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District Faces $715,000 Shortfall

District Faces $715,000 Shortfall

Dec 21, 2018 | 6:45 AM

The Vernon School District will look at ways to raise internal funding to reduce its dependency on Victoria.

Board Chair Robert Lee says two current initiatives that generate revenue for the district are the forestry program in Lumby, and the international students program.

“We have just started a new committee. It’s basically an enterprise committee. It’s one that we’re asking our senior staff to look at all 60 school districts to see if any of them are coming up with different ways to raise internal revenue,” Lee tells Beach Radio News.

He says the district is facing a projected budget shortfall of $715,000 for the 2019-20 school year.

Lee says most of that is due to pay increases for exempt staff — and principals and vice-principals — which are not funded by the government.

“That is largely the reason for that,” says Lee, who is a former school principal.

About 92 percent of school district funding comes from the BC Education Ministry.