'It was a wake-up call': Greater Victoria school music programs likely saved from chopping block
It appears that students' musical messages of protest have been heard and the Greater Victoria School District's middle school music programs will be saved, at least for another year.
"We did move those cuts out of music and preserving as much of that as possible," said Jordan Watters, chair of the Greater Victoria Board of Education following a school district meeting on Wednesday night.
No vote has taken place as of yet, however. The meeting was adjourned on Wednesday night and a vote is expected to happen on Thursday night. What the board did agree on was to find other areas to cut, to make up its $7-million shortfall and keep cuts out of classrooms as much as possible.
"It looks like the board is interested in drawing down our reserves in order to preserve as much funding in the classroom as possible," said Watters.
The board has faced intense opposition to the proposed cuts from students, teachers and parents.
"It was a wake-up call for me that I wasn’t involved sooner than this year," said Karin Kwan, parent and advocate of school music programs.
Parents like Kwan joined the fight against the proposed cuts in April. Kwan's concern, however, is that if Thursday’s vote does indeed save the music programs, it may only be temporary.
"I actually think that this could be a conversation again next year so there needs to be more funding here," she said. "We need to talk about that."
The local teachers association shares similar concerns.
"Yes, we’re definitely going to be having the same conversation next year," said Winona Waldron, president of the Greater Victoria Teachers Association.
Waldron says B.C. has the second lowest per-student funding out of every province in Canada, and that is leaving school districts cash-strapped.
"Fundamentally, this is about a pot of money that doesn’t go far enough," said Waldron. "Education is good for society and we should be investing in it."
The province said in a statement Thursday that it is investing in education, and says per-student funding is up 18 per cent over the past four years.
In the meantime, the Greater Victoria School District says it has been dipping into its savings year after year to pay for programming, and it's now at the end of its savings.
"We’re looking at a deficit next year of probably around $7 or $8-million," said Watters.
"The year after that, probably around $10-million," she said.
Nothing has been written is stone until Thursday night's vote is locked in, but it’s looking as though the music programs will survive for at least another year.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.