Louis Riel priorities include swimming lessons, air conditioning

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This article was published 28/02/2025 (256 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Louis Riel School Division’s latest budget prioritizes installing new air conditioning systems, piloting a water safety program and hiring an Indigenous elder to support students and staff.

During the 100-minute board meeting on Thursday, senior administrators provided a detailed breakdown of projected expenses and revenue for 2025-26. Their $274-million plan hinges on a 6.4 per cent hike in the local levy.

LRSD received $117 million in provincial funding, a sum that includes specific dollars for school meal programs — a year-over-year increase of 2.5 per cent.

Secretary-treasurer Jamie Rudnicki went out of his way to make a disclosure before he described the division’s upcoming contract obligations and other workforce expenses.

“We are very fortunate in our province and in our country (related to) how we see education and how important it is and so, we are very grateful for all our staff, teaching and non-teaching,” Rudnicki said.

“So when I say ‘cost,’ to me, I look at it as investment.”

Staffing remains, by far, the largest line item, accounting for 83 per cent of the budget.

The board plans to add 45 full-time equivalent teachers and 32 other employees to address enrolment growth and staff a new school. The latter group includes 18 educational assistants, an Indigenous elder on the senior leadership team and a handful of custodians,

In order to foot that growing tab and fund other initiatives, LRSD has tabled a tax increase that would result in a typical homeowner paying $193 more in school taxes on an annual basis.

The average residence in St. Boniface, St. Vital and surrounding communities is valued at $422,500.

The proposal was informed by 1,304 people who participated in an online survey.

Respondents identified small class sizes, EAs in schools, infrastructure upgrades and swimming lessons — Ward 3 trustee Ryan Palmquist has been rallying residents to support a water safety initiative in recent months — as the most pressing matters to them.

Superintendent Christian Michalik said the findings highlight concerns about differences across facilities in LRSD that serve upwards of 17,000 students.

“If you happen to live in a new neighbourhood, you’re going to enjoy a brand-new school, but if you live in any other neighbourhood, your school is getting older by the day and we need to look after it,” Michalik told the board room on Thursday.

A total of $1.2 million has been earmarked for infrastructure and maintenance projects. That commitment will kick off a six-year plan to retrofit the 10 remaining schools in LRSD that don’t air conditioning, per the draft budget.

The phased-in project is slated to begin with an initial allotment of $630,000 in 2025-26. The board has mapped out future annual injections with a goal of completing it in 2031 for roughly $4.4 million.

LRSD is also gearing up to give Grade 3 and 4 students a chance to learn to swim during school hours. The $100,000 initiative is anticipated to involve collaboration with the City of Winnipeg to find pool space and instructors.

The Manitoba Interfaith Immigration Council and Lifesaving Society Manitoba are among the entities that have endorsed the action to equip students with water-safety skills.

Among other budget highlights, LRSD is earmarking specific dollars to address cybersecurity, topping up funding for industrial arts and human ecology departments and expanding its internal community schools network.

Michalik spoke at length about one particular “revenue-neutral and expenditure-neutral” item that he discussed with board members during their budget considerations this year.

The superintendent noted there are discussions about the development of a before-and-after school child care system in the division.

“The solution is this: before the bell rings in the morning, the spaces kids occupy after that bell rings has to welcome in kids and (vice versa) at the end of the day,” he said, adding he is keen to find a way to provide extra morning and evening supervision on-site.

maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca