Understanding School District Finances and engaging our community

Transcription

1 Understanding School District Finances and engaging our community

2 How are school districts funded? Three funding sources Operating Fund Special Purpose Funds Capital Instruction School and district Administration Operations and maintenance Transportation Funds provided by a third party for the sole purpose to carry out a function or activity, e.g. school meals program, scholarships, ministry-designated activities For the purpose of acquiring land, buildings and fixtures

3 How are school districts funded? The Operating Fund: revenues Basic funding for the district is provided on a per-pupil basis. Other Revenue 2.86% Every child who registers in a school in Surrey brings in about $7,000 in operating funds that support all programs in the district. Provincial Grants 97.14% Overall, we receive about $590M annually. Other revenue sources include international education tuition, facilities rental income, investment Income.

4 Where does the money go? The Operating Fund Ops.& Mtce % Dist. Adm. 1.97% Transport 0.93% Instruction - Regular Classroom and instructional support programs, such as Career Ed, ESL, Special Needs, other student support programs Operations and Maintenance upkeep of facilities and grounds, includes utilities Instruction 86.63% District Administration HR/payroll, district governance, purchasing and finance functions (Surrey School District has the lowest spending ratio in B.C.) Transportation Student busing

5 Where does the money go? Part two The Operating Expenses Surrey School District employs: Labour 90.5% 3,900+ FTE teachers. 1,200+ FTE educational assistants. 1,100+ FTE support staff, (clerical, maintenance, etc.). 300+, principals, vice principals and other professional staff. Services & Supplies 9.5% Labour costs total more than $540 Million Services and supplies, including utilities amount to more than $57 Million.

6 What are Special Purpose Funds? Funds received by the district for a designated purpose or activity. Funds are restricted in use by the funding party. Proceeds at the end of the purpose are returned back to the funding party. Examples: ministry designed activities, LIF, Annual Facilities Grant, PAC funds for specific goods, scholarships.

7 What are Capital Funds? When we acquire land, build schools, or do significant renovations on schools, that money is called capital. Capital is not provided on a per-pupil basis. We need to apply to the Ministry of Education and make a business case for new schools or renovations.

8 Building a school How do we do this? We have to prove that our schools are full - beyond a school s enrolment capacity. We have to prove that the long range population projections have us remaining over capacity. We have to secure funding to acquire land for future builds. We have to secure funding to actually design and build a school.

9 Why do we have budget challenges? It s true more money than ever is being put into education, but increased costs to the district routinely outpace funding. Some examples pension increases, utility costs, employee benefit costs, maintenance costs. Increasingly, the school district is relying on one-time operating surplus from prior year to fund recurring activities.

10 How has our board responded? By making a long series of reductions Since : Reductions were made to custodians, clerical and district staff. The school calendar has been amended to reduce the number of instructional days to save Teacher on Call costs. Various instructional and classroom support activities were redesigned, resulting in a transfer of non-enrolling teacher staff (e.g. district helping teachers providing specialized curriculum support) into the classroom. Services and supplies were reduced to help address increased labour costs.

11