TVDSB says $1.2 billion preliminary 2024-25 budget outlines significant pressures but 'no job loss'
The Thames Valley District School Board (TVDSB) released its $1.2 billion preliminary budget for the 2024-2025 school year.
Linda Nicholls, associate director of education with the TVDSB said the most important takeaway from the 2024-2025 budget is there will be no job loss for any permanent employee of Thames Valley.
“Everyone will remain within their job classification, they may have a new job assignment, but they will still have the same job classification,” said Nicholls.
The budget outlines ‘significant budget pressures’ that the board says are outside of its control.
Those pressures include unfunded statutory benefits, short-term supply costs for absences, and special education costs, amounting to $30 million.
The budget shows a net reduction of 126.7 staff as a result of funding cuts, reallocation, and attrition. These are full time positions that will become vacant. The board says it will not be filling these positions at this time.
Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario (ETFO) Thames Valley Teacher Local President Craig Smith said we won’t really know the impact of this reduction until the fall.
“What we do know at this point is that it’s very tight in terms of finding places for teachers,” said Smith, adding that part of the challenge the board is facing is continued cuts in funding from the provincial government.
The board said it receives most of its funding from the province, the majority of which is restricted by mandated class sizes, staffing ratios, and contractual labour obligations.
TVDSB said the preliminary $7.6 million deficit budget presented “represents a fiscally responsible, prudent and measured response towards a balanced budget, based on insufficient funding, while still advancing the strategic priorities.”
“Our goal with this budget is to be compliant, and for us that means under $10 million, and we’ve come in with a preliminary budget of $7.5 million deficit. That’s important to us, because we have to strive towards having a compliant budget or balanced budget within two years,” explained Nicholls.
Nicholls said all central departments reviewed and reduced operating expenses by approximately $3 million.
“If funding shortfalls continue, we will continue to face serious challenges serving the needs of Thames Valley schools, staff, and communities,” said Lori-Ann Pizzolato, chair, Planning and Priorities Advisory Committee.
The board will give the budget a final approval on June 25.
TVDSB is the fourth largest school board in Ontario, providing education for more than 84,000 students with 14,000 staff at 159 schools across 7,000 square kilometers.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6962902.1720888158!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
Ambani wedding: The son of Asia's richest man gets married in the year's most extravagant affair
The youngest son of Mukesh Ambani, Asia's richest man, married his longtime girlfriend early Saturday in what many dubbed the wedding of the year, attended by global celebrities, business tycoons and politicians, highlighting the billionaire’s staggering wealth and rising clout.
Dr. Ruth Westheimer, America’s pioneering sex therapist, dies at 96
Dr. Ruth Westheimer, the diminutive sex therapist who became a pop icon, media star and best-selling author through her frank talk about once-taboo bedroom topics, has died. She was 96.
5 people escape hot, acidic pond after SUV drove into inactive geyser in Yellowstone
Five people were able to escape a hot, acidic pond in Yellowstone National Park after the sport utility vehicle they were riding in went off the road and into an inactive geyser, park officials said Friday.
Barbora Krejcikova wins Wimbledon for her second Grand Slam trophy by beating Jasmine Paolini
Barbora Krejcikova kept insisting that nobody — not her friends, not her family, not even herself — would believe she won Wimbledon for her second Grand Slam title.
Investigation underway after bullet lands in south Lethbridge living room
Lethbridge police are investigating after a bullet hole was discovered in a southside home.
French sports minister takes a dip in the Seine ahead of Paris Olympics
French sports minister Amélie Oudea-Castera took a symbolic dip in the Seine on Saturday in a bid to ease concerns about water quality before the start of the Paris Olympics.
What a geriatric doctor wishes you knew now for healthy aging
Longevity isn’t just about living a long life but also about living well. More than one in five Americans will be 65 or older by 2040, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services projects.
Shelling kills 4 in Ukraine as a drone attack sparks fire at an oil depot in Russia
Russian shelling of Ukraine killed three people on Saturday, officials said, as the two countries exchanged drone attacks, one of which set ablaze a Russian oil depot.
Video released of wild police car chase involving white Lamborghini north of Toronto
Police north of Toronto have released dramatic video of a car chase that led officers across York Region in pursuit of a Lamborghini SUV that was clocked at speeds in excess of 200 km/h.