Red Deer Public approves 2025-26 budget

The division projects enrolment for the upcoming year to remain stable and unchanged from last school year. In 2024-25, they had 10,826 full-time students.

The division is also anticipating around $2 million in additional funding from the provincial government over the upcoming school year.

Cost pressures impact the division’s financial planning and some of the contributing factors includes an increasing number of newcomer students, rising costs of supplies, utilities, and insurance. As well, there are higher employee costs for the third straight year.

“We appreciate the increase in funding from the provincial government,” Buchanan said. “However, we continue to make tough decisions to prioritize students and staffing. One of these decisions was to not increase comprehensive fees for middle and high school families. We know many families are feeling financial pressure, and we wanted to avoid adding to that burden.”

Despite that, the division has made key investments in the budget which include maintaining staffing levels; continuing a comprehensive bullying prevention program; continuing to support dual credit programming; and adding a 0.6 Academic Support Teacher in all schools to provide literacy and numeracy support for students.

“This budget allows us to maintain the programs and supports that make a difference in students’ lives, even as costs rise and expectations grow,” said Chad Erickson, Superintendent. “We’re continuing to invest in strategies that improve student outcomes and support the mental health and wellbeing of our school communities.”

by rdnewsNOW staff

Red Deer Public approves 2025-26 budget

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