Nov. 14, 2024
On behalf of the Board of Trustees
The Board of Trustees continues to advocate for education funding that keeps pace with escalating student enrolment, rising costs and increasingly complex student needs.
We’re encouraged to hear that the government is revising the current funding framework to better meet the needs of school boards. The Board sent a letter
Re: Replacement of the Weighted Moving Average Funding Framework on Oct.31 to Minister Nicolaides to ensure CBE’s perspectives are considered.
Investing in today’s students supports a stronger Alberta for the future. We provide a world-class education to one in six students in Alberta, and CBE students continue to excel on provincial and international standardized testing.
Regardless of the model implemented, funding must cover the actual cost of delivering high quality education. The model must be based on adequate overall funding-per-student as no framework, on its own, can alleviate underfunding. Without increased funding, we continue to face growing average class sizes and difficulty maintaining supports and services for students.
Our funding is not stretching as far as is used to. We highlighted for the Minister that:
- Between 2018-19 and 2024-25, the CBE’s funding per student has remained relatively constant, at, or below, 2018-19 levels. Over the same period, inflation has eroded the CBE’s purchasing power of this funding by more than 20 per cent.
- Almost 80 per cent of CBE’s costs are directly related to employing people. As the average cost of labour rises, the funding for 100 teachers in 2018-19 can only fund 92 teachers in 2024-25.
An addition
$1 billion needs to be injected into provincial public education to bring Alberta’s per student funding in line with the Canadian average*. If funding were to increase by this amount, CBE’s share would be about $180 million. An injection of that size, spread amongst 142,000+ students and 251 schools, would allow the CBE to positively impact average class size and the availability of the services and supports necessary to support all students, especially students with complex needs.
At a minimum, the Alberta government must commit to increasing the rate of funding every year to get Alberta closer to the Canadian average.
Let’s Work Together to Make a Difference
As we connect with school councils and families from across the city, many of you have asked how you can get involved.
We encourage you to:
Calgary's students are worth the investment!
*(Fraser Institute, Education Spending in Public Schools in Canada, 2024 Edition, Table 5, Page 9).
