Edmonton education funding for 2023-24 falls short: EPSB
Global News
Estabrooks and other trustees urged parents to consider education funding when marking their ballots in the provincial election on Monday.
The Edmonton Public School Board (EPSB) has approved the $1.3 billion 2023-24 budget, but that doesn’t mean they like it.
Disappointment was felt around the table Friday as the trustees looked at what chair Trisha Estabrooks said is another unsatisfying budget.
“Yet again we have a budget that doesn’t truly reflect the number of kids that we’re serving and doesn’t truly provide the kind of supports that we need,” said Estabrooks.
“That this budget is happening when there’s great money in this province is inexcusable,” said EPSB trustee Jan Sawyer.
Estabrooks said though the budget increased this year, because enrolment levels went up at a higher rate, the funding allocated this year actually amounts to a cut.
“We don’t see that parallel investment in our staffing costs – simply, we don’t have the money to hire the additional staff, be it teachers or educational assistants,” she said.
Several problems could be ahead, Estabrooks said, including larger class sizes.
Estabrooks said this is because the formula used to determine funding for schools doesn’t take into account enrollment growth, instead determining budget based on a three-year student-population average.