Students join a walk out and protest in support of pay for teachers and funding for schools at the Alberta Legislature in Edmonton, in September. Critics of Alberta’s practice of partly funding private schools say it siphons resources away from an already underfunded system.AMBER BRACKEN/The Canadian Press
Alberta’s decades-old practice of partly funding private schools is coming under fresh scrutiny as public schools sit empty with teachers on strike for the third day this week.
On Tuesday, a citizen-initiated petition was approved by Alberta’s chief electoral officer that would ask if the Government of Alberta should stop allocating public funds to accredited independent schools.
The question will go to a referendum if it receives 177,000 signatures, the threshold that was recently lowered by Premier Danielle Smith’s government to make it easier for referendums to be held.
Private-education funding isn’t a topic at the bargaining table, but the petition has reignited debate over the merits of funding independent schools. Proponents of public schools argue that the practice siphons resources away from an underfunded system that has seen class sizes balloon in recent years.
“We’re talking several hundreds of millions of dollars that are being hived off to private schools … that’s not necessarily what public dollars should be spent on,” said Jason Schilling, president of the Alberta Teachers’ Association.
Negotiations between the province and the union have been at a standstill, but Mr. Schilling said the union may re-enter formal talks with the government “within the next day or two.”
The strike has put more than 700,000 children out of school while 50,000 public, Catholic and francophone teachers are currently off the job.
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Alberta funds non-profit private-school students at 70 per cent of what public-school students receive. The private-school sector is significantly smaller, however, with about 6 per cent of Alberta’s student population attending those schools.
Of its $10.4-billion education budget this year, Alberta has allocated about $461-million for accredited private schools and early-childhood operators.
Private schools are also set to receive a portion of $8.6-billion Alberta has set aside for building new schools, making it the first province to financially support private-school construction.
Across the country, support for independent schools varies. Ontario doesn’t underwrite private schools, while British Columbia funds independent schools at either 35 per cent or 50 per cent of the rates for local public-school districts. B.C. expects to spend more than $589-million on independent schools in its most recent budget, compared with $8.2-billion on public schools.
In 2023, for example, more than 86,000 students in B.C. attended private school, while Alberta’s most recent data says more than 48,000 kids are enrolled in private school and another 23,000 are at a charter school or private early-childhood operator.
Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Quebec also fund independent schools at varying levels.
Parents with children enrolled at independent schools in Alberta also have access to a nearly $500 yearly grant if they drive their kids – or their child drives themselves – to school.
The grant application for the 2023-24 school year, obtained by The Globe and Mail, says the $492.10 payments are sent by cheque to families at the end of the school year. Families with children in Grades 4 to 6 must reside more than one kilometre from the school and kids in Grades 7 to 12 must live more than two kilometres away, the application form says.
The Alberta government did not respond to questions from The Globe by late Wednesday afternoon.
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Proponents of the private-school system say the public funding gives families choice in their education.
John Jagersma, executive director of the Association of Independent Schools and Colleges in Alberta, said the majority of private schools in Alberta charge less than $5,000 a year in tuition. Many of those schools would be forced to raise tuition or risk closing if government grants ended, he said.
“If you take that funding away, you effectively say we’re denying access to choice for families of modest means,” said Mr. Jagersma.
He said private schools will be facing an uphill public-relations battle if the citizen-initiated referendum goes to a vote.
“You’re effectively starting at a 94 to six advantage, as far as parental exposure goes, and you’re trying to move the needle backwards” he said.
Over the course of bargaining, the Alberta Teachers’ Association has centred its public campaign around its own calculations that find the province spends the least per student in Canada at $11,464.
Indeed, some data show that Alberta is among the lowest spenders per student in Canada, though analyses by different groups vary.
Alberta spends the third least on preprimary, primary and secondary-level education among all provinces and territories, Statistics Canada said in a statement – but those calculations don’t disentangle funding for public and private schools.
Statscan said it’s working with provinces and territories to include greater detail around funding for public and private schools.
The Fraser Institute, a conservative-leaning think tank, also estimated last year that Alberta spends the least per student at $13,421.
It’s not obvious that cutting off funds to private schools in Alberta would improve the quality of public schools, said Darryl Hunter, a professor of education policy studies at the University of Alberta.
“Personally, I’m very skeptical that just by shutting down the private educational system that the money can be redirected to pay for salary increases for teachers,” Prof. Hunter said.