2 Southern Alberta school divisions eliminate basic school fees

Over the span of two days, two local school districts voted to eliminate basic school fees for the 2016-2017 school year. Officials at Lethbridge’s School District 51 believe they are making the change at the right time, with the current financial climate.

“With the downturn in the economy recently we just believe this is the right time to do it,” School District 51 board chair Mich Forster said.

A day after School District 51 dropped fees, the Holy Spirit Catholic School Division did the same. There are a number of factors that gave each district the opportunity to move forward with the decision, but the public district points to increased enrollment as one of the main reasons.

“For the first time, this year, our student enrollment is over 10,000 students,” Forster said. “So that has given us some flexibility in terms of things like this.”

Not all local districts have followed suit, yet. The Palliser Regional School division hasn’t decided if it will waive school fees for next year. The division eliminated elementary school fees in 2003, while middle school fees are at $59, and high school fees are $69 per student.

“We’re just going to keep that discussion for later,” Palliser Regional Schools superintendent Pat Rivard said. “It’ll come up in spring at spring board meetings, so it aligns with our budget meetings as well.”

Rivard says there are several elements to consider.

“We look at our overall budgets, and what’s important to note is: what are our student needs that go along with that?” Rivard said. “And just so the public does know, our school fees go directly to our kids.”

Come springtime, the board will look at student needs and provincial funding to determine if fees are still needed to fill any gaps.