ATA News Staff
Fears of losing up to 600 teaching positions across Alberta have been allayed.
Shortly after students were dismissed for the summer and pink slips were sent to beginning and temporary teachers in some school jurisdictions, Education Minister Dave Hancock announced that the provincial government had agreed to fund the 2.92 per cent teachers’ salary increase scheduled for September 1, 2010.
This past spring school boards were confronted with the challenge of meeting obligations to pay the increase to teachers established by Alberta Average Weekly Earnings without extra funds from the government. While no increase was made to grant rates in the February 2010 budget, Hancock urged boards to use their surpluses or deficit financing to retain teachers until more money could be found. A number of boards ignored that request and teaching positions were cut.
Alberta Teachers’ Association President Carol Henderson welcomed the news that additional funding was on the way. “The minister assured us that funding would be forthcoming and we’re very relieved to know that it will be in place for September 1.” Henderson stated that the announcement should reassure Alberta teachers that Minister Hancock and Premier Stelmach will live up to their commitments to fully fund the teachers’ five-year agreement with the province.
For his part, Hancock focused on class sizes in the announcement. “We have devoted significant resources to reducing class sizes, and I have no desire to see those gains lost,” wrote Hancock on his blog. “I expect that boards will sustain or improve their progress in meeting class size guidelines as a result of this funding.”
The July 7 funding announcement is welcome news for school boards struggling to deal with the shortfall. With the funding, they will be expected to maintain current levels of staffing and, in effect, class sizes.
The Calgary Board of Education passed a budget in June that contained a $10 million deficit while cutting 192 teaching positions and 85 support staff
positions.
Pat Cochrane, chair of the Board of Trustees of the Calgary Board of Education, said, “This announcement puts our school board on a much more solid footing going into the new school year.” She noted that the board is not free from fiscal challenges, as changes to class size funding and a lack of additional grant rate increases meant the board would still be short $5 million compared to last year.
Holy Spirit Catholic Division Superintendent Christopher Smeaton said the board will look at enrolments to see how many positions can be reinstated. “We won’t make any decisions until we see what our enrolment is and I’m hopeful that it will be more than what we projected.”
Holy Spirit passed a balanced budget while maintaining all continuous teachers—12 teaching positions were lost through retirements, resignations or nonrenewal of temporary contracts.
Henderson was dismayed by the number of new teachers in the province that had lost their positions because of the funding delay. “We count on our young colleagues to rejuvenate the profession and we know we will need them in the coming years as more teachers retire and student enrolments increase.”
The ATA president expects that school boards are now making plans to adjust their budgets and to hire back the teachers that were laid off in June.
“This is very good news for Alberta’s students and our young teachers,” Henderson said.
