Catholic board wants busing funding changed

The Northwest Catholic District School Board agreed Saturday to send a letter to Education minister Gerard Kennedy, asking him to reconsider cuts to its transportation funding.
Local school boards met with ministry representatives Nov. 16 to discuss changes to the province’s transportation funding model.
The Catholic board learned it likely would see a reduction in funding of 5.7 percent, or about $52,697. This is a smaller cut than the original reduction projected in July of 10.7 percent, or about $94,000.
The Keewatin-Patricia and Rainy River District school boards are expected to receive funding increases of about 35 and 22 percent, respectively.
Transportation funding accounts for about seven percent of the Catholic board’s $14-million budget.
Cuts to funding may mean the board will have to consider reducing busing services.
“There’s a potential cut to transportation service,” Superintendent of Business Chris Howarth warned at the board’s regular monthly meeting on Saturday.
In a written report to the board, Howarth noted it may be necessary to change the kindergarten program from a half-day every day to a full day, every other day, in order to save costs on noon-hour bus routes.
In a draft of its letter to Kennedy, the board noted it negotiates bus operator contracts jointly with its co-terminous boards (Keewatin-Patricia and Rainy River District).
“Given our small size, it is not possible for us to negotiate individually with school bus operators and have no choice but to agree to contracts agreed to by the larger public boards,” the draft read.
The board noted this situation is exacerbated by the fact the public boards will be receiving funding increases—and may look to increase services—while the separate board will be forced to look at decreasing services.
“We urge the ministry to reconsider the implementation of grant reduction for those boards such as ourselves who have little ability to enact transportation savings,” the letter said.
Howarth noted the funding model has not yet been finalized.
The board’s next meeting will be held Jan. 18.