Notwithstanding the province’s recent budget cuts, which resulted in Rocky View Schools (RVS) losing millions in the coming school year, the board remains optimistic it will be able to continue to offer students as high a quality of education.
“Revenue for the 2013-14 school year will be down by approximately $5.1 million,” said board chair Bruce Pettigrew in a media release. “Despite these reductions, we remain committed to providing our students with the high-caliber education they’ve become accustomed to.”
Pettigrew did say, however, that the board would have to review its fee structure to parents, as the loss of funding for maintenance and fuel subsidies for buses will pose a challenge.
“Fees to parents have remained static over the term of this board,” he said. “The government may force our hand, but we’ll debate that soon.”
The fuel price contingency grant was ultimately eliminated, resulting in RVS’ transportation department losing $600,000 for the 2013-14 school year, dependent on the price of fuel.
Trustees intend to address transportation fees during its March 21 board meeting.
Pettigrew also said that RVS anticipated cuts to education in the budget, with the division’s leadership team reviewing shifts in practice in February when they were preparing for RVS’ three-year plan.
“Knowing that AISI (Alberta Initiative for School Improvement) funding was vulnerable of being cut,” said Pettigrew, “our senior executive team already had in the works a proposal for continuing the services affordable through this grant via a new coaching structure.”
Pettigrew admitted that parents may see an increase in class size in some circumstances, but said the board expects the budget cuts to have minimal affect to classrooms.
RVS stands to miss out on over three per cent of its revenues from provincial grants that are used for services in classrooms. With this loss in revenue, Pettigrew believes teaching staff will have to continue innovative instructional practices to improve student outcomes and engagement.
Some specific areas that will be affected by the cuts include: enrollment (loss of just under $3 million); instructional grants (loss of over $3.35 million); administration (decrease of $681,886); plant operation and maintenance (loss of $334,849); transportation (funding down $600,000); and infrastructure maintenance and renewal (down $516,100).
The province did reaffirm that it remains intent on building 50 new schools and 70 modernizations over the next three years.
RVS’ 2013-16 capital plan remains to prioritize a new K-8 school in Cochrane to open in 2015 and house 600 students at the top of the list.
Transportation
Nearly 9,400 students are transported on a school bus in the RVS’ district, according to a report for trustees, March 7.
Fifteen per cent of those students, 1,496, live within 2.5 kilometres of their school, making them ineligible for provincial transportation funding. Nine-hundred and thirty-six of those students live in Airdrie, 160 in Chestermere, 298 in Cochrane, seven in Crossfield, 12 in Kathyrn and Beiseker and 83 in Springbank.
Sixty of those students ride the school bus for longer than an hour, the goal RVS has set for the maximum amount of time students should ride the bus each day.
Transportation is provided to 2,700 students in the Cochrane area on 60 buses. Eight rural students ride the bus for longer than an hour. Three students attending Westbrook school ride about 62 minutes, while 10 students from the exception boundary ride about 70 minutes to school every day.
Transportation is provided to four Springbank area schools, with 1,522 students riding 40 buses. Three students from the Bragg Creek area ride their bus for about 62 minutes.
Options approved
RVS board of trustees approved a list of 50 locally-developed and acquired high school courses, March 7.
The optional courses will be offered to students this fall, pending approval from Alberta Education.
Four of the courses, including English 35 AP (advanced placement), French Language 35 AP, Geology 25 and Studio Art 35 AP were created within the division.
The courses approved by the board cover a range of topics, including band, psychology, acting, mathematics, military history, philosophy, sports, yoga and languages.
The majority of the courses were acquired from the Calgary School District, while others were acquired from as far away as Edmonton and St. Albert.
According to Angela Spanier, spokesperson for Rocky View Schools, the board goes the same process every, whether courses are brand new to RVS students or not.
With files from Dawn Smith of the Rocky View Weekly
