Kamloops-Thompson School District Budget Consultation for 2025-2026

At the Regular Public Board Meeting on Monday, April 28, 2025, the Kamloops-Thompson Board of Education passed the 2025-2026 Annual Budget Bylaw. To learn more about the 2025-2026 Budget, please read the summary here and watch the 2025-2026 Budget presentation here.

Provincial cost increases are impacting school districts across the province and the Kamloops-Thompson School District is facing significant budget pressures in the 2025-2026 Budget. In the presentation above, you can learn more about the challenges our District and many others around the province are facing as we try to balance the priorities set out for us by government and by our school community, with the realities of inflationary pressures and current provincial funding levels. The District has had to make difficult decisions in order to address cost increases that are not funded by the province, revenue changes, and inflation pressures on Operating Funds, and we have done our best to meet school community feedback.

Community Consultations Themes & Feedback

The 2025-2026 budget was developed after a robust consultation process over four months with staff, parents, caregivers, students, and employee partner groups, including 20 focus group meetings with representatives from the District Parents Advisory Council, CUPE, Kamloops-Thompson Teachers’ Association (KTTA), Kamloops-Thompson Principals’ and Vice Principals’ Association (KTPVPA), District Student Advisory Council, and the Indigenous Education Council (IEC), as well as over 300 survey responses, emails, and letters from parents, caregivers, staff, and community.

On April 9, 2025, the Kamloops-Thompson School District presented the Preliminary 2025-2026 Annual Budget. Following the preliminary budget presentation, District and school communities were invited to provide further feedback until April 21, 2025. We received 94 email responses, four letters, and feedback from employee partner groups that highlighted three main themes. 

  1. Student Support and School Staff: Student support in the classroom and schools was the top priority for parents, staff, and community members. We aimed to minimize the impact on classroom teachers, continue to plan classes to meet students’ needs, and hire teachers based on enrollment. We have added, not reduced, allocations for Certified Education Assistants in classrooms. We have ensured that students have access to both Counselors and Learning Assistance Resource Teachers and have tried to minimize the impact on these roles. We have ensured that students have access to libraries and to their classroom teachers and librarians during library time while also continuing to support school libraries from the District-level.

  2. Curriculum Program Support and District Staff: Parents and staff emphasized the need to maintain curricular programming as well as extracurricular programming and events that support students. We have ensured district level staff can support curriculum such as literacy and numeracy, career education, languages, fine arts, and inclusive education for 2025-2026. Community feedback requested a reduction in district office positions and salaries—we have reduced district level staff in this budget and are 0.2% below the provincial average for district administration. 

  3. Transparency and Trust in the 2025-2026 Budget: Parents, staff, and community asked for more transparency about the accounting error and the 2025-2026 Budget. Reductions in the 2025-2026 Budget are not the result of the accounting error which was addressed this year with strategies we implemented such as reducing district level supplies and services, some staff reductions, and reassignment of district level teachers to support replacing teachers when they were away. We have aimed to present the budget details with transparency, while respecting the privacy of individuals who may be affected by budget reductions. 

Budget Development & Priorities:

The development of the budget involves allocating funding to further the 2022-2027 District Strategic Plan priorities:

  • Intellectual Development: developing literacy and numeracy
  • Human and Social Development: feeling welcome, safe, connected, and a sense of belonging
  • Cultural and Identity Development: knowing oneself and being accepted for who we are personally and culturally without discrimination
  • Career Development: discovering strengths, passions, competencies, and career pathways that enable us to use them
  • Systems Development: taking care of facilities, transportation, information technologies, human resources, and communications

To learn more about each priority, you can review the District Learning Plan At-a-Glance one-page document or the detailed 2023-2024 District Learning Plan. 

Learn more about the Basics of Budget, go here and Budget Pressures here.

Explore the 2025 2026 Community Feedback Comments 

Intellectual Development:

  • Literacy and numeracy supports were a top priority for all groups.
  • Students, staff, and parents emphasized that they highly value literacy and numeracy supports inside and outside of classrooms.
  • Students and parents expressed that they value Schools and Programs of Choice. 

Human and Social Development:

  • Staff and parents emphasized the need to try innovative approaches to meet all students’ needs, including having a “flex pilot” where we have designated spaces and staff all day to do individual and small group work with any student who requires it.
  • Students highlighted how much they appreciate having access to counsellors who not only provide counselling but also help them with scholarship applications and academic program advice.
  • Parents and staff emphasize the importance of support staff for students, including mental health supports, Learning Assistance Resource Teachers, CEAs, and counselors.
  • Students and parents appreciate having time to connect with teachers, support staff, and administrators. 

Cultural and Identity Development:

  • Parents and staff emphasized that they value counselling and mentorship supports for students and culturally relevant and diverse curriculum development.
  • The Indigenous Education Council highlighted the need for students to be connected to cultural teachings to learn about decolonization and culturally appropriate strategies.

Career Education Development:

  • Students, staff, and parents emphasized the importance of academic advisors and Career Education teachers to support post-secondary transitions.
  • Students highlighted the need for support and information that will help prepare them for post-secondary. 
  • Students and parents value having access to career education days and events and rural students and parents value trades career experiences in particular. 
  • Parents and staff highly rated Dual Credit programs (students accessing post-secondary credits or certifications while in high school) and student access to Career Experiential Learning.

Systems Development:

  • Parents and staff highlighted the importance of fiscal responsibility and the need to develop a multi-year budget that identifies upcoming financial needs.
  • Parents and staff highlighted the need for funding and clear timelines for playground and PAC projects.
  • Parents and staff emphasized the importance of safety and maintenance for District facilities.
  • Students, staff, and parents emphasized the need to have continual improvements in technology, including internet access, as it supports creative work and academic learning.
  • Staff highlighted the importance of cybersecurity. 
  • Students, staff, and parents' top priority for transportation was safety.
  • Parents highlighted the need to ensure equity and safety for student transportation.
  • Students, staff, and parents emphasized the need for efficiency while ensuring equitable opportunities are provided. 
Public Consultation – SD73 Annual Budget 2024-2025
Video Presentation
Public Consultation – SD73 Annual Budget 2023-2024
 
Video of 2023-2024 Budget Presentation
Public Consultation – SD73 Annual Budget 2022-2023
Budget Priorities

Draft 2022-2023 Annual Budget Presentation 

2022-2023 Draft Annual Budget – Summary  
  Amount
Operating Fund                          $173,117,257
Capital Fund          13,486,863
Special Purpose Fund     20,534.89
  $207,139,013

 Q&A

Kamloops Thompson Teachers Association
Kamloops Thompson Principals and Vice Principals Association

Budget Feedback from KTPVPA

Thank you for inviting our feedback as you plan financially for the 2022-23 school year.  On behalf of the KTPVPA, I am forwarding our feedback regarding the 2022-23 Budget presented to employee groups on April 5.  Following the budget presentation, the KTPVPA executive met as a committee to discuss issues of importance to our members from a district budget perspective and came up with two initiatives that we feel would be beneficial not only to principals and vice principals, but to the district as a whole through the increased leadership capacity these initiatives would provide to schools.

1. Additional VP positions:

  • Currently there is a significant increase in the number of principals (and vice principals) going on leave due to workload intensification and the resulting stress/mental health impacts. For schools currently with no Vice Principal, could a part-time VP (.2 FTE) be added with a majority of the assignment being teaching (.8 FTE) to reduce the total expense to the district for the position, but still have them on the admin team at the school and able to support the principal and the school to reduce workload and stress on individual school leaders.

2. Itinerant/Mentor Principal:

  • There have been many cases of schools in temporary crisis this year.  With the creation of an Itinerant/Mentor Principal, this person could be assigned as support to such schools as needed, and to also work on special projects supporting various short-term projects/initiatives in the district when not serving in a crisis capacity.  This person could also develop a mentorship program for Principals and Vice Principals which has generally been lacking; currently we have a professional growth plan process that lacks the required ongoing mentorship necessary to make them effective for school leaders.  Ideally this person would be an experienced principal or vice principal in a position to provide the experience necessary for meaningful support.

Thank you for your consideration of our suggestions as part of the budget feedback process.  We would welcome a discussion of the initiatives above in more detail if there is an opportunity to do so (perhaps at our Agreements/Contract meetings).

Respectfully,

Paul Hembling

President - KTPVPA
Public Consultation – SD73 Annual Budget 2021-2022
 

Q&A

 Q. The increase of 4.3% per FTE gives you an increase in operating revenue of $2,644,636 but the increase in teachers and support staff salaries is $2,679,903 for a shortfall of $35,256. This does not include the Health and Carbon Taxes which were previously covered by a separate grant. Can you tell me how much more these three items are this year vs the FTE increases? Can you also tell me the overall % of negative funding per FTE this actually becomes? Thanks - Chris P.

A: Most but not all of the per FTE funding categories in the 2021-2022 Operating Budget increased by 4.3%.

Also, some of the Supplementary grants like Unique Geographic Factors were increased due to Climate and Distance factors determined by the Ministry of Education.

In our initial analysis, if our enrolment was exactly the same next year as this year, overall, our revenue was down by $35,256, or approximately $2.40/FTE student.

The increased cost of the Employer Health Tax – which replaces Medical Service Plan premiums has been phased into District budgets in 2019.

Since that time, the District has increased the budget for annual salary increases with 2% costing approximately $50K per year. This amount will fluctuate as a percentage of total cost of salary increases.

The Carbon Tax related grants were eliminated in 2020. Since then, the total carbon tax expense has been included in the Operating Budget as is estimated at $260,000.

These costs are included in our budget and carry forward from previous years. The District applies for and receives capital funding from the Ministry as part of the Carbon Neutral Capital Plan program and the approved projects fund our HVAC upgrade costs which in turn reduce the District’s overall carbon footprint.
 Q. This year's Budget is $7 million less than last year. Can you tell me if any programs or staff have been cut or reduced to get the budget closer to a balanced situation? - Chris P.

A: In 2020-2021, the District received one time Special Purpose funding from the Ministry of Education (Provincial/Federal Safe Return to School/Class Funds) as a result of COVID-19.

These funds were utilitzed as directed by hiring an additional 17 custodians to increase contact cleaning and frequency for high touch surfaces, as well as the addition of term certain teaching positions at elementary, secondary and the District’s Distributed Learning Program.

This funding assisted District’s in mitigating the effects of COVID-19 by implementing PHO Health and Safety Protocols, purchasing of masks, hand sanitizer, barriers, and Merv-13 HVAC air filters, just to name a few.

The district added 17 custodial positions late in 2020-2021 and have included those positions in the 2021-2022 Operating Fund on a go forward basis.

The term certain teaching positions are scheduled to end at June 30 2021 when the funding ceases. These Special Purpose Funds are not available for 2021-2022.
 Q. You explained where the funds come from for the Operating and Special Purpose Funds but not the Capital Fund. Where does the Capital Funds come from? Chris P.

A: Funding for Local Capital projects comes from:

• Transfer of Operating Surplus to Local Capital

• The sale of land or land and buildings where the District can demonstrate it is the owner, or partial owner of the property when it was acquired.

• Sale of equipment or vehicles

• Interest income on the balance of funds held in Local Capital.

 

Contact Us