David Truckey, the Pembina Hills School Division board chair expressed concerns on funding and classroom sizes for the upcoming 2025/26 school year at the most recent R.F. Staples School Council meeting on May 27.
The Pembina Hills School Division was forced to cut more than 20 jobs after funding decreased by $4.5 million for the 2025/26 school year. The total budget is $66 million, down from the $70 million in the 2024/25 school year.
“Reallocating where people are going to be where they can fill pockets has been the biggest challenge,” said Truckey. “Each of the principals has spoken with the superintendent directly and vocally about the needs for their schools and as the board we certainly respect that they’re advocating for their schools and for their students. At the other end of the spectrum, reality kicks in for all of us and it comes down to how many dollars we have spent in each of the areas.”
Truckey also reported on the increased costs for the Barrhead Composite High School rightsizing and modernization project which have gone up to $55 million, nearly double of the initial estimated cost of $29 million.
“I actually shivered when I said that right now,” said Truckey upon bringing up the increased cost.
Truckey noted how the board can only contribute $1.5 million to the project.
“That 55 million number indicates that the province is only going to be able to deliver half the amount of spaces they promised across the province,” said Truckey. “That’s irritating to the board because we know that's going to translate to less for other people down the road.”
The rightsizing project will also bring down the capacity of Barrhead Composite from 1,227 students to 854.
The school division is also looking at classroom sizes next year due to some classrooms overflowing this year. A Grade 1 classroom at Neerlandia Public Christian School had 32 students in their classroom with several other schools facing situations where they had to deny the relocation of students due to space restrictions. The classroom overcrowding situation at Neerlandia led to the school reorienting their budget and splitting the classroom in two.
“Who are we looking after? The one student who wants to get in the door, or the 32 students who are already there?” said Truckey. “We have an obligation to the 32. We can't reduce the effective level of education they receive to accommodate one person.”
