“We’re screwed” – Parents voice anger over CBE transportation plan

With the Calgary Board of Education and provincial government at odds over funding and transportation, parents left to deal with the ramifications voiced their concerns Tuesday.

“Right now we’re screwed,” said mother Janet Fadugba. “We don’t know what to do, so I don’t have any plan.”

With a $38 million deficit, the CBE has recently announced it’ll be moving roughly 1,500 students who attend alternative schools currently on regular school buses to Calgary Transit ones.

That’s left some parents with the prospect of increased commutes including walking to and from stops, splitting up kids in different parts of the city, having to pay the cost of transit increases or changing schools altogether.

About 50 of them protested outside the CBE headquarters Tuesday, including two who were able to address the Board of Trustees directly.

According to the CBE, about 17,000 Grade 6 to 12 students currently use Calgary Transit buses.

Fadugba’s son has been taking the school bus to Langevin School since Grade 1 and is now going into Grade 5.

Now he must take a transit bus, but another problem is Fadugba’s daughter wasn’t accepted to the same school.

Instead, she’s been accepted to Valley View School, which has a different calendar and is in a different part of the city.

“How do we do it? They’re not going to give us busing, they’re not going to put siblings in the same school, that means I have to stop working and have to take our kids to school,” she said. “We have bills to pay.”

Parents like Fadugba are also left to pick up the tab, since provincial government rebates for transportation fees aren’t eligible for students who go to alternative schools.

Instead of paying $335 for busing, she would have to pay $70 a month for 10 months for the Calgary Transit youth pass.

PARENTS HAVE ‘DIFFICULT DECISIONS’ TO MAKE

After the parental protest, CBE Chair Joy Bowen-Eyre said they’ll continue to help parents and students adjust to the new model.

“Unfortunately, we would love to do more, but sometimes in tight budget times, you are asked to do more with less,” she said, adding they’ve had several information sessions already with parents, including Calgary Transit officials.

She said parents should reach out to school principals if they still have concerns, but there will not be any more school bus dedicated routes than the ones that currently exist.

Bowen-Eyre suggested what she did when her child was in an alternative school, including carpooling or parents taking turns driving multiple kids.

Most alternative-based programs are not in communities where most students live and are usually closer to downtown, which require longer commutes.

“All of our schools offer great programming and I think every year parents have to make some difficult decisions about what it is they’re going to do for next school year, what school my child is going to attend,” Bowen-Eyre. “We’re trying to communicate as early as possible so that parents have the opportunity to make some difficult choices if necessary.”

FUNDING

The CBE has been at odds with the provincial government this month after criticism from Education Minister David Eggen regarding the plan after the introduction of Bill 1, which eliminates 25 per cent of mandatory school fees.

That includes no fees for kindergarten to Grade 9 students who live 2.4 km or more away from their regular program school and who take a yellow school bus.

School boards who do have fees can increase them, but any planned over five per cent have to be reviewed by Eggen.

Last week, Eggen criticized the plan and said he wouldn’t approve the idea of parents having to pay $700 for transportation, considering the CBE will receive almost $18 million to reduce fees.

That came as a surprise to the CBE, saying in response they need to be made clear of concerns, would need additional funding to close the gap, consulted with the provincial government right up until Bill 1 was unveiled and that the ministry approved of their plan.

The entire episode has led to the government to conduct an operational review of the CBE.

Bowen-Eyre said they are in discussions with the provincial government with regard to Bill 1 to potentially see if there could be more funding support parents of alternative students.

“When Bill 1 was introduced, it was only students attending their local, designated, community-based program, not an alternative program and so that’s why we find ourselves in a bit of a dilemma right now,” she said, adding the board would’ve liked more consultation.