Alberta
Province pumping up support for growing school enrolment
Supporting more students in classrooms
Budget 2023 provides more than $820 million over the next three years to support enrolment growth in schools.
Based on strong population growth in Alberta, a large increase in student enrolment is expected in September 2023.
“With Alberta’s rising population, we know many school authorities across the province continue to face growing enrolment pressures. Our strong funding commitment in Budget 2023 will empower school authorities to hire more teachers and obtain more resources for students.”
Over the next three years, Education’s operating expense is increasing by nearly $2 billion. This will support the hiring of approximately 3,000 education staff, including teachers, educational assistants, bus drivers and school support staff, and will help authorities manage growing class sizes.
Funding increases for enrolment will be provided to school authorities through existing grants that include enrolment components. This includes the Early Childhood Services and Grades 1-9 Base Instruction grant and the High School (Grades 10-12) Base Instruction grant, as well as grants in the services and supports category, such as Specialized Learning Support, English as an Additional Language, and Program Unit Funding. The Operations and Maintenance grant also includes an enrolment component. The flexible funding provided allows local authorities to make decisions on how to best use the funding to support their students.
The Funding Manual for School Authorities 2023/24 School Year and projected operational funding profiles are being released March 9, providing school authorities with their funding information for the coming year.
“ASBA is pleased that government has been responsive to school boards’ requests for early release of the funding manual and operational funding profiles, as it assists in informed decision-making. Government’s investment in enrolment growth is welcome news as boards address the growing, diverse and complex student needs within their divisions while remaining accountable to their communities.”
“This funding announcement is timely and much appreciated. In the 2022-23 school year, enrolment at the Calgary Board of Education has grown by more than 5,800 students and we are projecting another significant increase next year. This investment means we can hire additional teachers, educational assistants and other staff to support our growing student population.”
“As one of the fastest-growing school divisions in the province, the funds provided for enrolment growth will help Rocky View Schools hire more staff to support the 1,000 new students we will welcome in the fall. Knowing additional funding will be available is positive news, as RVS continues to experience increasing enrolment pressures across the division.”
“The CASS board of directors recognizes the importance of supporting enrolment growth while maintaining sustainable support for all boards. The early release of the funding manual will assist school authorities in initiating planning needs for the 2023-24 school year.”
“The investment in enrolment growth of Budget 2023 and other increases in grants are most welcome and will greatly help school authorities face significant challenges including high inflation and labour shortage. The association also appreciates the timeliness of the release of the funding manual and recognizes the extraordinary work of the department staff to make this possible.”
Budget 2023 secures Alberta’s future by transforming the health-care system to meet people’s needs, supporting Albertans with the high cost of living, keeping our communities safe and driving the economy with more jobs, quality education and continued diversification.
Quick facts
- Last fall, the government announced a new supplemental enrolment growth grant that provided school authorities with more than $21 million in additional funding. This grant will continue to be available in the 2023-24 school year.
- Alberta Education introduced the Supplemental Enrolment Growth (SEG) grant in the 2022-23 school year to support school authorities with significant enrolment growth.
- The SEG grant provided additional per-student funding for authority enrolment growth of more than two per cent in the 2022-23 school year. The SEG grant, in addition to weighted moving average-based allocations, will provide additional funding to school authorities that have significant growth.
- Over the next three years, the government will provide school authorities with more than $820 million in additional funding to support enrolment growth.
- In the 2020-21 school year, school boards were funded for about 730,000 students and actual attendance was 705,000.
- In the 2021-22 school year, school boards were funded for about 730,000 students and attendance was about 716,000.
- The robust financial health of school jurisdictions continues to be demonstrated by taxpayer funded reserves, reported to be $407 million as of Aug. 31, 2022.
By Dean Bennett
Alberta’s United Conservative Party jumped out to a lead over the NDP in early returns Monday in what was forecast to be a tight race in the provincial election.
Danielle Smith’s UCP was holding strong in its traditional rural strongholds while Rachel Notley’s NDP was faring well in Edmonton, where it won all but one seat in 2019.
Early results were still mixed in the key battleground of Calgary.
The UCP is seeking a second mandate while the NDP is fighting to regain the majority government it lost to the UCP in 2019.
Polling have suggested a close contest between the two parties, with support for smaller parties falling off.
Advance polls set a record of 758,540 votes cast, eclipsing the previous record of more than 700,000 in 2019.
The campaign has taken place alongside a record-breaking spring for wildfires in Alberta. Ten communities were under evacuation orders Monday.
Elections Alberta set up alternate voting locations for those displaced. Evacuation was added as an eligible reason to vote by special ballot and mobile voting stations were placed in evacuation centres.
Calgary has been seen as the campaign’s battleground and half of the top 10 advance polling stations were in that city. Two were in Edmonton suburbs.
To win, the NDP would have to continue its dominance in Edmonton, flip the majority in Calgary and hope for some help in smaller cities, while defeating scores of UCP incumbents including cabinet ministers.
The NDP needs to swing 20 seats in the 87-seat legislature.
The UCP won 63 seats under then-leader Jason Kenney in 2019 to 24 for Notley’s NDP.
Polls suggest the UCP should continue its near total domination in rural areas and smaller centres, giving it a cushion of up to 40 or so seats to reach the 44 needed to form a majority government.
The month-long campaign has been dominated by the economy and health care.
Albertans are struggling with high costs for consumer goods, a shortage of family doctors and long waits in emergency rooms.
Smith has promised to keep Alberta the lowest-tax regime in Canada.
Her government, she says, would introduce a law to mandate a referendum before any personal or corporate income tax hikes. There would also be tax changes to benefit those making more than $60,000 a year, at a cost of $1 billion annually to the treasury.
The NDP promised to maintain Alberta’s status as Canada’s lowest tax regime. It pledged to end the tax on small businesses and raise the corporate income tax to 11 per cent from eight per cent, which it says would help pay for investments in health and education while keeping the books balanced and maintaining the lowest corporate rate in Canada.
The NDP also promised legislation to counteract UCP policies that hiked the cost of utilities, auto insurance, a range of fees and tuition.
Both leaders promised to preserve the publicly funded health system while creating more primary care teams — physicians accompanied by related specialists such as nurses and therapists — so more Albertans are able to access a family doctor and not clog emergency wards for care.
Polls showed trust was a key issue, with Notley viewed more favourably than her party and vice versa for Smith.
Smith was dogged during the campaign by past comments she made comparing those who took the COVID-19 vaccine to credulous followers of Adolf Hitler. A report also came out mid-campaign from the province’s ethics commissioner that concluded Smith undermined the rule of law by pressuring her justice minister to end the criminal court case of a COVID-19 protester.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 29, 2023.
Alberta
Police looking for these 3 suspects after Super 8 Motel in Innisfail robbed early Monday morning
Innisfail RCMP investigate robbery
Innisfail Ala. – On May 29, 2023, at approximately 4:10 a.m., the Super 8 motel in Innisfail was the victim of an armed robbery. Three male suspects entered the hotel, two of which had firearms. Money was demanded from the manager. All three left the motel in a vehicle which is described as:
- Chevrolet Dura Max truck
- Sliver
- Lifted
The suspects are described as:
Suspect #1: Caucasian male, tall and muscular. Wearing jeans and a grey Under Armour hoody. He was carrying a pistol.
Suspect #2: Caucasian male, short. Wearing all black. He was carrying a sawed off shotgun
Suspect #3: Caucasian male tall with a chubby belly. He was wearing a grey hoody, jeans and a black ball hat.
If you have information about this incident, please call the Innisfail RCMP at 403-227-3341 or call your local police. If you want to remain anonymous, you can contact Crime Stoppers by phone at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS), by internet atwww.tipsubmit.com, or by SMS (check your local Crime Stoppers www.crimestoppers.ab.ca for instructions).
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