Sudbury teacher cuts not a consideration for Rainbow board

The director of education for the Rainbow District School Board in Sudbury said students and teachers won't feel the impact of a budget shortfall.

The board has a $1.66 million deficit.

Norm Blaseg said teacher cuts are not being considered, as the board is trying to find savings outside the classroom.

"We're looking at consolidation of space and programs," he said.

"We're looking at … attrition, not replacing employees. And we're also reducing budgets that do not have an impact on the classroom."

The deficit was expected, Blaseg said. He said a decline in provincial funding for operation and maintenance work is partly to blame, as well as lower enrolment.

The board expects a decline of 279 full-time students next school year.

Sacrifices and cuts

The Sudbury Catholic School Board is in the black for the first time in two years, as it passed a $58 million budget this week with a surplus of $500,000.

Board chair Jody Cameron said it took time to adjust to a decline in provincial funding.

"We had to go back and look at … the funding levels that we're getting [and] we need to show that we live within those funding limits," he said.

"Where we didn't, we had to show that we made sacrifices and some cuts."

The board found savings by reducing staffing levels and increasing class sizes, he said.

However, with a surplus, the board will now spend that money on special education and new technology for students and teachers, Cameron said.