Valley schools facing big cuts

BY NANCY KELLY

Kings County Register

Valley school board superintendent Norman Dray reports the board is “desperately hoping for extra funding from the provincial government” to help balance its 2008/ 09 budget.

Dray says, like other Nova Scotia school boards, the AVRSB is facing increases on a variety of expenses - including energy costs. “We expect to spend upwards of $1 million on fuel and energy expenses - it’s a huge part of our budget,” said Dray, adding the board received no compensation from the province for its escalating energy costs.

Despite receiving a 1.49 per cent increase from the Department of Education, the Valley board was $4.5 million away from a balanced budget position when it drafted its preliminary budget. In work sessions held since, the board cut $2.4 million out of the budget to get closer to its zero deficit target. “Line by line” cuts include, among other items, all optional administrative professional development, technical budgets, trips and travel, school maintenance and repair, support for new teachers and science fair and heritage fair funding. The educational assistant allotment was reduced by 100 hours and the three-year-old screening program was not extended as planned. As it had already committed to staffing levels prior to the funding announcement, the board did not factor any staff reductions into efforts to balance its budget. Dray says such cuts could be possible if more money is not forthcoming from the province. “We have looked at any and all discretionary spending in an effort to reduce our costs,” says Dray, also hoping the province will revisit or ease its restrictions on school boards’ accessing surplus funds. Currently the board can only access $220,000 of its surplus for such purposes.

With a mid-July deadline, Dray says the clock is ticking for the board to devise a balanced budget, mandated under the Education Act. “The reality is that we still have a $2.1 million shortfall. The Province of Nova Scotia needs to understand that education needs a fair share of provincial money.”

A special meeting was planned June 24 for more discussion of the board’s budget options.