Budgeting Inquiry Where does it

come from, where does it go?

Parent Point of View

Since 2002 the BC Liberals have closed 240 schools across BC (not including
this years closures)1
They blame school boards for mismanaging their money, and They blame
teachers for asking for too much with their salaries and class size demands,
despite the fact that we have some of the lowest paid teachers and highest
class sizes in Canada2
In School District 68 the 14 years of cuts having taken their toll on boards,
teachers, admin, parents and students. We have been through multiple
consultations over the years and despite closing 14 schools, cutting admin
costs to the point where it accounts for less the 2% of our whole budget,
deferring $97 million in maintenance costs, cutting janitorial services back
further than almost any other district, cutting teaching positions, cutting
programs, bus services and everything else you can imagine, our district is
still facing a deficit this year. 3
Shannon For example lets look at an elementary school that has 2
kindergarten classes, 7 classes of grades 1-3 and 7 classes of grades 4-7.
Using the old formula the schools capacity would be set at 390 students and
lets say, for arguments sake, that was how many students were currently
enrolled. Now the new formula comes into place which would bring the
capacity to 422 students. So this school would have gone from 100% full to
about 92% full just with class size changes. Now if this school had a multipurpose or music room that counts as 30 more seats which would bring the
capacity to 452 which means they have now dropped to 85% capacity. This

1 Huffpost British Columbia, Sarah Miller: All BC School Districts Are Struggling -Not Just Vancouver, Posted: 03/04/2016 11:49 am EST Updated: 03/04/2016 11:59
am EST
2 Huffpost British Columbia, Sarah Miller: All BC School Districts Are Struggling -Not Just Vancouver, Posted: 03/04/2016 11:49 am EST Updated: 03/04/2016 11:59
am EST
3 Huffpost British Columbia, Sarah Miller: All BC School Districts Are Struggling -Not Just Vancouver, Posted: 03/04/2016 11:49 am EST Updated: 03/04/2016 11:59
am EST
Bus route, worker cuts lessened in Nanaimo district school budget: Karl Yu Nanaimo News Bulletin posted May 4, 2016 at 2:00 PM updated May 5, 2016 at
8:55 AM

has a huge impact when the government is requiring school districts to be at

least 95% at capacity.4
The government only cares about how many empty seats there are right
now, there is no thought to the future or what we will do if the population
increases. Mostly because they really don't care how full the schools are as
long as they are full. You will never hear the BC Liberal's express concern over
schools that are bursting at the seams at 130%+ capacity, or schools whose
properties are consumed with portables because to them that's much more
efficient then having a school at 90% capacity. 5

Admin Point of View

Nanaimo school district superintendent John Blain is expected to see a pay

and benefits raise of about 20 per cent for the 2016-17 school year. 6
The superintendents pay structure hasnt been updated since 2011, said
Dale Burgos, school district spokesman.7
Blains salary was determined through the consultants analysis. It is at the
mid-point of the salary range, which was determined by the region. 8
Deserves it, hadnt been done in years, how you attract the best
people.9

4 1.Huffpost British Columbia, Sarah Miller: All BC School Districts Are Struggling -Not Just Vancouver, Posted: 03/04/2016 11:49 am EST Updated: 03/04/2016 11:59
am EST
5 Huffpost British Columbia, Sarah Miller: All BC School Districts Are Struggling -Not Just Vancouver, Posted: 03/04/2016 11:49 am EST Updated: 03/04/2016 11:59
am EST
6 Nanaimo school superintendent receives pay increase: Karl Yu - Nanaimo News
Bulletin posted: May 5, 2016 at 8:00 AM updated May 5, 2016 at 9:36 AM
7 Nanaimo school superintendent receives pay increase: Karl Yu - Nanaimo News
Bulletin posted: May 5, 2016 at 8:00 AM updated May 5, 2016 at 9:36 AM
8 Nanaimo school superintendent receives pay increase: Karl Yu - Nanaimo News
Bulletin posted: May 5, 2016 at 8:00 AM updated May 5, 2016 at 9:36 AM
9 Nanaimo school superintendent receives pay increase: Karl Yu - Nanaimo News
Bulletin posted: May 5, 2016 at 8:00 AM updated May 5, 2016 at 9:36 AM
Bus route, worker cuts lessened in Nanaimo district school budget: Karl Yu Nanaimo News Bulletin posted May 4, 2016 at 2:00 PM updated May 5, 2016 at
8:55 AM

Some think it came from the support workers positions that were cut as part
of the budget: See Budget. His raise didnt come from the government, so it
came from somewhere.
Bus route cuts, support workers cut
Maintenance needing the most attention?
They are doing the right thing by letting the parents and the community voice
their opinions

Teacher Point of View

These are examples of cuts and what could be cut whats your view?

reduce number of custodians

reduce staf as a result of school consolidations
reduce carpenter position
reduce one bus driver position
reduce education assistant contingency budget
change distance learning at secondary schools
restructure secondary school libraries
reduce transportation assistance budget
reorganize Learning Services zone teams
delay elementary school computer upgrading
align supervision aide positions with existing school-based positions
revise school clerical allocation formulas
reduce services at District Administration Centre10
CLOSE SCHOOLS

10 Mid Island News Blog: SD68 budget: 44 full-time jobs to be cut:

http://midislandnews.com/sd68-budget
Bus route, worker cuts lessened in Nanaimo district school budget: Karl Yu Nanaimo News Bulletin posted May 4, 2016 at 2:00 PM updated May 5, 2016 at
8:55 AM