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But will boards comply?
Dennis Theobald
Editor-in-Chief, ATA News
As the end of the school year approaches, reports and rumours of impending cuts to programs and school staffing are surfacing across the province. Teachers, support staff and parents are left wondering about the potential effect these cuts might have on students and schools while school boards are pointing their fingers at the provincial government’s failure to provide adequate funding. At the same time, Minister of Education Dave Hancock is saying that the funding situation is temporary and that school boards should draw down their accumulated surpluses to protect programs and staffing.
The minister set out his position in an e-mail to school board chairs and education stakeholders late in March (see “Minister’s e-mail regarding funding,” page 5). Hancock acknowledged that the province had made no provision in its 2010/11budget to fund the 2.92 per cent salary increase that teachers will be entitled to receive effective September 1, 2010, and that the grants provided by the province to school boards might not be sufficient to accommodate their staffing costs in the 2010/11 school year.
The solution, according to the minister, is for boards to rigorously evaluate their spending to ensure they are providing value and then, where necessary, to use surplus funds accumulated in previous years to preserve services and supports to students. The minister indicated that school boards should go into debt if their expenditure requirements exceeded the surplus money they had on hand. He was particularly adamant that teaching positions should not be cut. “Long-term strategic requirements, a continuing commitment to class size guidelines and continued growth in the student population indicate that we must sustain employment in the teaching workforce, particularly in support of students in the classroom.”
Saying that the funding crunch was a short-term problem, the minister signalled that boards could expect government to adjust future grants to ensure adequate funding. “While expenditure pressures and revenue capacity may not be well matched in a particular year, it is my objective to match long-term revenue with long-term expenditures.”
It appears that the majority of school boards do have accumulated surpluses that they could use to cover at least some portion of their short-term deficits. In his recent report, the province’s auditor general stated that, as of August 31, 2009, school boards were sitting on combined reserves exceeding $358 million, as well as additional funds in the form of capital reserves. Of 63 school jurisdictions, 43 added to their surpluses over the course of the 2008/09 school year. Only one, Palliser Regional Division No. 26, reported that its accumulated surplus was not sufficient to cover its operating deficit.
But getting boards to raid their piggy banks could be a challenge. School trustees were conditioned during the Klein years to regard deficit budgeting as anathema. Many do not trust the provincial government to return school boards to solvency if they run deficits resulting in an accumulated debt. The result is that many jurisdictions are making balancing their budgets a priority and are prepared to allow student programs, services and staffing to suffer as a result.
ATA President Carol Henderson is hearing reports about cuts from teachers across Alberta. While it is difficult to get a clear picture of what is a fluid situation, Henderson is concerned that some school boards’ obsession with balancing their budgets in the short term may cost teachers and support staff their jobs and ultimately undermine the quality of teaching and learning.
“Short-term cuts to schools have long-term consequences for students,” said Henderson. “Our priority at this point must be to preserve the quality of teaching and learning, protect vital programs and ensure we retain skilled and dedicated staff.”
The ATA president is calling on trustees to act on the advice given by the minister and, when necessary, run deficit budgets to cover their anticipated costs. “We all recognize that this is not a sustainable approach and that the solution is for the province to provide sufficient funding to school boards—but right now, we need to put students first and get through the next school year.”
