School divisions to get $15.5M in additional funding to support enrolment growth

Saskatchewan school divisions will get $15.5 million in additional funding from the provincial government to support the largest enrolment growth in the past two decades.

According to the Ministry of Education, more than 189,900 students have registered with school divisions this year, representing an increase of 3,840 over last year’s enrolment total. As a result, Education Minister Dustin Duncan said the top-up was needed.

“The province is experiencing strong economic and population growth and our government is committed to ensuring that everyone in Saskatchewan benefits from this growth,” Duncan said in a statement. “That includes ensuring school divisions have the necessary funding to keep providing high-quality learning environments and supports to all students across the province.”

According to the ministry, “enrolment funding is based on preliminary school division enrolment data,” and the funding will be updated in December to reflect the actual enrolment as of Sept. 30.

Many of the additional students registered in Saskatchewan schools are from areas outside the province, the ministry noted, including about 500 Ukrainian students enrolled through the Canada-Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel program.

In March, the provincial government invested $7 million to help divisions hire 200 more educational assistants. Then, in July, the government announced a one-time top-up of $20 million to help school divisions tackle pressures caused by rising inflation.

The budget for the 2022-23 school year is now over $2 billion, the ministry said, representing a record for the province.