The South East Cornerstone Public School Division’s board has approved its 2025-26 budget, projecting a $1.5 million cash operating deficit, an amount that will be covered by the division’s accumulated surplus. The budget now awaits final approval from the Ministry of Education.
Presented by Chief Financial Officer Shelley Toth and approved at the board meeting held last Tuesday, the budget outlines total revenues of $130.3 million, operating expenditures of $128.3 million, and $8.9 million in capital spending. Staffing will increase to 1,157.29 full-time equivalent positions, including 20.78 new classroom teachers and 31.3 additional educational assistants.
According to Toth, the budget is compliant with Public Sector Accounting Board standards, which require capital grants, such as the $6 million earmarked for the new school in Carlyle, to be recognized immediately, while construction costs are amortized over 50 years after completion. This recognition results in a reported surplus of $1.9 million on the Budgeted Statement of Operations, though the cash basis shows the true deficit.
Director of Education Keith Keating noted that the board is comfortable with the financial strategy.
“When we budget, typically we’re pretty conservative on the numbers we use,” he explained. “So that $1.5 million deficit will likely not materialize in that full amount…they’re very comfortable with where we’re sitting right now.”
He also emphasized the importance of the staffing increases, which are largely funded through new funding for classroom complexity that is tied to the latest collective agreement with teachers.
“They’re intended for student need, and they’re spread across our school division,” Keating said. “We see a lot of positive things that are going to come from this allocation of staff to support the learning needs of our students.”
On the capital side, the bulk of spending, $6 million, will go toward the Carlyle school project, with an anticipated opening in spring 2028 if timelines remain on track. Another $1.5 million will be used to replace aging school buses, and $1 million has been allocated for IT upgrades across the division.
“Well, as you know from our bus numbers, we have a large number of bus routes across this school division,” said Keating. “We try to figure out what we need to be able to replace a portion of those buses every year to keep that fleet renewed. The technology is refreshed and updated in schools on a five-year rotating basis.”
Toth noted that 90% of the division’s operating revenue is provided through provincial grants, with another 5% from capital grants, mainly tied to the Carlyle project. Of the expenditures, 74% will go toward salaries and benefits, and 20% toward goods and services.
The $1.5 million cash shortfall will be drawn from the division’s accumulated surplus, which stood at $18 million at the end of the last fiscal year. If both the 2024-25 and 2025-26 deficits materialize as projected, the surplus is expected to decline to $13.8 million by next year’s end.