Public school board expects $3.5M provincial funding cut

Public school board expects $3.5M provincial funding cut
The Peterborough Examiner
Wed May 13 2015
Byline: EXAMINER STAFF

The Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board expects to take a $3.5-million hit in provincial funding in 2015-16 because of declining enrolment in area public schools.

The board’s budget committee met for the first time Tuesday night and trustees learned that the board expects to get $1.5 million less in special education funding, $1.3 million less as an adjustment because of declining enrolment and $700,000 less for school facility operations, according to a release from the board.

The board aims to produce a balanced budget, as required by the province, and will meet again May 25 and June 8. The meetings start at 7 p.m. at the education centre on Fisher Dr.

Last month it was revealed the board has issued lay-off notices to all 118 of its high school contract teachers because of the falling enrolment.

“We have been fortunate within the education sector to benefit from strong provincial support for the last number of years. While that commitment to public education continues, provincial economic challenges, combined with a continued decline in school-aged children locally and across Ontario, leads to a number of financial pressures for us,” budget committee vice-chairman Wayne Bonner stated in a release.

“We will move forward with developing a balanced budget that responsibly ensures a superior educational program for our students.

“While enrolment within our elementary panel remains consistent and stable, we expect decline within our secondary schools for another few years. We will continue to do all that we can to minimize the impact of this decline across our system.”

The board is also in the process of updating its board-wide accommodation plan, which would guide future school closures and consolidations. The board conducted public meetings at several low-enrolment high schools, including Lakefield and Norwood, earlier this year. The board closed PCVS as a regular high school several years ago and is combining its two Cobourg high schools after the end of the school year in June.