Trustee Advocacy

Goal

Maintain non-partisan government support for publicly-funded Catholic education in its current form.

Key Points

• Elk Island Catholic Schools is committed to providing a high level of academic achievement.
• Catholic education has been a hallmark strength of Alberta’s Education system for as long as it has existed as a province, and is part of the reason why Albertan students rank among the world’s finest.
• Albertans’ taxes should support an education system that is compatible with their faith; our publicly-funded school system provides faith-based education for a large minority of Albertans, helping to maintain our province’s pluralistic social fabric.
• Along with Indigenous and Francophone rights, the constitutional protection on Catholic education belongs to a set of minority rights and privileges in Canada, which are there to protect vulnerable communities from discrimination. All three groups are still minorities today, and are identified explicitly in the Constitution Act and the 1982 Charter of Rights and Freedoms. There is significant legal precedent at the highest levels in this country supporting the rights of minorities, which constitute the foundation of our pluralistic society.

Goal

EICS will continue to advocate for increased funding for our division.

Key Points

• Budget announcements, while appearing to be a good news story for education, do not match the details of budgets that are given to boards.
• Inflationary increases in salaries and benefits are a challenge for boards and have not been funded by the government.  This has resulted in the district reducing staff which affect class sizes and instructional outcomes.
• Funding is targeted for specific use by the province, which prevents EICS from reallocating that funding to another area where it would be better utilized.
• School districts need predictable, adequate, and sustainable funding that keeps up with inflation and allows boards to plan strategically based on local context.
• Application-based funding and reporting requirements do not allow the time to spend funding in the school year by the time the application is processed and funds are received by the province. This also is a burden on administration.
• Clear, concise and advance notice of funding announcements allows the board to plan accordingly and communicate to stakeholders. 
• Increased funding to address the demands on inclusive education. Funding currently is subsidized from regular programming. 

Goal

To efficiently operate and maintain existing schools in our division and allow for growth of Catholic students in our communities. Capital planning is a priority for EICS to address the funding for schools in new communities and modernization or replacement of existing schools.

New Schools

• Consideration of a new Catholic school in new communities (e.g., the Bremner development). Utilization rates are the main factor used by the Province to determine funding for new schools. As a division, EICS is constrained by these utilization rates of schools within a municipality.

Modernization or Replacement of Existing Schools

• Modernization or replacement of existing schools that are beyond their useful life is necessary to provide for safe, healthy, and appropriate learning spaces for students.
• Elk Island Catholic Schools is seeking a two for one replacement school for Our Lady of the Angels Catholic School and St. John XXIII Catholic School in Fort Saskatchewan. Our Lady of the Angels Catholic School is a facility at the end of its life. Both schools are underutilized and have a number of physical and functional issues that need to be addressed as per our capital plan.
• The board discussed the cost of running a school with low utilization rates and the possibility of closing a school. This creates an opportunity for a charter school to open up and potentially attract our Catholic students. 
• Midsize and smaller divisions like EICS may have slower growth rates, but still have needs as our schools are getting older and in need of modernization as well.

Operations and Maintenance

• Elk Island Catholic Schools believes operations and maintenance funding should be adjusted to ensure  safe facilities for students and staff. Funding is not adequate to address the inflationary increases for utilities, carbon tax, and building repairs.
• Insufficient funding for Infrastructure Maintenance Renewal (IMR) and Capital Maintenance Renewal (CMR) projects means school facilities are not keeping up with the required maintenance to prolong their useful life. It’s essential for this maintenance to prolong the life of these facilities when funding for replacement schools or modernization of schools are difficult to attain.
• Carbon tax rebate for school divisions should be implemented by the federal government. 

Goal

Elk Island Catholic Schools is committed to ensuring the needs of our students are met, including their spiritual, physical, and mental health.

Key Points

• The division has a duty to support students’ physical and mental health needs, which can be complex, and require the services of other professionals (e.g., counsellors, psychologists, occupational and/or physical therapists.)
• Previous grant funding for mental health was required to be tied to a specific project, rather than providing direct support to our students and staff.
• Elk Island Catholic Schools is committed to having a mental health professional working in each of our schools. Funding that would directly support these positions would allow us to better support our students.
• Reduce red tape: Create an avenue for fewer grant applications (saving time and money by the district) and instead provide more funding (at the same value as grant funding) for direct use.
• Funding to increase Family Wellness Worker (FWW) time in schools.