School District 51 approves 2017-18 budget
Lethbridge School District 51 has passed its budget for 2017-18.
A draft of the $124-million budget was passed unanimously on Tuesday morning.
An expected five-per-cent increase in enrolment will allow for a funding increase which could see the hiring of 16 fulltime equivalents for teaching and 19 FTE for support staff.
Fees will remain unchanged for a number of programs and events provided within the division.
The single largest expenditure for the budget is direct staffing at 76 per cent. The district has budgeted for 582 full-time equivalent teachers and 472 FTE support staff. Both teachers and support staff have grown in number since 2011-12 due to ongoing student growth.
Trustee Don Lacy said he was satisfied with how the budget came together.
“Two things are important to me in the budget,” he said. “Number one is to spend today’s money on today’s kids. Number two is to keep the teachers in front of their classrooms as much as possible.
“When anything pulls teachers out of classrooms, I’m not happy.
“Overall, I’m really happy with the budget.”
Vice-chair Jan Foster said it was important to note that while funding had been added for inclusive learning, the district had allocated $3 million.
“I think that’s another way our board shows a commitment to that particular area,” she said. “There is also nearly $3 million in counselling supports, which I think shows how our board feels how important this is.”
Chair Mich Forster said the process of funding schools has changed dramatically since he became a principal in 1979.
“Schools had virtually no input into the budget,” he said. “It was an assigning of dollars to schools with very little involvement with schools themselves.
“Today, we have a far greater system where, as trustees, we have a far better understanding of (how funding and budgeting works).”