Inuvik (Feb 20/04) - With the district education council's current funding formula, students attending the high school from the communities of Tsiigehtchic, Sachs Harbour and Paulatuk are having an adverse affect on the Samuel Hearne's finances, says the school's principal.

Samuel Hearne secondary school principal Peter Hough is concerned that the current funding formula could be detrimental to the high school's funding for next year. - Jason Unrau/NNSL photo

Under the current formula, each education institute administered by the Beaufort Delta Education Council is allocated a certain amount of money, based on its enrolment.

However, the 18 students from out of town are not credited to Samuel Hearne's overall enrolment.

Instead, in what is called the Small Schools Senior Secondary (SSSS) funding, the students are added back to the enrolments of their home community's school and funding is sent there. It is then used to pay the cost of boarding the students in Inuvik.

"I'm fighting for scarce resources already," says principal Peter Hough. "I've got nothing against students coming here but we're paying both ways."

Hough says that not only is the SSSS money going to a community where the students are not attending school, the students themselves are subtracted from the school's enrolment figures, thus affecting the amount of funds the education council allots his school each year.

"Basically, we are subsidizing the boarding of these students," he said. "And with 18 students subtracted from our enrolment it means we could be less one teacher and be out $12,000 in operation and maintenance funding."

Dan Hemming, comptroller for the Beaufort Delta Education Council agrees.

"The school is really getting ripped off," he said, corroborating Hough's estimates on the loss of funding and teaching position for Samuel Hearne.

Hemming says the cost of running the boarding house, which is approximately $385,000 per year, used to be covered in the council's surplus. However, when the surplus "dried up" several years ago, the council looked to alternate funding sources.

He believes that the high school should receive something for these students and communicated this in an e-mail to BDEC Superintendent James Anderson.

At press time, Anderson was unavailable for comment.

When the Drum contacted the department of Education, Culture and Employment, Sue Glowach, departmental spokesperson said the ministry is not responsible for how an education council decides to spend its portion of the $24-million spent each year on education in the territory.

"It really is in the BDEC's court," said Glowach. "We give the communities funding and they decide where and how to split it up."