OSOYOOS TIMES-September 16, 2009

By Paul Everest – Osoyoos Times

Osoyoos’s Parent Advisory Councils (PACs) will have to make do with fewer provincial Community Gaming Grant dollars this year.
For the 2009/2010 school year, PACs around the province will receive a payment of $10 per student, down from the $20 per student handed out in previous years.
A spokesman for the B.C. Housing and Social Development Ministry, the provincial body in charge of the gaming grants, said the reduction is part of the government’s efforts to get a grip on a forecast $2.8 billion deficit.
The heads of the PACs for Osoyoos Elementary School (OES) and Osoyoos Secondary School (OSS) said the reductions will mean having to find new ways to give students the “extras” during the school year that are not included in a school’s budget.
“The change for us will mean we’ll have to go out to the community and ask parents to fundraise,” said Sandy Summers, chair of the OES PAC, adding she learned of the funding adjustment through an email on Sept. 9.
Projects such as replacing aging playground equipment or installing an electronic sign at the front of the school will have to be put on the backburner, she said.
Or, instead of relying partially on provincial cash for such projects, the school will have to look to paying for the projects through “100 per cent fundraising.”
Gaming grant money has to be used to benefit the entire school and must be spent within 18 months, Summers said, so even though some of last year’s cash has been saved, any surpluses won’t last long.
Summers said in the past, the grants have been used to help pay for extra-curricular activities or programs at the school such as bringing in anti-bullying plays or having the MacMillan Space Centre visit the school.
The school’s PAC has its first general meeting of the year on Sept. 21 and members will have to put their “thinking caps on” to find ways to get around the funding cuts, Summers said.
“At least they’re not taking it all.”
Kathy Hiebert, who heads the OSS PAC, said unfortunately many provincial schools have come to rely on the grants in recent years since school districts have had to endure a high number of budget cuts.
She added the reductions in gaming grant contributions from the province will mean the OSS PAC will “not be able to provide some things to enhance school culture and provide unique opportunities to kids.”
Some of the school’s programs that may need to be cut, Hiebert said, include guest speaker presentations and sponsorships for leadership conferences provided to parents and teachers.
In the past, she added, money from the gaming grants has been used to purchase computer equipment or multimedia tools to showcase the talent of OSS students.
For example, Hiebert said, cameras were purchased where students could film sports tournaments or assemblies and the footage would be used to make videos for year-end celebrations.
This year, OSS has a projected enrolment of 265 students, meaning it will receive roughly $2,650 in gaming grant money this year, according to the province’s new formula.
Overall, the province will hand out roughly $7.6 million in gaming grant money to B.C.’s 1,650 PACs and 50 District Parent Advisory Councils this school year.
Of that amount, $1.6 million was paid out in the spring in bingo grants.
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