Stephanie Karl and her family recently moved back to Vancouver after six years in the U.K., and they’ve found a big difference between the public education systems in Europe and B.C.

“The school that she’s at is great and the teachers are fantastic,” Karl said of her daughter Caoimhe’s Vancouver classroom, “But we’re always having to fundraise ourselves for classroom improvements, which should be funded by the government.”

The growing prevalence of fundraising to support public education was a key theme as parents gathered at the Vancouver Art Gallery to support the Families Against Cuts to Education (FACE) rally on Sunday.

A few hundred people turned out in Vancouver to protest what they describe as chronic underfunding of the public education system, while similar rallies were held in Victoria, Nanaimo, Maple Ridge and Kelowna.

“The continued erosion of funding from public education goes directly to pressure on parents to fundraise and school districts to fundraise for basics that shouldn’t have to be fundraised for, and never were in earlier years,” said Adrienne Montani, of First Call Child and Youth Advocacy Coalition.

Organizers said they’re disappointed with the education ministry’s demand that school boards cut $29 million in administrative costs from their operating budgets just as the province recorded a budget surplus of $879 million for the 2014/2015 fiscal year. They’re also unimpressed with proposed amendments to the School Act that would give the government more control over school boards and provide the education minister with the ability to set certain professional development standards for teachers

Some parents also spoke of their concerns about delays in seismic upgrades to schools. The deadline to upgrade schools at high risk during a major earthquake has been pushed back 10 years to 2030.

Michelle Vu, a sixth-grader at General Wolfe elementary, attended the rally with her mother Susan.

“My mom is a teacher and she thinks that our school is too old and if there’s an earthquake, then everybody in the building will die because everything will collapse,” Vu said.

Construction for seismic upgrades has yet to begin at General Wolfe, which is more than 100 years old.

The provincial NDP was out in force at the rally. MLAs Jenny Kwan, Shane Simpson and Adrian Dix were all on hand to support the parent organizers.

“The Liberals have been on the attack of public education for a decade. I think people had hoped with the settlement of the school strike that that would end. Instead, we have a budget that both cuts education again and imposes new costs, and that’s going to come right out of the classroom,” Dix said.

He pointed out that school districts are grappling with increases in costs like BC Hydro bills and MSP premiums.

The provincial government insists that education underfunding is a myth.

“We have a world-class education system — it’s well funded, we have dedicated, talented teachers and administrators, and our students consistently shine on the international stage. The reality is we are investing record levels of funding and continue to see tremendous results in B.C. classrooms,” Education Minister Peter Fassbender said in a written statement.