Huron Expositor, 2007-08-22, Page 10Page 10 The Huron Expositor • August 22, 2007
News
Local school boards receive new funds for coming year
Avon Maitland hopeful funding will cover transportation costs for students
Stew Slater
In an announcement last week,
the ruling Liberals added $182
million to Ontario's 2007-08
Education Ministry budget,
including about $1.6 million and
$600,000 to the two school boards
in Huron and Perth Counties.
"We're not sure if we'll receive
quite that amount because it's an
enrolment -based figure,"
explained communications man-
ager Steve Howe of the Avon
Maitland District School Board,
the larger of the two boards. He
noted the province's preliminary
allocation of the new funding was
based on enrolments in last year's
school system, but the final
amounts will be based on enrol-
ments as of Oct. 31, 2007.
The wide-ranging government
news release identified eight dif-
ferent aspects of the new funding,
including vice -principals in large
schools, school maintenance, and
office supplies. But Howe suggest-
ed the Avon Maitland board will
be affected in three main areas:
transportation, Primary class size
reduction, and possibly easing the
limitations on which schools qual-
ify for specialized "rural" support.
The Education Ministry news
release points to "$12 million to
continue transportation funding
reform by ensuring boards receive
funding that more accurately
reflects the real costs of school
bus operation and maintenance."
Avon Maitland trustees have
repeatedly communicated their
dismay to the government regard-
ing the difficulty the board faces
in providing student transporta-
tion within the provincial alloca-
tion. Howe agrees this latest cash
injection represents a "move
towards better recognition of
actual costs ... I think, probably,
it's going to address the shortfall."
He added Avon Maitland admin-
istrators are hopeful the money
will allow the board to stop the
practice of using money originally
designated for other areas to
instead cover transportation
costs.
The board will also benefit from
new money aimed at helping
boards attain a province -wide goal
of having 20 or fewer students in
90 per cent of Primary classes by
2008. Because the exact dollar fig-
ures haven't yet been calculated,
Howe couldn't say how many new
teachers this will represent, but
he expects Avon Maitland will
benefit.
He offered less clarity, mean-
while, regarding the new "rural"
funding. A part of it will be allo-
cated based oil a revised defini-
tion of "rural," based on decreas-
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Form on:
ing the required distance between
qualifying elementary schools
from 30 km to 20 km. The dis-
tance between secondary schools
that qualify for "rural" funding
will change, meanwhile, from at
least 50 km to at least 45 km.
Even under the old formula, a
small number of elementary
schools in the Huron -Perth
Catholic District School Board
qualified as "rural." Under the
new formula, that list is expected
to increase, and possibly include
the board's two secondary schools
in Clinton and Stratford.
After a quick look at the Avon
Maitland situation, however,
Howe said he believed that board
will still not qualify at any
schools. But he noted a different
portion of the new "rural" support
will be allocated on a different
basis, and he's confident the Avon
Maitland board will eventually
see some of that
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money.
"We've now
got the 2006
Census informa-
tion, and (the
government)
says this new
Rural and Small
Community
Allocation will
be based on that
Stats Can infor-
mation," he
said. "We expect
we may qualify
for some (funds)
here."
Last week's
announcement
also included a
pledge of $127
million for the
2008-09 school
year, but there
was no allot-
ment of those
funds on a
board -by -board
basis. Planned
expenditure
areas for that
money include
Special
Education,
English as a sec-
ond language,
special funding
for small school
boards, new
schools in popu-
lation growth
areas, and "non -
salary compen-
sation."