“We had projected a slight increase,”
That’s from School District 57 Superintendent Cindy Heitman as enrollment numbers are on the incline.
13,056 students are attending class, a spike of 200 when compared to the 2021-22 academic year.
Heitman told MyPGNow.com the increase comes even with a slight decline in their French Immersion programs.
“This year and last year we capped our kindergarten registration for French Immersion to meet the needs of the schools and the size of the schools as well as the staffing requirements. So, we have seen a slight decrease in our secondary schools and a slightly larger drop in our elementary French Immersion schools.”
However, the bump in enrollment means a bigger piece of the funding pie from the province.
“80% of the funding we receive goes to staffing. So, we have hired the staff and we will need to ensure that we have the funding to ensure we are able to pay those salaries. That does leave us with a little bit more money and the net result will be to provide those supports and services needed for the students that have enrolled,” added Heitman.
Heitman added a near-normal return to the classroom has been a welcomed sight after two years of tight restrictions and uncertainty.
“Of course, we are still faced with illnesses. COVID is still with us and is not going away but we do not have the restrictions we had before and for students, that looks like how school was before the pandemic.”
Heitman added that 80% of the provincial money they receive goes to staffing, which leaves them with some leftover cash to reinvest back into the schools.
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