What public education needs from BC Budget 2016

FACE presents to the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services

Last year, in its Report on the Budget 2015 Consultations, the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services declared that, although public education was clearly a high priority for British Columbian citizens, it was not being funded by the government at a level adequate to meet the needs of students. The Committee made recommendations for stable and adequate funding to enable school boards to meet their mandate to provide quality public education.

This did not happen in the BC Government’s Budget 2015.

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FACE time would facilitate education co-operation

As published in The Vancouver Sun

Education is always a hot topic for parents and in the past 13 years, it’s been a hot topic for everyone in B.C. who values public education.

With funding cuts, growing class sizes, overdue seismic upgrades, labour disruptions, court appeals, and — most recently — threatened school closures, there’s been plenty to talk about. Many B.C. citizens have been trying to engage Premier Christy Clark and Education Minister Peter Fassbender in a meaningful dialogue.

Politics have pervaded the education discussion to such a degree it seems almost impossible to imagine the various stakeholders making collective decisions that will lead to a better day in public education. This zero-sum political approach is counter-productive to the goal of delivering quality public education for our children. Clark recently indicated the government intends to move forward in a spirit of co-operation, putting disputes in the past to ensure quality public education in British Columbia. Despite the cynicism that might be felt by British Columbians who have heard these words before, we can only hope for her sincerity, as the current approach is untenable.