Vernon Matters file photo

By Liam Verster

funding gap

School District 22 facing $2.1M budget shortfall

Apr 25, 2024 | 11:10 AM

The school district that serves Greater Vernon and Lumby is facing a financial crunch.

School District 22’s Board of Education gave first and second reading to its draft budget for 2024-25 at the public board meeting Wednesday, which totaled $141,929,695.

That marked an increased from the 2024 amended budget of $139,394,441, with the majority of the increase reflected in operating expenses.

However, meeting that new budget requirement is proving to be difficult as the B.C. government has adopted a new funding formula for school districts that SD22 claims does not fully reflect inflation.

“The provincial government has chosen to fund increases in enrolment and staff wage increases. The government will not, unfortunately, fund increases in other costs, such as employee benefits, utilities, services, and supplies. As a result, the budget needs to address a $2.1-million funding gap,” SD22 Secretary Treasurer, Adrian Johnson, stated.

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“We’re minimizing the impact on students by creating cost efficiencies. For example, our investment in electric school buses has reduced our annual fuel bill by about $50,000. Also, shifts in school populations enable an overall reduction in the number of classes, while still ensuring our class sizes across all grades remain below the provincial average.”

The 2024-25 budget includes added expenses for additional English Language Learner teacher specialists, an additional resource teacher, hiring another speech and language pathologist, and an increase in psychologists support.

“Our enrolment is increasing, and the needs of our students are more complex,” Superintendent Christine Perkins said.

“I’m pleased that the board is adding some specialized resources for next year and still achieving a balanced budget.”

Board Chair Mark Olsen added that next year’s budget takes into account input and suggestions from community and staff members.

“We heard that our students need the supports we are adding – and many other supports we are unable to add,” Olsen stated.

“Frustratingly, the funding gap limits our ability to fully address the important needs of our most vulnerable students. The changes to the budget focus on making better use of what we have.”

Olsen has committed to writing a letter to the Minister of Education and Childcare to advocate for funding increases that align with inflation so all school districts can have the ability to maintain existing programs along with implementing strategies that support student achievement.