New Westminster students, families and staff will have a chance to offer their input into the school district’s 2021/22 budget in April.
The New Westminster school board is taking a new approach to public feedback in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Obviously, this year has presented some unique challenges in terms of budget process consultations,” secretary-treasurer Bettina Ketcham told trustees at the March 9 school board meeting.
But she said the district will “seize the moment” and make some changes that will help stakeholders to comment on the budget in a more "meaningful and specific" way.
Starting April 12, people will have a chance to fill out an online survey in which the district will seek feedback on specific concepts related to its strategic priorities – in areas such as mental health, technology, and health and safety.
The district will also hold virtual consultations with staff, including representatives from the New Westminster Teachers’ Union, CUPE (which represents school support staff) and its principals and vice-principals’ group. Similar virtual consultations will be held with parent and student representatives, including district parent advisory council reps and membership of the Student Voice leadership group at NWSS.
Ketcham said the meetings will be structured to allow for “one-on-one consultation in a very candid manner.”
A student symposium on the budget will also be held at NWSS on April 21 – a date chosen, Ketcham noted, because it falls in the transition from the third quarter to the fourth and allows students to take part in a half-day virtual session.
BUDGET TIMELINE SET
Behind-the-scenes staff work on the budget has already begun, and Ketcham noted the Ministry of Education funding announcement coming on March 12 will be the real catalyst for the process.
A trustee budget workshop will be held April 6, and, by the next school board meeting on April 13, the district will share the big picture of its structural surplus or deficit position for the new year.
After that, taking into account all the feedback gathered from the public consultations, a recommendation will come back to the board’s operations committee on May 11.
The district has set a target of May 25 for the finalization of the 2021/22 budget, but Ketcham noted that date is still flexible because the district’s submission to the Ministry of Education is not due until June 30.
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