By Charles Lefebvre

Public School Division tabling preliminary budget for Fall 2019

Jun 25, 2019 | 5:00 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB — The Medicine Hat Public School Division will be running a balanced budget in the 2019-20 school year.

However, according to the budget documents, the division is projecting a reduction in operating grants from the provincial government this fall due to lower enrolment, and there will be fewer teachers in the classroom.

The budget will be brought forward for approval during tonight’s school board meeting at 6 p.m. Documents can be viewed here.

The division is projecting there will be 7,407 students in the fall, a decrease of 81 from the 2018-19 school year. The enrolment represents the first decline in enrolment in the past five years.

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In 2014, the division’s total enrolment was 7,224, and it has steadily grown in the past several years, hitting 7,488 in 2018.

The area expected to be most impacted by enrolment is kindergarten to Grade 6. Last year, there were 3,829 students enrolled in those grades. The board is projecting 3,727 students this fall, a decline of 102.

The division is projecting a 3,407 students in junior high and high school, up 27 from last year.

With a decline in enrolment, the board is also expecting a decrease in 5.9 teaching positions in the fall, down from 432.1 teaching positions last year. The division is also expecting a drop of 9 education assistants this year, bringing the total to 89.8 positions.

The teaching position cuts will include three less optimal learning consultants, bringing the total in the division to eight. There will also be the elimination of the equivalent of 2.9 school-based staff, citing a drop in enrolment.

While class sizes have been an issue throughout Alberta, the Medicine Hat Public School Division’s has largely hit the size targets set by the province.

The documents say the average class sizes are 21.8 for Grades 4-6 (23 is the provincial target) 25.2 for Grades 7 to 9 (provincial target is 25) and 23.9 for Grades 10-12 (provincial target is 27). Kindergarten to Grade 3 in the division is at an average of 18.5 students, up from the province’s target of 17.

According to the agenda, the school board’s budget could change in the fall, depending on final enrolment numbers and funding from Alberta education in the provincial budget when it is tabled.