The Huron-Superior Catholic District School Board approved a balanced budget of $88,814,304 for the 2023-24 school year Wednesday.
The budget comes as projected enrolment for 2023-24 appears to be relatively flat.
There were 4,322 actual pupils within the board in October 2022, with a projection of 4,328 for this October.
However, compared to numbers for the 2021-22 school year in October 2021, actual enrolment is up by 79 students.
“The budget includes many exciting initiatives incorporated into it, all designed with our students at the forefront,” said Justin Pino, H-SCDSB superintendent of business, addressing the board Wednesday.
Those initiatives include the assigning of a new Superintendent of Education in charge of a Math Recovery Plan.
A principal already within the H-SCDSB system has been assigned to that position.
“We’re hoping it will eventually roll into the Grants for Student Needs and be a permanent position but right now it’s earmarked as a Priorities Partnership Funding position which is a one-year commitment right now," Pino said. "We’re optimistic the Ministry will extend it and possibly make it permanent, but as of now it’s a PPF."
There’s also room in the budget for:
- A new Principal of Specialized Student Services, working in Special Education
- Three Northern teaching vice principal positions for schools in communities such as Wawa, White River, Hornepayne
- Two new school-based Multilingual Language Learner special assignment teachers
- Expansion of the outdoor education program at the board’s St. Kateri Outdoor Learning Centre for an additional Grade 6 and 7 class
- $20,000 for the board’s Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics program
- Continued clerical support at elementary schools one week prior to schools reopening
- Continued incremental spending of $70,000 to $100,000 on cyber security in the wake of a cyberattack that seriously affected the board’s computer systems shortly before Christmas 2022
Due to a decrease in enrolment, the board will discontinue offering virtual learning at Holy Trinity Virtual Academy for 2023-24. Approximately 20 students still enrolled in that programming, down from approximately 500, will be transitioned back to in-person learning at their home schools.
“Salaries, benefits and transportation constitute 88 per cent of our operating costs,” Pino said.
As a result, H-SCDSB Chair Gary Trembinski said “we have between eight and ten million left, and out of that capital projects take up about four million of that, so when you whittle this down there’s not a whole lot to play with, in all honesty.”
But in his report to the board, Pino said “we’re very proud to say that we’re balancing the budget this year. In conversations with some of our colleagues at other boards, it’s a very challenging budget year for many boards.”
By law, Ontario school boards are required to balance their budgets.