Red Deer parents unhappy about new public school supplies fee

Parents of some children at Red Deer Public Schools (RDPS) are being asked to pay an extra fee this school year.

The board is asking for an extra $150 to cover "consumable items for non-core courses" for students in Grade 6 to 12 taking optional courses.

"Foods or recreation ed, there are a lot of field trips, shop classes where there's consumables like the cost of wood," said Colin Cairney of RDPS.

A similar fee was charged until eight years ago, when Alberta Education gave the division a grant to cover the costs.

Four years ago, the United Conservative government stopped that grant.

Since then, RDPS has dipped into its reserve fund to cover the costs, something it says it can no longer afford to do.

"There was quite a number of school divisions that, at that point, decided to resume charging those fees, and we just held off as long as we can," Cairney said.

Parents aren't happy about paying an additional school fee on top of the cost of school supplies.

"I think it's going to be a significant burden on some families, for sure," said Jennifer McMullen, a parent of a child who attends a Red Deer Public School.

"There are going to be a lot of families that won't be OK. That might mean the difference between paying the $150 school fee and then maybe paying a part of their electric bill."

The New Democrat children's services critic says the buck stops with the government on the funding shortfall.

"School boards are struggling and they've got more students than ever. And the current funding model from the UCP means that not every student who walks through the door is not actually funded," said Rakhi Pancholi.

In a statement to CTV News Edmonton, the press secretary for the minister of education says funding to RDPS is projected to increase even as enrolment decreases.

"In the 2023/24 school year, Red Deer Public School Division's enrolment is projected to decline by two students while funding is projected to increase by $5.7 million, or 5.4 per cent," Gabrielle Symbalisty wrote. "Over 98 per cent of Alberta Education’s operating budget flows to school boards, who have the flexibility they need to manage their resources."

The province's School Fees Regulation prohibits boards from charging fees for instructional materials like textbooks, but they have the flexibility to charge other fees to manage their resources.

Both RDPS and the minister's office suggest parents who are having difficulty paying school fees speak to their school principal about options.

With files from CTV News Edmonton's Nav Sangha