VSB School Board Chair Patti Bacchus is in a very unenviable position, once again as result of the limbo associated with the job.
I just got back into town from Jamaica this morning to discover that the most difficult jobs in municipal politics – namely, school board trustees – are about to get an even rougher ride than usual.
Waiting with anticipation (or more likely dread) is all Vancouver School Board Chair Patti Bacchus and her colleagues can do at this point in anticipation of the budget allocation from the province in March. The budget crunch could be up to $36 million – representing a potential cut of 800 jobs.
In this never-ending cycle of funding shortfalls, this latest announcement has broad implications as to whether school boards are viable within the constant push and pull between the BC Teachers’ Federation (BCTF) and the provincial government.
Does anyone remember this kind of optimism? I know many friends and former classmates who entered the teaching profession, not only because they thought it was a noble and fulfilling calling, but also because retirements due to an “age bulge” amongst the existing teacher pool provided ample career opportunities.
Well, here we are today, and the fog that exists in the battle of rhetoric between the province and the BCTF is thick and hard to decipher.
As an example, the BCTF made some bold claims about the BC Liberal record during last year’s election campaign: 177 schools closed, 10,000 overcrowded classrooms, special needs still neglected. But as pointed out by the Vancouver Sun’s Janet Steffenhagen:
- The advertisement notes school closures but doesn’t mention that government has also opened 73 schools and expanded 143.
- There has been a drop of 50,000 students during the same time, which naturally translates into excess school space. Should there be a “bottom limit” for schools or should they remain open even if there are only a dozen or so students?
- The statement about 10,000 “overcrowded” classes suggests they all have more than 30 students, but in fact only 3,336 classes fall into that category. The rest are considered overcrowded because they have more than three special-needs students.
Then again, the government’s assertions that budgets and per-student allotments have gone up every year are also disingenous, as pointed out in this Georgia Straight article from last spring: last year’s 1.26-percent increase to public education, as an example, is less than inflation, and it will not cover salary increases or rising costs like transportation and utilities. In addition, 34 school districts in the province have had their budgets frozen. The statistic that BC has the worst student-educator ratio in the country is also very concerning.
Moving to other side of the spectrum again, this 5-year collective agreement signed between the BCTF and the BC Public School Employers’ Association (BCPSEA) seems pretty generous when it comes to pay increases, benefits and pension plans. Why do I say this for one of society’s most important professions? Because as pointed out by CTV, the majority of new costs associated with the school board funding shortfalls have to do with increases to teacher salaries, pension plans and MSP premiums.
So where does that leave school boards? Powerless as usual, and looking to shift based on the decision making of a government has always talked a good game about education, but rarely backed up its political promises.
At the end of the day, if school boards are consistently handed a dog’s breakfast when it comes to the budgets to fulfill its most basic needs, then the individuals who serve in these thankless jobs become little more than the scapegoats for larger forces entirely out of their control.
Honestly, I can’t understand the appeal of serving in such a futile position. Maybe it is time for the province to take greater control over the education system, and rightfully take the brunt of the crossfire when funding inadequecies is all that it delivers to the young people who are supposed to represent our future.
I have some major catch-up to do after a whirlwind honeymoon, so one post will have to suffice until tomorrow, when I will be back with CivicScene’s more regular 2+ updates per weekday.
