CALGARY—A $15 million source of relief for Calgary classrooms affected by recent budget cuts could be in the works, but some are worried this remedy won’t do more than provide a “band-aid solution.”

The Calgary Board of Education received approval on Monday to move $15 million away from infrastructure maintenance funding and use it to relieve pressure from last month’s budget cuts. This could mean retaining job losses and reduce the transportation fee hike families can expect, both of which stems from a $32-million mid-year shortfall the board faces after funding cuts from the province.

The provincial government approved Alberta school boards to repurpose money from the Infrastructure Maintenance and Renewal grant on a one-time basis to cope with mid-year shortfalls. Normally, budgets would have been prepared in advance of the school year, but the change in government after this spring’s election meant the United Conservative Party didn’t release its provincial budget until after the school year had begun.

“For a system that is large, complex, diverse and growing, it takes time to make change. So by being able to access these funds, it gives us that gift of time … to adjust to our new budget realities,” said CBE board chair Marilyn Dennis.

It’s still unclear just how many jobs would be saved with this money and how much more families can expect to pay on transportation. An updated budget assumptions report will be presented by the board next Tuesday providing more detail on how it is balancing its budget.

For school boards to be eligible to use infrastructure maintenance funding on other costs, Ministry of Education spokesperson Colin Aitchison said boards have to show they’re maintaining student health and safety and using their operating reserves reasonably.

“This is a one-year opportunity to provide boards with greater short-term flexibility to react to rising insurance premiums and keep as much funding as possible in the classroom as we transition to a new funding and assurance model for the next school year,” Aitchison said via email.

Taking $15 million away from infrastructure funds would leave the CBE with $22.5 million to use for school maintenance, repairs and renovations, which creates some risk for the school board.

The CBE has aging facilities to worry about with more than half of its schools over half a century old, and a deferred maintenance backlog that the board says is already equal to $162 million across nearly 250 schools. The CBE also said the value of major building components that are operating beyond their expected lifespan is an estimated $759 million. IMR funding would be used to respond to the failure of any of these resources.

Bob Cocking, president of Calgary Public Teachers Local 38, said some classes not having to be disrupted by losing their teacher is a positive to this move. But he added that $15 million is equivalent to only around 150 teacher jobs, less than half of what could be lost, and some of that funding will be used on school and transportation fees meaning even less jobs will be saved.

Cocking added that maintenance projects that will now have to be deferred to another year, could end up costing the school board more, the longer they wait.

“The only problem is what’s going to be available next year, and the next year. We’re talking about this being a band-aid solution,” Cocking said. “It still shows that the government hasn’t truly funded for education.”

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