Dear MLA

I am writing to ask you to save our schools. Secretary Treasurers of school districts
across the province are warning of a funding crisis that will lead to school closures,
program cuts and major layoffs of teachers and other school staff in 2010/2011.

This is not a crisis created by Boards of Education. The province is in charge of how
much funding Boards of Education receive each year. The province also controls most of
the costs. The $300 million funding shortfall facing our public schools in 2010/2011
comes almost entirely from decisions made at the provincial level. These include:

• Loss of the Annual Facilities Grant

• Teacher salary and benefit increases (provincially negotiated)
• New Carbon Tax and carbon offset charges
• Increased MSP and WCB premiums
• New costs for implementing all day kindergarten
• Additional costs of provincially-legislated class size limits

Boards of Education are required to balance their budgets and deliver a high quality
education program to all children. They cannot do this unless the Province acts in a
fiscally responsible manner and covers the increased costs of operating schools. British
Columbians have repeatedly said they are willing to support their public schools.

In the 2009 Throne Speech, British Columbians heard: “Education is the best economic
development and health promotion program ever invented. In tight economic times, it is
only smart to maintain and expand educational investments.”

It’s time the provincial government lived up to its responsibility and stopped cutting
school programs, closing rural and small schools and leaving behind children who need
extra support to succeed. Improving public education is the best investment a society
can make in its own future. We cannot continue to short-change the children of this
province without serious consequences.

I ask you to demand that provincial funding for public schools be immediately increased.
At a minimum this increase must cover all new provincially imposed costs. Without this
increase, our local Boards cannot be expected to deliver balanced budgets without
harming the quality of public education offered to children in British Columbia.

Please reply to the address below.

Yours truly,

Address:
 British Columbia Society for Public
Education
Protecting the integrity of BC's public schools
www.bcspe.ca
2010
Education Funding Crisis
The VSB (along with many districts in BC) is predicting
an enormous budget deficit. In Vancouver this deficit is
estimated to be between 16 and 34 million dollars.
This year’s budget shortfall comes after years of
funding cuts.
Unless the provincial government has a change of
heart, there will be layoffs and cuts to programs and
supports for students. At the core of this
unprecedented funding crisis is the growing number of
downloaded costs the province has so far refused to
cover in provincial education funding grants.
These include
• increases for teacher salaries and benefits
under contracts the province negotiated;
• new provincial carbon tax and carbon offset
charges;
• increases to provincial MSP and WCB
premiums;
• implementation costs of new provincial
requirements like Bill 33 and all-day
kindergarten; and
• general inflation, which the provincial funding
formula also does not cover.
BC Budget Day is March 2, so it’s urgent that BC
MLAs hear from as many people as possible
before that date if we want to avert unprecedented
cuts to our public schools!
About BCSPE
BCSPE is a registered society dedicated to upholding
the values and tradition of public education in Canada.
We support advocacy to strengthen public education,
believing that the best advocacy is rooted in sound
research and analysis. We are active in carrying out our
own research and in highlighting the research of others
as it relates to public education.
Our Board of Directors: Debbie Desroches-Fulton, Annie
Ehman, Catherine Evans, Helesia Luke, Allison
McDonald, Kelly Read and Cynthia Wong
BSPE is not-for-profit society concerned about public education.
February/March
Take Action
Write your MLA!
A sample letter is attached. Be sure to copy the letter to
Premier Campbell at premier@gov.bc.ca, the Minister of
Education at Minister.EDUC@gov.bc.ca the Minister of
Finance at Fin.Minister@gov.bc.ca and the Leader of the
Opposition at Carole.James.MLA@leg.bc.ca
Visit www.stopeducationcuts.org
Here you will find:
• actions and events in communities throughout BC
• a letter template
• advocacy resources including studies, organizing and
other communications tools
Rally for Public Education in Vancouver
Organized by the Vancouver Elementary and Secondary
School Teachers, join the HOPES and DREAMS Rally for
Public Education
When: Monday, March 1st, 2010
Time: 3:30 – 4:30 pm
Where: Education Minister’s Office
1200 Block of W. Broadway
Select Standing Committee Recommendations
In December 2009, after consulting with groups across BC, the
Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government
Services made recommendations related to funding K-12
education including:
• Work with boards of education to conduct a
comprehensive review of the education funding
formula.
• Work cooperatively with the boards of education on a
review of the administrative and reporting
requirements for each school district and within the
Ministry of Education.
• Treat the annual facilities grant as a high priority for
funding in the 2010/11 Budget.
• Ensure that the implementation of all-day kindergarten
is fully funded.
We urge the government to listen to its pan-partisan committee
and fully fund public schools. To view these recommendations
visit the Ministry of Finance website.