The Wolf Creek Public School Division released its Divisional budget for 2020/21 this week, and those who attend the Lacombe Outreach School might be impacted the most.

Thanks in part to a $3 million dollar deficit in their budget last year eating up most of their reserve funding, the Board had to make some reductions to staffing levels and programs for next year, when they introduced their divisional budget for 2020/21 with a $2.7 million dollar deficit. 

One of those changes made includes eliminating the junior high portion from Lacombe Outreach School, as well as moving the school to a new location in Lacombe over the summer.

"The Lacombe Outreach School did see a reduction in its operational budget so the board did decide to reduce their budget but also there is a relocation of the Lacombe Outreach School. The reduction will impact their Junior High program, they've offered a Junior High program for a number of years. That program will be eliminated for next year, so the students that were attending that program will be back into their traditional junior high school." Superintendent Jayson Lovell.

The future location of the Lacombe Outreach School located north of the Parkland Regional Library.

The Wolf Creek Academy in Ponoka will also see their funds reduced by $75,000, which will result in a hit to their operational budget, as well as the number of teachers they can afford.

Lovell says they've also made reductions in areas such as professional development and conference registration costs for support staff, included in the $766,454 in budget reductions for their central office.

He says this was done so they could protect and minimize the impact the deficit would have on vital frontline classroom support.

"In making the decision that the Board did to reduce central office, they really were committed to maintaining front line classroom support. They very much wanted to ensure that, for example, not just classroom teachers but education assistants will remain at the same level, so we will have 125 full-time equivalent educational assistants across Wolf Creek which is no change from the current year. We also have tremendous support moving into next year with our school social workers. So we have 15.7 full-time equivalent school social workers, once again no change. And also just some coaching time in our schools to support our most diverse and special needs students. That allocation and support is also there with no change. The Board demonstrated a strong commitment to maintaining that frontline support at the classroom level, and in order to do that, adjustment and decisions had to be made, and reductions had to be made in other areas in order to maintain that support." 

Superintendent of Wolf Creek Public Schools Jayson Lovell.

Lovell also touched on their announced minimal classroom teacher reduction of 2.43 full-time equivalent jobs (FTE).  Next year, there will be a reduction of 2.43 FTE positions, meaning that there will be a slight decrease in the number of teachers available throughout the school division. When the Board allocates teachers to school next year, some places can expect some minor reductions. 

Currently, 330 teachers are employed FTE across the 30 schools in the division, so overall it's not too significant of a cutback. He also anticipates class sizes to remain the same as they were pre-pandemic. 

Lovell also clarified that the $1.6 million in budget reductions that came from Alberta Education at the end of March due to the pandemic, which involved the layoff of school bus drivers educational assistants, is fully restored for their 2020/21 Divisional budget plan.