VICTORIA – The Campbell Government should immediately rescind their directive cancelling the base funding for students taking fewer than 8 courses in grades 10, 11 and 12, said New Democrat MLA David Cubberley .

“Monkeying with funding for the school year in progress disrupts plans, jeopardizesDavid Cubberley programs, demoralizes educators and may victimize at-risk students taking fewer than eight courses,” said Cubberley, NDP Education Critic.

"Imagine receiving an email out of the blue that cancels the stable base on which your programs are based, applicable immediately, without discussion.”

Cubberley was responding to an October 18th directive sent by email to all school districts, which unilaterally cancels the 0.5 full time equivalent base funding.

“They should commit to a process of meaningful consultation with school districts,” continued Cubberley. “This abuse of process demonstrates a lack of any spirit of partnership and co-governance on the Minister’s part.”

Cubberley said in dollar terms, the impacts will be enormous, perhaps $50-million province-wide. The most likely victims ultimately are the small, rural school districts struggling with rapidly declining enrolments and large populations of First Nations and special needs kids. These districts depend more heavily on distance education courses, which will exaggerate the outflow of scarce resources.

“This upheaval in funding is the latest in a long string of destabilizing decisions by the Minister, including withholding capital grants, forcing districts to absorb lost fee revenues, underfunding special needs programs and imposing additional layers of administrative reporting on teachers and principals,” concluded Cubberley.