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Near North District School Board holds special meeting to discuss budget deficit

'We have the most employees in the area and we had to trim $3 million in costs just to get down to a planned deficit of $640,000.' David Thompson Chair of the Near North District School Board

Like other school boards across the province, the Near North District School Board is facing financial challenges. It currently has a $149 million budget which board chair David Thompson says is the largest in the area, bigger than the city of North Bay. The Board will meet Wednesday night to discuss giving final approval to the staff recommended 2017-2018 budget.

"We have the most employees in the area and we had to trim about $3 million in costs, just to get down to a planned deficit of $640,000," said Thompson.

Over the past couple of years the board has either had a surplus or a planned deficit. 

"We've gotten into the funding reforms and now we're starting to pay the piper.  We've lost about $1.4 million every year because of declining enrolment," said Thompson. "It's happening all across Northern Ontario and it is no different here in the city of North Bay. You just have to look at Stats Can and there's not a lot of young people. We're getting older so that means school populations are shrinking."  

Full implementation of Financial Reforms which come in to effect September 1st, are putting added pressure on school boards to get rid of excess space while "ensuring that staff and students have a safe welcoming environment  for learning and working." 

The staff budget report identified the many challenges and concerns faced by the board. Among them is an increase in sick leave costs. Over the past five years the average number of absences by employees in all groups, rose steadily for an over all increase of 29 percent. The increase for last year was 9.5 percent. Other on-going pressures include "managing and supporting the special needs of students; more children are entering kindergarten with special education needs, some complex."  The report also pointed to the need to "provide additional funding for school-wide promotion of positive social and emotional development to strengthen mental health literacy among children and youth themselves." 

Then there are the increases to basic needs such as heat, hydro and water. Thompson says there is the constant challenge to do more with less while dealing with funding costs. 

The board will review its budget Wednesday night at 6:00 at its office on Airport Road.