Rainbow District School Board approves $235.3 million budget for 2023-2024

Rainbow District School Board approved a budget of $235.3 million for the 2023-2024 school year at its regular meeting on June 13, 2023. To balance the budget, approximately $1.3 million will be withdrawn from reserves. Along with the budget, trustees approved an in-year deficit plan to align expenditures with revenue.

“The budget maintains programs and services adjusted to include the terms and conditions of collective agreements that have already been negotiated, provisions for those still in progress, and some inflationary pressures,” said Board Chair Bob Clement.

He added: “Additional investments from the Ministry of Education are also reflected in the budget, including more resources for early reading, math, destreaming, the trades, mental health, safe schools, and equity and inclusion.”

When school resumes this fall, the Board is projecting enrolment of 13,810 students. The majority of students have registered for in-person learning. Less than one per cent of students will be in remote learning which will be offered in the 2023-2024 school year where programming is viable.

Grants for Student Needs (GSNs), which is the base funding provided by the Ministry of Education, have been adjusted to reflect additional support for student achievement and well-being, the delivery of remote learning for one more year, and the maintenance of enhanced cleaning and ventilation.

Funding for the expansion of Specialist High Skills Major programs, early math intervention for students who require additional support, and demographic data gathering has been transferred to the GSNs.

In 2023-2024, the Board will continue to have four literacy lighthouse classrooms supported by two Literacy Coaches. Teachers visit the classrooms for professional learning and receive ongoing mentoring as they implement new strategies to improve reading and writing in the primary grades.

Priorities and Partnership Funds, which are outside of the Grants for Student Needs, will provide continued funding for Indigenous graduation coaches, the Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program, professional assessments, staffing to support destreaming and transition to secondary school as well as support for summer learning special education and summer mental health programs, among other initiatives.

Additional funding has been allocated in the coming school year for early reading screening tools, education staff to support reading interventions in the primary grades, and licenses for reading intervention programs.

New funding has also been provided for a math lead, digital math tools and school math facilitators to work directly with students in Grades 3, 6 and 9.

Continued funding will ensure the ongoing improvement of broadband, including network connectivity, network infrastructure, network security and related network operations.

In 2023-2024, Rainbow District School Board will receive $16 million in school renewal and school condition improvement funding. This represents a slight increase over the 2022-2023 school year.

A total of 74.8 percent of the budget, or $175.8 million, has been allocated to salaries and benefits. Eight percent of the budget, or $19 million, will go towards supplies and services, which includes the operation and maintenance of facilities, school budgets, and computers in schools.

In 2023-2024, Rainbow District School Board will operate 28 elementary school buildings and 9 secondary school buildings in Sudbury, Espanola, and Manitoulin Island. Carl A. Nesbitt Public School, Ernie Checkeris Public School and Westmount Avenue Public School will be consolidated into the new Lasalle Elementary School which will open in September. Lasalle Elementary School, located on the Lasalle Secondary School campus with the Lancer Dome, will accommodate JK to Grade 6 students in the French Immersion program.

The Board also offers other programs – Child and Adolescent Mental Health Program, Cecil Facer School, N’Swakamok Native Friendship Centre, Children’s Treatment Centre, O’Connor Park, Applied Behaviour Analysis program, Restart, Simulated Healthy Independent Living Opportunities (SHILO) program, Attendance Centre, Mishko-Ode-Wendam, Northern Support Initiative, Frank Flowers School and Barrydowne College operating at Cambrian College.

The budget provides the financial framework to enable the Board to achieve the priorities in its new strategic plan which enters its second year of implementation. There are six priorities in Strategic Directions 2022-2027 – Student Success and Achievement, Literacy and Numeracy, Truth and Reconciliation, Mental Health and Well-Being, Environmental Education and Sustainability, and Equity and Inclusive Education.

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Media Contact:

Nicole Charette, Senior Advisor,
Corporate Communications and Strategic Planning,
Rainbow District School Board, 705-674-3171, ext. 7217.