By the end of the year, a $3.2 million surplus is expected for Rocky View Schools (RVS), according to its 2017-18 Audited Financial Statement (AFS) however, 2.6 million of that is from reserve funds and has already been earmarked. Karyn Golem, director of finance for RVS, said there was a significant increase in revenue – $277 million total – which is up by 7.6 per cent over the previous year. This is partly due to the up tick in student enrolment as well as funds received through the province’s new Classroom Improvement Fund. The revenue increase only accounts for $600,000 of the surplus, though. The other approximately $2.6 million can be attributed to a transfer of capital funds from reserve funds so the school board can buy lands for a new Airdrie school. According to Golem, of the total revenue, nearly 77 per cent was spent on instruction, over 14 per cent on plant operations and maintenance, and close to seven per cent on transportation. Board governance and system administration had a slight increase – 2.98 per cent – from the previous year’s total of 2.85 per cent, though it remains below the province’s cap of 3.6 per cent. Salaries and benefits totalled almost $183.6 million – the largest expenditure. Todd Brand, chair of the RVS board of trustees, said the surplus holds only little significance – each year a small deficit or surplus is to be expected since there are many changing factors such as number of students and teachers and any fluctuation can affect the bottom line in either direction. Brand added that the surplus does not mean that the board under spent by any stretch. “(It’s) just the nature of a little bit of guess work and some things come under budget some come over budget but we always come close to our actual targeted budget each year,” Brand said. RVS has $13.7 million remaining in the operating reserves, though a large portion of that is targeted money, he added. The transportation budget has eaten up all its possible reserve funds after it was faced with a $1 million shortfall last year. While this year’s budget shows RVS in a steady financial position, it might not last. Brand said the budget for the next school year ( 2019-20) is forecasted to carry a $750,000 operating deficit though it will likely be absorbed by general operation reserves. The board still carries a $2 million debt as of August 2018 and is not expecting to finish paying it off until 2024. The debt is from the payments for the RVS Education Centre in Airdrie.
