With grant money coming from the provincial government not matching an increase in staffing costs, the Grande Yellowhead Regional Division will have to cut several teaching positions in order to make ends meet.

“We will be expecting some staffing cuts,” confirmed GYRD spokesperson Nicole Merrifield late last week. Alberta Education has hit the local school authority with a double whammy financially, providing just a 2.64 per cent increase in grant money while eliminating nearly $300,000 in expected Class Size Initiative funding. This has forced the GYRD to cut costs, and with 70 per cent of the divisional budget consumed by staff salaries and benefits, it was inevitable that some of the trimming would happen in this area.

For the time being, Merrifield is unable to provide certain numbers in terms of how many jobs will be lost, but estimates it will be in the range of 10-15 positions division-wide.

“We know most of the numbers, but we need to do some more work divisionally,” she said. “We will know when staff hiring is complete, which will be the end of the month hopefully.”

The increasing average salary of teachers in the GYRD has been a concern for the division for a number of years, and the Retirement Initiative Plan is only just beginning to have an impact on the financial situation at schools around the region.

“There’s a high percentage of our staff who are close to retirement and we’re hoping to encourage them to retire over the course of the next several years,” Merrifield said. In the case of both Jasper schools, a number of retirements this year may be a good news situation when it comes to staffing cuts, as teachers with fewer years on the job tend to cost the division less to retain.

Still, the GYRD is hardly cherishing the prospect of having to reduce the number of teachers and the axe may also fall on staff in the division’s Learning Services department. Unfortunately, the cold calculations may have to be repeated next year.

“When the budget is down, that affects staffing and so does lower enrollment, and that’s what we anticipate for next year,” Merrifield said.

Losing staff might hurt, but the GYRD has been able to hang on to a popular program that has helped hundreds of the division’s youngest students. The Kindergarten Enhancement Program has been in place for three years, assisting entry-level students enhance their skills over the course of the first year in school. The program was designed by the GYRD but funded through the Alberta Initiative for School Improvement (AISI).

Despite the proven effectiveness of the program, the AISI funding only operates in three-year cycles, meaning that in order to maintain it, the division has had to dip into reserves.

“It was a difficult decision that the board made,” Merrifield said. “Our reserves are meant to be dedicated to unforseen situations, not funding academic programs.”

The kindergarten program, which comes with a price tag of approximately $180,000, has been so successful that the GYRD board is committed to continuing to provide the option. 

“Teachers have found significant changes in abilities of those students in the program over the course of the three years we’ve had the program,” she said. The evidence is more than anecdotal, in fact.

In September 2004, only 50 per cent of GYRD students entering kindergarten displayed the expected skills for that grade level. In May 2005, 79 per cent of students were at the level expected of Grade 1 students, meaning that the enhancement program not only brought the students up to speed, but also put them at the same level as their peers by the end of the school year.

“It’s so vital to bring them up to par at the beginning of their education,” said Merrifield.

Count Jasper Elementary principal Raymond Blanchette-Dube as a big fan of the kindergarten enhancement approach.

“I think it’s highly important, it gives students that extra boost,” he said. “In Jasper it’s well-utilized and the growth we’ve seen in the ten months has been incredible.”

The program is based on direct attention for the students in the program from trained kindergarten-level experts. Without funding, the kids involved would simply be added to the rest of the class and forced to do their best to keep up with the larger group. 

While the GYRD is exploring ways to sustain the program using existing funds, there could be relief on the way from Alberta Education. Departmental discussions on the funding of full-day kindergarten have not reached any conclusion as yet, but Merrifield is hopeful that the money could be on the way soon. Blanchette-Dube strikes a cautionary tone, however.

“We have to be careful first of all, about what full-day means, because there are a variety of models out there,” he said. “If it does happen though, I think all the students would be getting the focus and the time that they need.”