SD62 BOARD APPROVES $154 MILLION BUDGET, CAPITAL PLAN
The SD62 Board of Education passed the 2021/2022 budget at last night’s monthly Board meeting. The $154 million budget will continue to ensure the delivery of high-quality education, including a focus on mental health for both students and staff.
“This budget speaks directly to the priorities of learning, engagement, and growth for the Board of Education as we wrap up a challenging school year operating in a health pandemic,” says Ravi Parmar, SD62 Board Chairperson. “Consultation with staff, students, educational partners and families was key in helping us provide a balanced budget. I want to thank everyone for their participation as we begin our preparations for welcoming our students back in September to what we expect will be a more normal school year. The dedication of our staff, and patience of our students and families, have allowed us to finish this school year strong.”
The Annual Budget Bylaw consists of three funds:
- Operating Fund - $125 million
- Special Purpose Fund - $19.6 million
- Capital Fund - $9.4 million
Budget Priorities include:
- Mental health and wellness for students and staff;
- Early learning;
- Safe and clean learning spaces, and
- Supplies, equipment and resources.
The 2021-2022 budget is based on government per-student allocation formulas and projected student enrolment increases. In the Sooke School District, the student population is projected to increase by nearly 300-400 students, to 11,600 students in September 2021 compared to 11,300 in 2020.
In order to address this exponential growth, the Board of Education also approved SD62’s Capital Plan Submission to the provincial government. The Board submits a wish list of projects in hopes of receiving support and funding for key priority areas. Projects in the submission include:
- South Langford Elementary (Latoria)
- North Langford Elementary (Skirt Mountain)
- South Colwood Elementary (Royal Bay)
- Seismic upgrades/replacement of Sooke Elementary
“As a rapidly growing district, our Board of Education is constantly looking at which areas we need to focus on,” says Scott Stinson, SD62 Superintendent of Schools/CEO. “The communities we serve are growing quickly, so we reevaluate every year to ensure that we are focusing on the schools and areas that need infrastructure the most. We work closely with our Municipal partners to determine growth patterns and development to assist in identifying our priorities.”
This was the final board meeting of the school year. The next board meeting takes place at the end of August. For a full list of meeting dates, agendas and minutes, please visit the Public Meetings page.
For more information, visit the Budget Planning and Capital Planning/Growth pages.