alberta Teachers Association has predicted as many as 1,200 could lose their jobs this fall. Hancock said he doubts those kinds of job losses will be seen. The province will have more teachers on the job in September than five years ago, even though the student population has only grown a small amount, he said.
Hancock supports another five-year labour deal with teachers, but said any future deal would likely include set pay increases and not tie wages to the Alberta average weekly earnings index.
The financial news wasn’t all bad for school boards. There may be some cash coming to offset the high cost of fuel for school buses. Education staff have been asked to put together a proposal to take to the Treasury Board. A fuel adjustment grant was dropped two years ago when gas prices dropped.
“I can’t make any promises at this stage,” said Hancock, who hoped for an answer by September.
In his main address, which drew a standing ovation, the minister talked about the need for school boards to work more closely with their communities and prepare themselves for a higher level of public scrutiny.
“People are no longer willing to listen to a decision of their elected representatives and then simply acquiesce.”
pcowley@www.reddeeradvocate.com