Parents at New Westminster Secondary School are concerned about a 90 per cent cut to the school’s budget and what it will mean for their children’s education.
Stephen Bruyneel, chair of the New Westminster Secondary School parent advisory council, said parents have been assured that no programs will be impacted this year, in part because they were able to carry forward funds from previous years, but Bruyneel says they have no idea what the impact will be next year.
“Then conversation turns to what about next year? As parents, and as a PAC, we said ‘We need to know as soon as possible, for our kids, what the implications might be for next year,’” Bruyneel said. “We felt really strongly that we needed to know that information as soon as possible.”
At the parent council’s last meeting, the discussion was around parents’ need to know because of the amount of the cut and the uncertainty of what it will mean in the future. The budget reduction this year was chopped from approximately $800,000 to $65,000 for the school this year.
“We talked about the need for parents to know about this as soon as possible because ... of the size of it and what might it means for next year,” Bruyneel said. “We as a PAC are growing increasingly concerned about both those issues. We don’t think that parents know about the situation, and we also don’t think they know that it could be repeated next year and what the potential implication that might (have).”
The school’s parent council passed a resolution asking the school district to communicate about the current budget situation to parents and to engage them in a discussion about what that might mean for next year.
Bruyneel told board of education chair Michael Ewen that the issue is on the agenda for the school’s parent council’s next meeting, and they will be looking for a “firm” response from the school district on the request.
“If there isn’t a response, they will be looking at other ways to deal with it,” he warned.
Bruyneel said the parents understand that it’s not principal Phil Cookson’s fault that the district is in financial crisis.
“We’re very supportive of what Phil’s doing, and how he is trying manage through this situation. He inherited it. It has nothing to do with him,” Bruyneel said.
The school district is facing an accumulated deficit of almost $5 million.
“To balance the books for the 2013/14 school year, our board was required to reduce its expenditures,” Cookson wrote in a newsletter to parents.
The high school principal outlined what the funds are used to pay for. Included on the list are learning materials, technology, supplies, students experiences, such as field trips, participating on athletics teams, performances and guest speakers.
To help offset the shortfall, the school has cut non-essential expenditures such as replacement of computers, buying library books and repairing worn-out equipment.
“For 2014/15, however, life as it currently exists at NWSS will have to be substantially altered should our operating budget not be increased from its current $65,000,” Cookson wrote.
