School District 43's newest trustees learned a tough lesson in budgeting Tuesday when they backed down from a plan to gut a contingency fund and hire four teachers they hoped would restore librarian, speech and language and psychology services to schools.
It was a last-ditch effort to deal with concerns about waiting lists and reduced services, issues raised because the district will have no extra funds to spend this year.
But after some "enlightenment" received over the previous week, Anmore/Belcarra Trustee Kerri Palmer Isaak said she had a change of heart.
Adding more staff would have virtually eliminated the contingency funded, Palmer Isaak was told, reducing it to $84,000 from $500,000 and leaving the district without a cushion in the event of unplanned expenses.
"What we learned is the direction we gave was too specific and our needs are vast," Palmer Isaak said.
She was joined in the budgeting mea culpa by rookie Coquitlam Trustee Carol Cahoon, who also changed her mind from a motion she made last week after learning her proposal to put $100,000 from the contingency into library services wouldn't go far after it was divvied up among schools.
The trustee who, like Palmer Isaak, was elected in November as the district was already grappling with $13.8 million in cuts to staffing offered to rescind her motion.
"For it to be in a contingency, it would be more logical," Cahoon said, "I'd rather have some back up money ready and waiting to go," Cahoon said.
WAITING LISTS
Below: At a recent board meeting, School District 43 counsellors told trustees about increasing numbers of vulnerable students needing help, many with mental health issues. FILE PHOTO
Trustees' concerns about waiting lists, including 313 students needing speech and language therapy and 250 waiting for psychological testing, were partly addressed by superintendent Patricia Gartland, who said students with special needs are still getting services. Trustees were also told that any surpluses accrued through the year for such things as reduced utility costs could go toward staffing improvements.
The district will also get $5.3 million next year, up from $4.9 million this year, from a specially dedicated provincial education fund to hire teachers and special education assistants to deal with class size and composition issues, trustees were told.
"We were sucked into the vortex of trying to do a good thing," said board chair Judy Shirra, a Port Coquitlam trustee, who said this year's contingency fund was eaten up when the district opted to pay teachers for a day's pay for the day they returned from a five-week strike. The day that was reportedly not part of the contract cost $800,000, with some money coming from the district's contingency and the remaining paid for with international education fees.
Trustees acknowledged that the burden of paying off an accrued debt of $10.2 million is taking its toll, with $2.5 million to be paid out next year.
"We need to get that done," acknowledged Coquitlam trustee Barb Hobson.
The district also has to find $1.5 million in administrative efficiencies required by the province this year and a similar amount next year.
Only two trustees chose not to side with their colleagues. Port Moody's Lisa Park and Port Coquitlam's Michael Thomas, both first-time trustees, voted against the decision to rescind the earlier motions to hire extra teachers, although neither spoke about their reasons for objecting.
The $313-million budget bylaw, including operating, special purpose funds was, however, passed unanimously.
Port Moody trustee Keith Watson was absent from the final budget meeting.
