With the “unprecedented” rise of student enrolment in schools across the province, Wolf Creek Public Schools is also feeling the strain.
According to the Alberta Teachers Association (ATA), enrolment will be up by at least 20,000 students over last year, and school boards are about $135 million short this year.
On Nov. 28, the Alberta government announced an additional $30 million in funding for the 2023-24 school year to address increased enrolment.
School authorities are to receive $1,500 per student for actual enrolment growth between zero and 100 students and growth exceeding 100 students will be funded at $2,000 per student. This funding is to come this month.
“This year’s growth in student enrolment is unprecedented,” said ATA president Jason Schilling in a statement.
“When students are added to classrooms that are not fully funded, this amounts to a cut.Why are we choosing to continue to cut the level of per-pupil funding when we already have the lowest funded public education system in the country?” he said.
“This funding is obviously welcome, but it is nowhere near enough. Alberta’s students deserve better.”
While school divisions in larger centres such as Calgary and Edmonton have reported a jump in enrolment growth, rural communities haven’t been immune either.
“We don’t have exact comparative numbers with larger divisions’ enrolment increases, but I can tell you that in Wolf Creek we have seen an increase of approximately 130 students across the division,” said Wolf Creek Public Schools superintendent Tim De Ruyck.
“Most of this is seen in the middle to higher school grade levels, which could be an indication of families continuing to come back to Wolf Creek following homeschooling due to COVID, and families relocating to central Alberta.
“Wolf Creek is expecting to receive approximately $200,000 in additional funding from Alberta Education. We will know more when we have that discussion with Alberta Education.”
Minister of Education Demetrios Nicolaides stated higher enrolment may also be due to many newcomers to Alberta in recent months.
Last month, the UCP government voted against Bill 202, the Education Class Composition Reporting And Standard Amendment Act.
According to the NDP, the bill would have required boards to report on class sizes and composition, including the number of students requiring specialized support, the number of English language learners and staffing levels. The minister would then be legislated to provide additional support accordingly.
“This bill would have shed light on the composition of classrooms and establish the tools necessary to develop funding models to adequately meet the needs of students,” said Amanda Chapman, Alberta NDP critic for services to children with disabilities.
A survey launched by the NDP showed 50 per cent of respondents reported class sizes of 30 or more students.
“Parents and teachers also reported classes with more complex needs than ever and without the supports students need,” stated a release.
Another recent issue that caused alarm for school boards in Alberta was the government’s announcement in March, 2023 that the distance requirements for or students to access transportation on the school bus would be lowered as of the 2023-24 school year.
“Like many school divisions, we continue to be challenged with hiring, training and retaining bus drivers needed to fulfill the routes currently serving our schools,” board chair Luci Henry said in a recently submitted opinion column.
“Our transportation department continues to work to find, hire and train amazing drivers as often as we can, but more are always needed. This will be even more difficult to attain with the new changes, as it will mean more drivers to hire. Additionally, the purchasing of many more buses and changes to bus routes will also be needed to fulfill the changes of the distance requirements.”
READ MORE: Wolf Creek reaches out to busing families over ridership eligibility
Wolf Creek has nearly 90 bus routes, and its buses travel nearly 5,000 kilometers per day — more than 850,000 kilometers per year. The division currently buses approximately half of its students.
The busing eligibility changes are now being postponed until September, 2025.
“We were very pleased to hear from Alberta Education that they are delaying (the) changes,” said De Ruyck.
“This will give many Divisions, including Wolf Creek, much needed time to prepare for the impacts of the changes. For us, this continues to be hiring and training new drivers, purchasing new buses and analyzing our routes to ensure they are efficient and will meet the needs set out under the new requirements,” he said.
“This change is a testament to the advocacy work by our WCPS board of trustees, and their colleagues around the province, who have asked for this additional time from Alberta Education. It also speaks to the relationship Alberta Education has with boards to have these conversations and work collaboratively towards a positive path forward.”
Over the next three years, Alberta’s government has committed more than $820 million to school divisions to address enrolment growth. The funding may be used to hire additional teachers and classroom support staff.
An additional $126 million over three years has been allotted for school authorities to add supports to complex classrooms.