Families in New Westminster will be paying higher fees for supplies and programs in 2023-24.
The New Westminster school board's education committee received a school fees budget report at its April 11 meeting. According to the report, the most significant change is in the school supplies fee, especially for elementary schools around the district. The current fee that ranges from $25 to $40 is projected to climb to between $40 and $50. As for middle schools, the current $40 fee will range from $40 to $50.
Maryam Naser, associate superintendent of New Westminster schools, said she has heard unanimously from all schools in the district that they are facing challenges with access to the supplies.
“The school supplies vary in what’s being asked across classrooms, and so it’s not possible with X amount of dollar figure, it’s a range,” she said.
She said schools have agreed that supply fees will never exceed that range.
Despite the increase, Naser reminded that the school-supply fees are optional — families can purchase their own supplies or reuse supplies from older siblings, for example.
"If there are financial concerns, we work with those families to support them to ensure that they get their money," Naser said.
The school district aims to ensure that program costs don't exclude students from opportunities to learn.
Another school program that would see a significant fee increase is football. The reported cost for this activity during the school year of 2022-23 is $290 for new players and $250 for those who are returning to it.
However, the projected cost for the football program in the upcoming school year is $425. According to Naser, the notable difference between costs is that there were “a couple of other items that were associated with being involved in football program but didn’t appear on the schedule," such as the athletic banquet.
Trustee Cheryl Sluis said she's concerned about obstacles for students to access the programs they want.
“I just think there are barriers to access that I don't like," she said.
Some of the other fees seeing changes for 2023-24 are the international baccalaureate program and high school graduation fees. You can find a full list of the fees in the agenda package for the April 11 education committee meeting.
